How to treat PPD?

[mamamoo]

So I was wondering what people do for their PPD? Like I posted in the intro thead I have been taking an herbal tincture that is supposed to balance ones hormones. I think it isn't working as well as it was in the beginning, and I don't want to go on "real" meds(I have BTDT). I know I need to start exercising and eating better, but am in the horrible cycle of I feel like I can't DO anything, but if I did it I would feel better...
Anyone else?

[Foobar]

I started meds. I am on celexa (30mg) daily. I hate taking it, but it has left me clear headed. I don't feel like running away and I don't feel pumpped up on dope or anything. I try to eat well. I am sucky at the exercise thing.

I try to get the rest I need. I am not sure what else to try.

What are you afraid of with the meds? Did you have bad reactions? I was once put on the 40 mg dose and I hated it because I didn't feel like me. Now I do.

I am not pushing the meds, I am just curious what your objections are....don't feel you have to answer, ok?

[kerikadi]

Mamamoo,
I meant to ask you this the other day - What are you taking?

Keri

[Jish]

I'm on Lexapro -- it's the next generation celexa. I take 10mg but have the feeling that I will eventually have to up my dose. I like feeling like myself again most of the time and if antidepressants are what it takes, I will faithfully take them for the rest of my life. I never want to feel that bad again.

[safe womb]

eat your placenta!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! it bits PPD in the butt. you can cook it at a really low heat and crush it into a powder then put it in caps and take it in a pill form. there are also homeopathic rem. that have the placenta in it and that does good too.

[mamamoo]

I was on antidepressants after my daughter was born up until about a year ago. I was on them for almost 3 years. I never did find the "right one". I was trying new ones every few months and the ones that took the bad feelings away also took the good(I didn't realize that until later). IWhen I finally got off them I felt real love for my kids again...you know the big surges where you feel like your heart could just explode? I hadn't felt that since I had started taking the meds. I vowed never to take them again. But now I remember why I did. I needed them I think.

Right now I am taking an herbal balancing tinture. It worked almost immediately, but has begun not working so well in the past few days, so I am at a loss. I can posts the herbs that are in it if you want.

I think that I have suffered from depression for most of my life(even as a little kid I got tons of stress headaches and belly aches), maybe it is more anxiety based...I don't really know. My sister was diagnosed as bi-polar, I tend to wonder if that may be why the meds didn't work before.

Anyway, I'd better go do my motherly duties:wink

[JesseMomme]

OH shoot I erased my entire post on accident :crying That is the third time that has happened to me today, what is up? Ok, going to try again.

safewomb, would defrosting a placenta and then trying to dry it out still work?

I had mild PPD and paralizing anxiety with my first baby and horrible PPD and the same anxiety with my second baby. With my first I didn't know what was "wrong" with me, even though I consulted my Dr at the time about it, who just said I wasn't feeling myself due to leftover fluctuating preggo hormones and that may last up to a year, would I like a script? I declined the meds, saying I would wait and see, and basically clueless, rode the waves alone until my ds was a year old. I didn't really figure out what was wrong with me the first time until I was at rock bottom with my second who was a few months old at the time.

But how I handled it the second time around...

I learned to recognize when a bout of anxiety was about ti get out of hand and I was unable to "think" my way out of it, I would take several drops of Bachs rescue Remedy and drop them into a cupful of water and then drink the whole thing really fast. (You can drop it straight from the dropper into your mouth but I thought it tasted blech) I would wait a few minutes and do it again if I felt the need, and usually after that would feel more in control of how I was feeling.

I declined the option of meds. I don't discourage meds, but I feel they are not for me. I didn't seek out therapy of any kind really. I had lost all faith in Dr's at that point in time and I also blamed much of my PPD on my two traumatic hosptial births and felt that anyone with any kind of initials after their name would not understand that at all, even find the idea laughable. I'm sure with my clearer head now that there are many proffesionals who would agree with me, but at the time, every Dr I had dealt with up until my son was 4 months old sure would not have agreed with me (they would have shrugged me off with oh at least you have a healthy baby or some other end justifies the means excuse) so I sure didnt' feel like seeking out more ridicule of how I felt/what I thought. I also have a few family members who are on MAOI (is that the correct initials? lol) s and it seems every time they try to go downa bit they go nuts and need to go back to the original dosage level, if not a higher level. Who wants to take a pill their whole life I thought? I'm sure the drug companies want you to though! :p

I am forever grateful to a beautiful friend of mine. She recognized my PPD right away as she had been through it herself the year before I had gone through it. She would call me often even though it was long distance for her, just to brighten up my day with some adult chit chatter (I had no other adults I could really relate tom abd talked to babies all day otherwise) She emailed me every day almost and we met a few nights a week in IM's. She would listen to any/all of my crying and ranting and was a true beacon of support.

Sleep when the baby sleeps was a nugget of advice that I got alot durng my first pregnancy but unlike a lot of common unsoliscited advice that stood out as a trueism. Sleep was invalueable, although yes it is hard to get much with a new baby in the house I did it. Nothig makes my mood more afoul like being tired, and when I am tired it gets worse and worse. I hated my kid seeing me like that, espeicially my oldest. It is also harder with an older child to care for....when my toddler wouldn't take a nap when the baby would I popped in a favorite movie and snoozed on the couch with him next to me. I thin I started c-sleeping not out of wonderful tales about the love and joy for the family bed (a concept I didnt' really "know" about when I started wth my first) but because I needed to sleep and it was rediculous to et out of bed and stumble over to a crib and pick up a hungry and wet infant when you could just roll over at the first sign of movement, let them eat and be asleep within minutes. So what if the dishes need to be done...throw them in the sink in hot water and let them soak while you take a nap. The caked on food will be easier to wash later on that way anyways.

Breastfeeding was invalueable. In what seemed to be a mess of failures, ( my births, et all)

breastfeeding was my victory. I felt no matter what I had forged through so much and I could claim breastfeeding as my little proud moments throughout the day. It took the edge off to say the least. I now know that breastfeeding releases oxytocin and prolactin into your bloodstream and these are hormoes we can use lots of!! I can only think that detatchment parenting bottlefeeding moms must be miserable with out those little boosts throughout the day.

It sounds cheesy to say because so many people suggest it but getting dressed and gettin gout of the house, even it was to go to the PO and pick up junk mail or to the store and get milk, amde me feel better. I'm not exactly a trip to the park person, but I tried little walks around the block, with or with out kids, and I would feel more normal. My mom was always wanting to go on marathon walks around town so I'd let her talk me into going with her for some motivation to just get moving. Sometimes just getting dressed and getting the kids cleaned up and dressed was enough to make me feel ok about the day.

One thng I feared during my last pregnancy was having to deal with PPD again. I began to feel that if I feared it, it would come, (Think Field of Dreams, "If you build it they will come") so I started saying belief suggestions, things similar to "I will have a beautiful birth and the time afterward will be happy" or "I will be happy with my new baby and my life" or "I am stong and can weather any storm that may come though" because lets face it happy or not life throws curveballs and in the past life's ups and downs would throw me for loops during PPD, whereas I am normally very good and taking things in stride and accepting how things are. I knew one important thing I had to do was have the birth that I wanted. Unlike my first two pregnancies, my third was stress free, and the birth was so simple and beautiful, with no one arround to annoy me or do things I didn't want done or even hurt us (as done in the past), it was just me and baby and that is what I needed.

I still have my bad days where I am feeling overwhelmed, and the holdidays were difficult...lots of family kept staying over at our place, Dh became a virtual stranger working 80 hr weeks (I amnot kidding) it felt rough for me for a while adjusting to life with three and no outside help, again I am alone in a town where I dont' know anyone and have no adult to relate to, (and dh has the car all day for work),I dealt with CPS, my gawd the last six weeks have been nuts! But I have been ok and I am hanging in there.

Well I am going to close, I hope my suggestions are of help to someone (let's see if I can post this before I accidnetly hit a bad key or something and erase everything :p)

Jesse :lady
Mommy to Kieran (3), Donovan (21 mos) and Liam (6 weeks)

[Jish]

I think that sleep, or the lack thereof, can be a huge trigger for PPD or depression. I think it was the trigger for me. You can't go for almost a year with only three hours of sleep a night (and not in a row) and not expect to deal with some sort of depression. Unfortunately, for me it is the anxiety that pushes me over the edge. I think that someday I will be able to get off the meds and know when I need to get back on them. It will be a cycle I deal with my whole life. It doesn't mean that it doesn't stink, but at least I know how to deal with it now.

[Envision]

I have had on and off depression my whole life but went into a deep depression after we lost our baby and then after the birth of our ds some months later.
Before that it was mostly seasonal and I just kind of found ways of coping somehow...

Medication would never have been an option of me as I can't even stand the thought was taking tylenol...so I definetly would never have taken something that alters my brain...that is just me...

I started putting a drop of lavender essential oil in the bottom of both my feet at night and within a very short time, I regained motivation, I was alert and was starting to get excited about life...
I don't use any specific oils for my depression anymore, I think I am depression free because of using oils period.

Hope you find something that works and helps you,
Oils :flower

p.s. have you tried taking an omega-3 supplement and cutting sugar out of your diet??

[mama2girls]

I take Paxil and it works for me. And if I have to take it every day for the rest of my life I will. I want to be the best mom I can be to my dd's and this drug allows the me to show through. Yes, it's strange to me that a drug can do this, but obvioulsy something in my body changed after the first birth that caused my moods/hormones to get funky. I know that using psych meds are not for everyone, but they are right for me!

[safe womb]

jessemama- yes it would work:love

[Jish]

Lavender oil under my feet wouldn't have cut it for me. My clinical depression was severe to the point where I couldn't get out of bed and thought that there was something very physically wrong with me. That is why my dh took me to the hospital that night. We were shocked when the diagnosis was clinical depression. Now, of course it all makes sense.

As for the antidepressants. I'm glad when people can deal with their depression with alternative treatments. I wish that I could. But I feel very lucky that there are medications that can replace the seretonin that is somehow lacking, or not getting through in my brain. It is a brain chemistry issue. I hope that I will be able to go off them within a year when my brain chemistry gets corrected, but I know that I will have to go on them again from time to time in the future. I have a strong genetic factor in my family so it is a given for me.

Living like I was living was no way to live. If anyone ever wants to hear the whole story, I'd be glad to post it. Warning, it's depressing.:LOL

[shematrix]

Celexa

exercise

lots of water and (try) to eat well

get sleep(hard sometimes as I have insomina)

learning that it is o.k. to ask for help from family or friends. Hard for me, I never wanted anyones help for anything in the past.

Brenda

[mama2girls]

Sheamatrix-
Amen!! :D

While the thought of lavender oil on my feet is nice, it also would not have worked for me. I was already entertaining thoughs of leaving my life when I was diagnosed. (A sign of the ppd--but I didn't know it.) Unlike some of the common symptoms/thoughs, I was more likely to think of hurting myself not my baby. I'm afraid of myself when I am in the throes of depression.

[Envision]

jbcjmom,

I don't think that I ever said that lavender would work for everyone...I said it worked for me.

I also didn't say that everyone should feel the same about taking medication, I was saying why I never did...

Along with using eo, I also changed my diet and am working on improving my emotional and spiritual health as I believe that wellness comes from taking care of mind, body and soul.

If you feel comfortable with your decision, then why pick on me and what I am doing and feel comfortable with??? I do believe that the original poster asked what others were doing and that she would rather not take meds...
I don't see how my post was or is saying anything against those who chose to take medications.

I slept almost constantly during my 2nd pregnancy and was able to blame it on the pregnancy, and then after ds was born, I slept at least 8 hours at night and then had to drag myself out of bed, and slept anywhere from 4 to 6 hours during the day (when ds was sleeping) and if I was not sleeping, I was sitting on the couch trying to stay awake...
If that is not a depressing life and story, I don't know what is...maybe yours is worse, I have no idea...I don't think comparing pain is logical when it comes to depression...
Using eo worked for ME, that is all I was saying...

Oils :flower

[pegmom]

Lavender oil is wonderful stuff, no doubt about it. I used to mix some in a very hot bath to stop panic attacks and I think it helped. In the end, however, I hate to say it, but it is all about the drugs. The guilt of taking them (Prozac) is often overwhelming but it is much better than being incapacitated. I just got a book by Gabriel Cousens called "Depression Free for Life" that talks about how to combat depression with diet, exercise, etc. without drugs. We'll see. I am, of course, always willing to try anything else. I also have just started with a very good therapist and am hoping for good results. My advice would be to "shop around", so to speak, until you find someone you click with.
BTW, I thought lavender oil was primarily used for relaxation purposes. If I am sleeping all the time because of depression would something stimulating be better? Just wondering, oilsforever, because you said you were sleeping alot but used lavender to help give you a lift. Please advise as I know little about eo. Thanks.

[Foobar]

Oils,

I think jbcmom was simply trying to express that there are different levels of PPD. Some women are lucky enough to not need to resort to meds while others have no choice. I didn't read it as an attack, I read it as "that must be nice, but this is my experience"

Foo

[mama2girls]

Oils,

I really hope you don't think that anyone was attacking your alternative forms of treatment. I personally *wish* that my ppd was treatable in a less expensive way. (Although I don't know how expensive lavender oil is!! LOL!) There are amazing things to be said for a hot bath, foot massage, the right scent, and time to your self. I enjoy hearing what works for others. It's nice to be an informed person.

[JesseMomme]

Unlike some of the common symptoms/thoughs, I was more likely to think of hurting myself not my baby. I'm afraid of myself when I am in the throes of depression.
I think I may have forgotten to add another symptom I had was the intruding thoughts. I didnt know it at the time because all descriptions of that were of moms having horrifying thoughts of hurting their own baby, I didnt get it quite like that. I once in a while was a fraid of hurting myself, but it was mostly having the unshakable feeling that some outside person would hurt us all somehow. I lived in a half a horse town yet I perpetually kept my door locked whenever dh wasn't home usually at work. At night was the worst after the kids went to bed.
I couldnt even begin to tell anyone how to make *that* go away.
Jesse :lady

[Jish]

Oils, I'm sorry if you felt that I was attacking you. That was in no way my intent.:hug I was simply doing what Foo said, stating that there are differing degrees of severity of depression and what works for one may not work for all. I was sick basically from May of last year until I was diagnosed in mid September. I could tell you the whole story, but it would take a LONG time. In a nutshell, I had been having heart symptoms, had multiple heart tests run only to be told I was fine. The anxiety just continued to grow. I constantly lived in fear that I was going to have a heart attack and my kids were going to grow up without a mother. I spent the summer having what I thought were heart episodes, but now know were panic attacks. They happened several times a week and scared me to death. By mid August I was feeling constantly nauseaus. I couldn't sleep but all I could do was lay in bed with my eyes closed. I couldn't move, I couldn't take care of myself or my kids. My mil came for a week to help but then had to go home.

On my first trip to the ER I was diagnosed with a panic attack. The next day my doc put me on Paxil and Xanex. I only got worse. My doc would only say "Take another Xanex" when I would repeately call and tell her that I couldn't function. I was scared for myself and for my kids. I thought that I must be dying from something that they just couldn't diagnose.

One day my friend begged me to bring my kids to her house. I don't know how I dragged myself out of bed, strapped my kids in the car and got them there in a Xanex fog, but I did. On the way home I was praying to God to let someone hit my car. That way the ambulence would come and they would take me to the hospital and someone would help me. My doctor certainly wasn't.

When my dh stopped at home (my friend had called him to tell him how bad I was) I told him about my wanting to get hit, and told him that I couldn't go on like this anymore. I didn't want to die, I just wanted someone to help me.

He did. That night he took me to the ER and I was diagnosed with clinical depression and admitted for six days. I was put on Lexapro and Ativan. I slept for most of the first two or three days. I don't remember much. I had lost ten pound and was down to 100 pounds, I was constantly nauseous, it was awful. Looking back I can't remember how I must have felt. How I couldn't even get out of bed to take a shower. I hope to never feel like that again.

For me my medication has been my savior. I was way to sick to be treated in any other way. It was the scariest time in my life because I could see why people with depression sometimes kill themselves and it scared me to death.

Please don't think that I was down on your post. I wish I were a person who could be treated by natural therapies. Perhaps once I get it under control I will be able to go off the meds and deal with it naturally, but I have a long way to go. I think that the suggestion of essential oils is a wonderful one. My point was that some depression is simply too severe to be treated that way. Drugs are an alternative and I hate to see people fear them. Going on AD's doesn't mean you are tied to them for life. In fact most people will be able to go off of them within a year or so, and many will never have to go on them again. Then again there are people like me who have a genetic link and will struggle with it through their lives.

I appreciate your input, Oils, keep the wonderful suggestions coming. Women need to know their options and explore what works for them.:love

[mama2girls]

JesseMommy,

Isn't it amazing what the human brain can put us through? Even though I was bfing dd#1, I felt totally worthless. I actually got in the car one afternoon and drove around by myself crying for an hour (after dh got home from work and took dd, of course) before I could finally admit that something was wrong with me. And of course I always blame myself.

Jenni

[Envision]

Hi girls,
Thanks for the positive thoughts, I didn't mean to throw a hissy fit...
I have stopped posting my ideas and suggestions due to others on other threads being bullies...so when I posted here I was on guard...sorry to freak out!!!

In the quest for good health,
Oils :flower

[Kirsten]

I think ALL suggestions are helpful to someone. It is hard to say something that you haven't tried wouldn't work for you. A friend once said that "that breathing" wouldn't have worked anyway (regarding childbirth classes - which she never took) during her labor. I know she believed it to be true but she didn't give it a shot so how do you really know?
I had PPD with dd2. It was not as bad as some but it was pretty bad for me. A friend who was in al-anon for families (her dh was a heroin addict) once told me (when I was apologizing for complaining about something) that just because she had two broken legs didn't mean my one broken leg didn't hurt. I thought that was a good analogy.
No, getting out for a walk will not cure PPD but a little fresh air couldn't hurt and maybe you'll run into a friend down the block who will tell you something funny and make you laugh for the first time in weeks.
I understand those who have posted about not feeling comfortable taking drugs for their PPD. I did not either. Dh tried to get me to, begged me really. But I just couldn't. Variety of reasons. So for those of us who have/had PPD that was awful but maybe not dangerous (if you KWIM), trying non-med options can work. If PPD comes back with baby #3 (due in May) I will try the lavender oil! If nothing else, I bet it smells good! :)
Kirsten

[mamamoo]

I wanted to thank all of you wonderful mamas for posting what worked for you. I still don't know what I'm going to do. I am so thankful for these boards(and cloth diapers-I know I'm weird, but it's where I get some enjoyment lately), and for you great moms!!!
Debi

[JesseMomme]

Hey Mamamoo I was going to respond to you in the other thread in Diapering :LOL

I made the switch to cloth when my second son was about two months old and that was when the PPD was kicking in full gear. What started out as reasons being health concerns and cost and then environmental concerns soon became something really fun to look forward to during the day, whether it was picking a diaper out for ds, hunting down bargains on auctions (Mothersnature was really hopping back then, but isns't so much anymore) or "windows98shopping" :LOL (Would now be WindowsXPshopping) it really became a fun hobby that I could integrate wtih my still new mommying job, (Was my second baby in less than 2 years) when I coudln't really figure out how to find time for other things I used to enjoy. Whereas otherwise it was way too easy to nurse at the keyboard :thumb

Jesse :lady who had too much :coffee

[Eosine]

I found meds really helped me to look into why alternatives work! Relaxing (with lavender), sleep, positive thinking, etc. really help to change a cycle of stress on the body around and help it "heal" so you can start making good drugs for your brain again!

Anxiety and stress bring on a cycle of bad feelings and tight muscles that are neverending! I learned some deep breathing methods and other relaxation-coping skills, etc. for when I start to "get up there" with anxiety and tightness. Constant stress wears on you, and you have to learn to stop the cycle.

I see Envision has figured that out, and I eventually have to...

Right now I feel like I'm falling back into it...seasonal. With a baby it is hard to find the time for the exercise my body requires, and it's hard to get out in the snow and cold to "get out of the house". Reading other peoples' stories helps, but I get afraid I will fall too far down again. Then I might need meds again. I just have to get through baby's first months and winter, and I know I'll be fine...sighgh!

[clover]

Wow it has been along time since I have posted on Mothering, but here I am. Reading all of these posts gave me such mixed feelings- comfort in knowing I am not the only one, affirmation that yes your brain chemicals can do these things to your body, sympathy for those who are having to deal with it, and heart palpitations remembering just how bad it was. Jbcjmom my story sounds so much like yours, ER visits, many heart tests living in constant fear that I was dying of something and my son would be with out me. If I even heard the word cancer I would have instant diareah(sp?). I bounced between super intense anxiety-super sensitive eyes, ticking, headaches, feeling like I needed to jump out of my skin with no relief, to feeling so drained I could barely walk around my house I'd bend down to look under the bed for something and then just lay there for 15 minutes cause I just couldn't get back up, I get really car sick now too. There were so many more symptoms it would take alot of typing but you get the picture. It all started when I had my son almost 3 years ago. It has been a long road. I did not go on meds. although they were prescribed for me. I tried homeopathy, motherwort, rescue remedy, yoga...... I still suffer from it but it is much much milder. One thing that really helped me was just gathering info about it once I convinced myself that No I am not dying and yes your brain chemistry can do this and yes I have a low stress tolerence and have reached the limit and then fallen over the edge. Some people have a low stress tolerence and just get frazzled over simple everyday things. I think I had a lot going on and I was pushed into this state.Somethings that were going on-Being a new mother, My son did not sleep through the night until after his second birthday and so I averaged 3 hours of sleep a night for 2yrs(this was the biggsest trigger) Then when he did sleep I had insomnia so bad I couldn't. My partner and I had just purchased a house that ended up needing to be torn down and rebuilt ,so after work he went there-had to, so we could move in. It took 2yrs. He was gone from 7am til 11pm. I had just opened a new tea shop with a friend(plus I have 2 other business all that I can do with my son) and more, there was so much going on and Iwas way stressed out. When I look back I don't know how I did all that stuff while I was so sick. We are now in our house, I am no longer doing the tea shop, things are settling down and I feel some relief. I am still not who I was pre Baby. I wonder if I ever will be. I do believe my brain chemicals are screwy now, but I am gonna keep on trying to conquere with out meds(I am not knocking those who use them at all!!! I have a pack of zoloft in my cabinet just sitting there because I can't seem to throw them away. So many times I have cried"I just want to be normal again, I just to want feel like myself again!" I haved reached the point of "I can't live like this anymore(not suicidal, just desperate for something to give)I was all about the meds at those times but got scared reading things about hem online). It is funny I started this reply to be helpful to others but instead I am helping myself by letting this out to others who can really understand. Because although my friends and family have been so very supportive, they still don't know just how intense it can be and how you so don't have control over it, you can't just talk yourself out of it(I have really tried though). So once again Mothering mamas Thanks for listening, and bless you all, I wish you all the power to get over this crazy thing, and I firmly bleieve it is possible. Clover

[Sherricp]

I'm another one who had to go for the drugs, although I am hoping if I do some of the alternative stuff in advance, especially diet, then it might prevent it next time. Oh, besides drugs, the most helpful thing was to stop working, LOL. I was just too stressed and tired. Thinking about what may lower the stress level for you may help. Getting out of the house, being with other Moms. Sleep is oh so important. If you're nursing stay as close to sleep as possible when you wake at night. If you're not bfing, get someone else to get up with the baby.

Take people's help, especially people willing to come over and clean!

_Potatoes Not Prozac_ is probably the best diet book I've seen. She also has a website www.radiantrecovery.com but it is kind of a slow program. You could, however, do protein for breakfast at least and add the potato snack and multivitamin and get some result from that. I also think that soy may help me since low estrogen is really a trigger for me. There's also some kind of self-help book for PMS/PMDD that would probably be helpful for other hormonal depressions.

One of the best alternatives for me was, in fact, essential oils. I used lavender at night and citrus oils during the day, especially grapefruit eo.

Also one herbal thing I learned too late was that herbs that promote milk production will often make your depression worse, so watch the fenugreek, blessed thistle, etc.

Sherri

[Eosine]

Some good information, thank you! I've been getting worse this past week, lack of exercise in the cold snap. My diet could be better too, I'm appreciating all these reminders.:thumb

[Jish]

Glad to have you back, Clover. Anxiety is a killer, isn't it.

To everyone, I just read a really interesting article about depression in the Jan 20th issue of TIME mag. It talked about how depression is linked to so many different illnesses, including heart attacks, cancer, parkinsons, diabetes, epilepsy, among others. While I dislike having to rely on meds to feel normal, I feel better after having read that article. I have felt totally normal this past month and it has been wonderful. I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop.