Getting the most out of therapy
In an unthinkable world where I’m made to choose between therapy and medication I’d choose therapy every time (but, my God, please never make me choose – I’m greedy and want both!). Medication has limitations…
Tag: hope
The battle for acceptance
It’s truly ironic that I blog about depression and advocate on social media to break mental health stigma and yet when it comes to accepting my own battle with PND and anxiety I still have…
Do I love my baby?
Yesterday we had the paddling pool out for the first time. Caterpillar had a lot of fun and then wanted to come and sit with me where I was watching from the picnic blanket. I…
What if this bad thing…is a good thing?
I’ve spent the last six weeks utterly devastated that I’ve had such a nasty anxiety flare-up. I’m bitter and angry and frightened and grieving, there’s no doubt about that. BUT. Big “but”- capital letters “but,”…
The Benefits of Routine
I’ve always been a bit of a planner. Organising others is actually my day job. And I truly believe that a good routine is really helpful when battling PND, and for motherhood in general. When…
Intrusive Thoughts: Horror Movies in my Mind
My experience of postnatal depression was largely rooted in intense anxiety. This is the second of three posts about the worst of my anxiety-induced symptoms (insomnia, intrusive thoughts and derealisation/depersonalisation) and how I managed or overcame each of them. …
The Power of Peer Support
They say it takes a village to raise a child but, in 2015, where the hell is our village? Many cultures around the world celebrate the birth of a new member of their community by…
A Love Letter
Dear Little Caterpillar I thought of you for a long time, way before you were a cell, or an egg or even a twinkle in Daddy’s eye. Way before I knew Daddy. I dreamed of you when I…
Hope is a good thing
“Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.” The Shawshank Redemption I want to talk about the power of hope. Many symptom lists for perinatal mood and…
Grieving The Missing Happiness
Looking at baby photos of your child should evoke wonderful, happy and loving memories of those first months or years together. For me, the love I feel is indeed intense; I squeal at how impossibly…