Is there anything I can do about purely hormonal baby blues?

[JuliMummy]

Hello everyone,

I am (very surprisingly) expecting baby number 3. We had not planned to have any more children, so it was quite a shock at first, but now we've come round to the idea and (on the whole) are looking forward to having another child.

There are quite a few things I'm worried about. My second baby was pretty hard on me. The pregnancy was so much more exhausting than the first one, the birth was horrendously painful, the baby blues were awful, and then, just to top things off, she would not let me sleep for 20 months straight. She was a very challenging baby, but has turned into a wonderful and delightful little 2-year-old. So I know it gets better, and I'll be able to have some perspective during the tough times.

What I'm wondering at the moment is whether there is anything I can do to prevent the baby blues from being as horrible as they were the first two times. Basically, I'm fine for the first three days, but then as soon as my milk comes in I just feel so awful. I cry all the time and feel really miserable. In my head I know that everything is fine and that I'm doing really well, but I just feel awful. I'm sure it is purely hormonal, because I'm perfectly fine until the breastfeeding hormones kick in, and I have a strong support network and stable family life. I suddenly improve after 2 weeks, but I don't feel completely right while I'm breastfeeding. But I'm mostly concerned about those first 2 weeks, after that it's manageable. (I know 2 weeks isn't a long time in the scheme of things, but while I'm going through it it seems to last forever.)

When I look up what you can do about the baby blues there is a lot of lifestyle advice, advice on how to improve your circumstances so you can feel more relaxed and so on. But nothing on how to deal with the hormones.

I've had a bit of a look at antidepressants, but it seems they don't really start to work until 3 or 4 weeks after you've started taking them. Is that correct?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Love to all,

Juli

[Mosaic]

Some people see nearly instant results from medication, so if that's an option for you, I certainly wouldn't rule it out. That said, if you're looking for more natural approaches, you may want to consider placental consumption/encapsulation. I also think sunlight and fresh air is essential.

Plus, the fact that you're coming up with a game plan NOW is critical and will help a lot in preparing you and everyone else around you to be looking out for signs of PPD/baby blues and dealing with it quickly and effectively!

[JuliMummy]

Thanks, Mosaic. Would you happen to know whether any proper studies have been done on placental consumption as a way of preventing baby blues and depression? I had a look and couldn't find anything.

[JuliMummy]

Anyone else? 

[HeatherB]

Yes, placenta! It helped me SO much this time! (In fact, I should keep taking some - and my LO is 11mo!) Literally, days when I'd take it I was happy and upbeat and things were GOOD, and days when I had forgotten, things turned south pretty quickly.

Here's some research on placentophagy:
http://placentabenefits.info/research.asp

I had mine encapsulated by a friend who certified with PBi (above). Definitely worth it. It's so beneficial that my dad was even going to pay for my sister's placentas to be encapsulated. She ended up with pre-e and the hospital "tested" them and they were not suitable for consumption after that. Such a loss - it is highly effective.

Fish oil is also very good for depression. You can take it now and ensure you have good reserves.