Just what was I expecting anyways?

[JesseMomme]

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[Breathless Wonder]

Jesse, are you taking any extra B vitamins, and extra zinc?

I need to find the references for you, but it might help a little...

[EllasMama]

Jesse, is there anyone to whom you can turn and say, "I need help. I need you to help me. Help me now, please." Of course you're let down after going all the way to see someone you HOPED was going to start down the path to helping you, only to end up with a partially crossed-off list of more people to call. Imagining the effort it probably took to get there, I'm soooo sorry it was a let-down. I understand how it feels to have very limited energy and to just feel like you wasted so much.

BUT, you have to keep moving and trying to get help. Since your energy is limited by even mild depression, it would be great if you could enlist someone to "run point" and help you jump through some of the hoops. Even if your DH thinks its a waste of time, would he be willing to make some calls for you, get you scheduled with one of the counselors?

I understand not wanting to try meds right away. Good therapy would be a great assistance in helping you make a decision as to whether you want to go there or not. I say good therapy b/c if a therapist just wants you to get a pill right away, they are NOT doing their job. They should help you find your way to that decision.

I take Lexapro and will say this: If you find you just can't get motivated to make any changes that will help start to improve your life, an antidepressant can really help you get moving. I don't say that to add to the bandwagon telling you to take it, and I absolutely wouldn't recommend it as a first course of action for you. But if you find a decent therapist and work on things and STILL find you're not making progress, it can be a boost to help you get back on track. Sometimes the brain is too out of kilter for lifestyle changes alone to work. But lots of times lifestyle changes like therapy and exercise and vitamins ARE enough.

Good luck. Take some time to feel the irritation from today, then start over. And do try to find someone who can help you if that's possible. Even someone who can call from afar to say, "yeah, you go, you can do it" will help.

Warmly,
Carol

[Foobar]

I'm sorry you had a bad experience and your DH can't see what you are experiencing.

My first try at theorpy had this woman insisting that my depression was because I was associating my dd birth with a past sexual assult Umm, no....

Anyway, I would suggest to keep trying to get someone to talk to. I am also on lexapro (and pregnant) and I find it helps when the days seem overwelming. It does give me that extra stability to handle things like the barf in my car and all over me... Sigh...

I would express that it is NOT suicidal, but more than just the blues. It is so hard to quantify depression and to leave it to those extremes is basically an insult to you.

Sending you some hugs. I hope you can get some help....

BTW- it took me 3 months with Goo to figure it out and 2 months with my pregnancy with Moo. However I was really trying to make it all 9 months without going back on meds. I did know that I was heading towards a crash and I needed serious help...

Don't feel you HAVE to take meds. I would never push someone to that route....

[saintmom]

Have you ever tried motherwort?I've had really good luck with the tincture injuice or mint tea.scullcaps another good one.Susan Weeds got a good ppd tea recipie in her book on the childbearing year.

[myjo]

I'm so sorry you're going through such a difficult time. It's so discouraging to feel unsupported.

I've been dealing with depression and anxiety during this pregnancy too, and I'm also due in August. This is my third, and I'm feeling quite overwhelmed.

My first trimester I had what could only be described as a nervous breakdown. Fortunately, my midwife is an ND and was able to give me a supplement called Seraphos which seemed to lift the weight just enough to make it bearable. Then I got a very high potency of a homeopathic remedy (Ignatia). That one dose completely took care of it for about a month.

If I could choose, I would definitely try to find a good homeopath to follow through with the treatment. But alas, there are none where I live. So I think I will go back on the Seraphos. After I have the baby I will hopefully be able to address the underlying health issues, as it wouldn't be prudent to detox at this time.

So I just wanted to let you know that counseling or drugs are not the only two options. I know you are limited financially, but maybe you could find out if there are laws in your state that require all insurances to pay for alternative care. There is in my state. Even if the insurance says it won't pay, sometimes an alternative practitioner can pull some strings and get them to pay. It may be worth a try. Anyway, my ND is only 30 dollars a visit, so we just pay it. It's less expensive then buying insurance that would cover her.

And here are some websights that might help you find some treatments you can do yourself in addition to the counseling and hopefully wouldn't be too expensive:

www.mercola.com/2002/may/18/depression.htm

www.mercola.com/2001/april/11/exercise.htm

http://www.mercola.com/2003/dec/17/v...depression.htm

www.mts.net/~baumel/depression.html

www.gsdl.com/assessments/finddisease/depression/

http://www.healthy.net/asp/templates...Article&ID=425

[JesseMomme]

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[majazama]

s I understand how you feel. I am very short on cash as well, and I'm concerned about getting PPD. So far, in the pregnancy I haven't felt overly s which is good. I only hope that this feeling continues after the stress of delivery. I'm having a UC, as well BTW.

things I'm doing right now...
b vitamens
eating as healthily as I can
going to use my placenta as medicine after baby is born
taking it easy
laying in the sunshine
getting "exercise" or just keep moving (hard not to do with a 1 1/2 YO)

You have more than one child so I imagine that it is a lot harder for you to "just relax" and "take it easy". s again.

Truth be known, I think I am surviving because I live in my mom's basement suite, so I now have all the support I need. My mom isn't going to get a job, and is surviving on the rent that I give her, just so that she can help me once the new baby arrives. I found it so hard to live with my partner in a house in the country where I was isolated all day while he was working.

Women need each other. Do you have someone who could help you? It's too bad that your partner is not very supportive of your efforts to get therapy.___men___

I asked my family doc about taking meds before the birth and she didn't think that was a good idea, unless I had *really* bad depression. She seemed to think it was not safe unless I was in danger of harming myself or my children, which I am not. If I get PPD after this birth, I want to do all the nutritional/herbal/homeopathic therapy that I can afford before doing meds. I really don't trust em'.

Anyways that's my story hope it helps!!!

[magemom]

I just had this super long post disapear but I will not cry.

I will say now that I am also due in Aug and taking Zoloft. I started alternatives to meds first but felt myself slipping further and further down and didn't feel I oculd wait any longer to see if they helped.

I hope today was a lazy day and not the start of a problem.... I am so tired, I think I will go to bed. All kids are with DH downstairs- he can deal with them.

[JesseMomme]

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[majazama]

jesse, you've gotta do what you've gotta do! If that means staying out longer than usual getting your errands done, then so be it. Your DP will have to make do, like you do "24/7".... I wish you had someone you could lean on!!!! It does sound like the lady you made friends with wasn't much of a help if she only found you useful to babysit HER kid.

I feel so lucky to have my mom here to help me. I don't know how you do it. I found it soo hard to stay at home alone all day with ONE baby, and you have THREE!!!

That's rough if you are feeling depressed before the baby is even here. I have *slight* depression right now, but after my DD was born, I was like a zombie. So I'm getting prepared for the worst. I always like to think that there is other ways of dealing with those feelings other than meds. things like...
(jumbled thoughts)...
going out into the middle of the woods and really letting loose all those emotions, screaming and crying as loud as you want....
the liver is the centre of anger, and holding the emotions in there (mainly anger) can cause depression, or so I've read. So, by that, taking liver-supporting herbs (ie.. dandelion, yellowdock...) you can help the liver "digest" those emotions more easily. I take some liver herbs occationally.

I bought some of that super expensive "nutracuticles" fish oil that tastes like lemon and rosemary. I think that really will help after the birth, and I'm taking it right now as well, to get my body "stocked". I'm going to be BF my toddler AND the NB, so I imagine THAT will take a lot out of me, nevermind the hormonal roller-coaster.

about placenta, I had a thread going here on that, and there were some links posted...http://www.mothering.com/discussions...light=placenta

[JesseMomme]

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