# Raising awareness for Prenatal Depression



## lily123

Okay so we know about POSTnatal depression, but what do we all know about PREnatal depression? 

I was reading this artice on the internet about it, and it certainly sounds like awareness needs raising!
Many expecting mothers suffer from this, but it has known to fail to be diagnosed by doctors and often has had horrible effects :(

Just thought people should read this, it's an article from The Guardian.



"Pregnancy is supposed to be a joyous time. Pregnant women, so the cliche goes, bloom and glow. For many women, though, this is is not the case. "As the days passed, nothing could distract me from the darkness rolling in," says Jodie Santos, a documentary film-maker who suffered a severe depression while pregnant with her first baby. "I started having panic attacks, usually when I couldn't sleep, and I knew I was in trouble."

Researchers estimate that around one in 10 pregnant women develop some degree of depression. Much has been done to raise awareness of postnatal depression, but studies show that a woman is more likely to be depressed while 32 weeks pregnant than she is eight weeks after the baby is born. But it is only now that prenatal depression is catching the attention of GPs, midwives and health visitors.

Being depressed in pregnancy means experiencing anything from anxiety, irritability and sadness, to obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), agoraphobia and suicidal thoughts. Not much is known about why this happens. It could be down to hormonal shifts or any number of psychological or social factors: a history of depression or anxiety, an unplanned pregnancy, relationship stress, a lack of support from family or friends, a previous miscarriage or stillbirth, a past trauma or concern about the future. What seems undisputed is that pregnancy depression can happen to any woman, regardless of her personal circumstances or psychiatric history.

Delphi Ellis, a mother of two from Bedfordshire, "sailed through" her first pregnancy. A few years later, she suffered a miscarriage. She conceived again, but when 18 weeks pregnant, experienced some bleeding. "I went into a spin of panic," she says. "Though the baby was fine, I started to go downhill mentally."

She began going to the loo every 15 minutes in order to check that she was not bleeding. Then she started compulsively washing her hands. "I was afraid that I would somehow infect the baby and then he would die." This worry became overwhelming, "I would lie in bed and cry for three or four hours at a time. I felt completely out of control. I knew that if mother nature decided on a stillbirth or a premature baby there was nothing I could do. I became so obsessed with hygiene that once, when a woman brushed against me in town, I had to go home and wash. I didn't use makeup, or creams, or wear perfume in case it harmed the baby. I wouldn't even eat takeaways. It was an appalling, helpless feeling of huge anxiety."

As the weeks ticked by the depression deepened. "It got so I couldn't sleep for more than a couple of hours at a time. I felt isolated. I started comfort eating - I put on three stone in the last eight to nine weeks of the pregnancy. I washed my hands so much they cracked and bled. At one point, late in pregnancy, I stood at the top of the stairs and thought, "If I throw myself down, they'll have to take me in and deliver the baby."

Ellis's partner put the tears down to stress and hormones. "He was wonderful, but I was able to hide the true extent from him," she says. "It was like being two people: I knew I was being irrational, but the behaviour also seemed logical to me. The fears were layered on to one another - the fear of harming the baby, the fear of the baby dying, the fear that I was going mad."

For Santos, her profound sense of connection to her unborn child both inflated and soothed her depression: "I have read that being pregnant is the closest you'll ever get to the other side," says Santos, "with the soul inside of you straddling the worlds of darkness and light. Even in my most difficult moments, I have always felt this joy radiating from the life within me."

Sharing such complex feelings with others can feel impossible. Many women say that the pressure to sound upbeat while pregnant is immense. Nicky Stanley, professor of social work at the University of Central Lancashire, has studied how women with depression in pregnancy are treated by health professionals. "It can be very hard to disclose depressed feelings during pregnancy," she says. "The reactions can vary so widely." While some midwives, health visitors and GPs are very supportive, "some women say they were treated condescendingly, or not taken seriously."

Many midwives avoid asking difficult questions, says Stanley, "because they know that if they open the Pandora's box, they simply will not have the resources to offer the support that the woman will need." This year's guidance from the National Institute of Clinical Excellence on mental health in pregnancy and afterwards attempts to tackle such problems, outlining questions for midwives to ask pregnant women at their early appointments, including whether they have felt depressed, and whether there is anything they need or want help with. But clearly, many women will still slip through the net.

Ellis has set up a website and support group to help those women. Through this network, she sees the far-reaching effects of these depressions: "One woman had been desperate for a baby, but by the time she was four months pregnant she had become practically catatonic with anxiety, believing she would never be a good enough mother. She went to the GP who told her to 'just get on with it'. She terminated the pregnancy, and regretted it deeply."

It is important, then, for family, friends, partners and health professionals to take this problem seriously - to provide support, to listen and to find help. "The worst-case scenario is suicide," says Stanley. According to government statistics on maternal death, "mental health problems are the largest identifiable cause of death in the perinatal period." There is also a danger that a depressed woman will struggle to care for her other children. She may self-medicate using alcohol, cigarettes or drugs, struggle to eat well or show up at antenatal appointments.

Santos eventually realised that for the good of her baby she needed to get help. She saw a sympathetic doctor and was put on antidepressants (some, but not all, are safe to take in pregnancy). Ellis, meanwhile, had a switched-on midwife. "It was only when she noticed, at 32 weeks, that something was wrong, that I talked honestly," she says. Bedford hospital allowed her to come in whenever she was worried, and have the baby's heartbeat monitored (she showed up a lot). Though the waiting list for counselling was too long, she saw a therapist privately and realised that she had never come to terms with her miscarriage, and this at least partly explained her extremes of anxiety, OCD and depression. The good news is that there is no firm evidence that antenatal depression and postnatal depression are linked. As soon as Ellis's baby, Harvey, was born, "It felt like a black mist lifting," she says. "I've never been depressed since."


:hugs:


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## Chaos

Great article! Thanks for sharing :)


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## Heavenx

Thanks for posting that article. 

As someone who is 9 weeks pregnant and am suffering anxiety and depression now with this pregnancy (and not my first) I am finding it difficult, I am very unhappy and feel very much alone in this dark pit, despite a loving and supportive husband and Mother, it is frightening to feel these overhwelming feelings and think such anxious thoughts. I was completely happy throughout my first pregnancy and expected to be no different this time but so soon, so early in the pregnancy I am struggling. I am waiting for an appointment at a local Mother & Baby Unit for assessment on how they can support me, be it through counselling or whatever else they offer I suppose and I'm not ashamed that to admit that I am struggling, I just wish there was more help 'out there' on the I'net and in person.


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## Heavenx

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## lily123

Aw :( I'm sorry to hear you are struggling.

I have just been diagnosed with Prenatal depression, and admitting i was having these feelings and needed help was DEFINITELY the hardest part :( I feel extremely anxious all the time, and like a lady in the above article, i was so worried i was practically catatonic for weeks. I have a very supportive mother who is being fantastic, but me and my other half have recently split up (whilst i have been pregnant) so i thought it was related to that. Although my daughter is very much wanted and already much loved by me and all my family, i couldn't help feeling like i did :( everything is looking up now though, i hope you start feeling better hun, if not, have a chat with your doctor, it's surprising how much better you can feel afterwards. xxx


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## Heavenx

Thanks Lily. I'm sorry to read that you're experiencing pnd and anxiety too and I guess that your relationship breaking down would contribute to the way you feel although isn't the main factor. I'm glad you have the love and support of your Mum, it does help a lot. 
I'm fortunate to work for a mental health system so I have a little insight already but I'm not used to being the patient. I am hoping for an appointment soon, and look forward to going and getting the ball rolling with some help. 
All the best with the rest of your pregnancy xx


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## fairiefeet

thanks for this article i am currently experiencing some prenatal depression symptoms so its good to read the above. Its certainly a difficult time


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## Mrs.Steer

I have had symptoms of PND since the beginning of my pregnancy. On my 4th contact with the MW, my husband had to tell her when I was out of the room how severe my symptoms were. I have now got referred for counselling for PND. I am so glad that I can finally access some support for this.


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## Heavenx

I am most frustrated that it has now been 5 weeks since my referral for counselling and on making phone calls today it conspires that my referral was never actually sent!! I was told it should be dealt with tomorrow (after they faxed it through late this afternoon) so am hoping it won't be much longer until I can start talking to someone and get some help with how I'm feeling, sometimes I just feel so low and my negative thoughts control me, I just find it so hard to control them or dismiss them.


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## Wish4another

Thanks for the post. 
I'm going through prenatal depression at the moment and have been given the option of antidepressants, but i'm not sure whether to start using them or not :wacko:


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## shimmer

Hi, I am new to the forum and have prenatal depression also. This is my fourth child and I was never like this before. It is an awful feeling. I cry often and can't believe how terrible I feel. :dohh:

I am booked in the see my Dr this week to discuss it and see if I can get some further help. Just can't believe how down I feel.:cry:


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## Heavenx

At long last I had my first appointment at the Mother & Baby Unit today and it went well, it was an initial assessment and took an hour, at the end it was agreed that I would attend weekly antenatal sessions, a group therapy with other pregnant women experiencing the same thoughts and feelings as me. I'm hopeful that this will be the support that I need. 

I hope you ladies also manage to be given a sympathetic ear by your Dr's and are given the support you feel you need. Xx


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## Vampresskit

I am sorry to hear that so many people are going through the same thing that I am right now, but at the same time I am relieved that I am not the only one. I am currently 18 weeks pregnant and have been experiencing symptoms of antenatal depression for the last 8 weeks. I am 23 yrs old and this isn't my first pregnancy. My first pregnancy went by so easily besides the random crying fits when the lucky charms are gone and all the normal pregnancy hormone things. Like most people I was completely unaware that antenatal depression existed. its so unknown that my midwifes really don't know how to go about treating me they are referring me to a counselor who may be able to help (crosses fingers) but I have been waiting 3 weeks and my condition is severe. I have irrational fears that make my days really hard to cope with, intense anxiety, and overall sadness. I really dont want to take medication for this but my family and friends seem to think I won't be able to get through the next 152 days without them as it is they prescribed me something that I can take when I feel like I am going to completely lose my mind its Lorazepam, but I feel so guilty taking it that most of the time I dont. If it weren't for forums like this one I wouldn't be able to make it through I guess its just nice knowing your not alone. :hug:


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## shimmer

Vampresskit said:


> I am sorry to hear that so many people are going through the same thing that I am right now, but at the same time I am relieved that I am not the only one. I am currently 18 weeks pregnant and have been experiencing symptoms of antenatal depression for the last 8 weeks. I am 23 yrs old and this isn't my first pregnancy. My first pregnancy went by so easily besides the random crying fits when the lucky charms are gone and all the normal pregnancy hormone things. Like most people I was completely unaware that antenatal depression existed. its so unknown that my midwifes really don't know how to go about treating me they are referring me to a counselor who may be able to help (crosses fingers) but I have been waiting 3 weeks and my condition is severe. I have irrational fears that make my days really hard to cope with, intense anxiety, and overall sadness. I really dont want to take medication for this but my family and friends seem to think I won't be able to get through the next 152 days without them as it is they prescribed me something that I can take when I feel like I am going to completely lose my mind its Lorazepam, but I feel so guilty taking it that most of the time I dont. If it weren't for forums like this one I wouldn't be able to make it through I guess its just nice knowing your not alone. :hug:

I feel a lot like you with anxiety and overall sadness. Some days are better than others but today I find myself feeling low again and it is such an awful awful feeling. I saw my gp and she wants to monitor me but says that if things don't look up that she will consider prescribing me something too, although like you, I would prefer not to take them. I am only 13 weeks pregnant and I just feel like there is such a long way to go. I feel isolated from the world and feel like everything is stuck on hold. I too, only survive when I find someone online that is currently going though the same thing as I truly find that other people couldn't possibly understand.


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## Vampresskit

Its really hard when you can't even concentrate on the baby growing inside your belly. It makes me feel soo guilty and like a terrible mom, theres been days when I've literally broken down and been like I can't handle this there's no way I can make it through another day of this . I end up going to see my MW on those days theres only been about 3 of them so far, they give me pills to get rid of the anxiety. I hate taking the pills in fear of my baby being born with a defect and me always wondering if it was my fault that is the scariest thing about taking medication for me. Although they say the risk of not being medicated is just as bad some say worse. My anxiety and depression is so bad that I don't feel I have as strong of a bond I do in this pregnancy as I did with my daughter. Overall if they offer me medication I think I will reluctantly take it, because this is to much to handle and I just want to feel like i did when I was pregnant with my daughter overwhelmed with joy . So I can concentrate on the things I should be right now like the nursery, baby names, and staying healthy all the happy normal pregnancy things . I hope that you consider taking something to, for me its like a torture I can't get away from you can't take a vacation from your mind.


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## Heavenx

I've had a particularly low day today, just feeling guilty that I feel no bond with my baby, that I feel so physically ill (with a stomach dysmotility) constantly and all I can focus on is my upper abdoment where the bloating and discomfort is as opposed to stroking my baby belly and concentrating on him or her. 
My first pregnancy with my daughter was perfect, I never felt so healthy or happy in all my life yet with this pregnancy I have never felt so physiclly ill and so unhappy. 
I'm having increasingly negative thoughts about the rest of the pregnancy and the birth itself, I'm finding it's getting more and more difficult to control these negative thoughts from becoming more disturbing for me. Those close to me (my husband and Mum) who know about my pre natal depression try to say the right thing to support me but I find myself putting on a brave face for them so that they don't worry so much about me. 
I've felt like this for the past 20 weeks or so of pregnancy and I'm struggling today to see how I'll cope for the remainding half of the pregnancy. I just want to be happy


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## lily123

Hello ladies :flow: I haven't read this thread for a while for some reason, so i thought i'd pop back and see how everyone was doing.
xx



Heavenx said:


> I've had a particularly low day today, just feeling guilty that I feel no bond with my baby, that I feel so physically ill (with a stomach dysmotility) constantly and all I can focus on is my upper abdoment where the bloating and discomfort is as opposed to stroking my baby belly and concentrating on him or her.
> My first pregnancy with my daughter was perfect, I never felt so healthy or happy in all my life yet with this pregnancy I have never felt so physiclly ill and so unhappy.
> I'm having increasingly negative thoughts about the rest of the pregnancy and the birth itself, I'm finding it's getting more and more difficult to control these negative thoughts from becoming more disturbing for me. Those close to me (my husband and Mum) who know about my pre natal depression try to say the right thing to support me but I find myself putting on a brave face for them so that they don't worry so much about me.
> I've felt like this for the past 20 weeks or so of pregnancy and I'm struggling today to see how I'll cope for the remainding half of the pregnancy. I just want to be happy

:hugs: I'm so sorry to hear that hunni.
You WILL be happy sweetie, i imagine that your stomach problem is not helping at all, are you on any medication for that at the moment?

You just have to remember that this is NOT YOUR FAULT, you can't help feeling like this, and you will get through it however bleak it seems right now :hugs: my depression got so so much worse before it finally started to get better, i'm still not 100% but it's so much of an improvement. I was TERRIFIED about bonding too, i really didn't feel like she was mine or that i deserved her until i was about 30 weeks! I was just 'putting on a front' to people closest to me also. I finally accepted defeat and took a low dosage of anti-depressants over the past few months - definitely helped me! Now i'm so excited for the birth of my daughter and definitely feel a bond, just getting very upset about the birth everytime i think of it but that will pass i'm sure... i hope anyway! It does get better hun i promise.

Have you been back to see your doctor recently?? xxxxx


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## lily123

I hope everyone is alright :flower: and everything is going well with all of your pregnancies :hugs: x x x


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## lunarsea

I thought I was literally going crazy during the first and second trimester, and occasionally I'll have incredibly low days now.
Not sure if mine would be anxiety or depression, I honestly feel like I had lost my mind at one point.
During the first trimester, I was constantly worried that I wasn't actually pregnant up until 10 weeks when I finally heard the heartbeat, and even then, I was always worried that something was wrong or that something was going to go wrong.
I had had an incident about 2 years prior which caused major bleeding in that area, and I thought for sure that my cervix wouldn't be able to hold up for very long.
I would always cry. Not just the normal hormonal tearing up at something, I would just sit and cry, worried.
When I was about 14 weeks, I had a pap and two days later I had some bright red bleeding, and I freaked out, even though they told me it was normal.
After that, I had another episode of spotting, and I began doing what the woman in the article was doing, I kept on wiping so often that I would sometimes cause myself to have bleeding externally, and that, of course would only make things worse.
At 18 weeks or so I was told I had marginal placenta previa (although it's not really considered previa in the second tri) and that I could hemorrhage. 
I know they were just trying to warn me, but that was honestly the worst thing you could tell someone who was already worried about any bleeding, let alone something that serious. I know the doctor couldn't have had any idea I was going through this, as I was too afraid they would think I was unfit to be a mother if I told them, so I kind of just kept it to myself for awhile.
The checking for blood was becoming so bad that I couldn't sleep without putting reminders on my phone for every 2 hours to check. I feel really horrible thinking back to that.
I basically thought that it was just normal first-time mother worries, but it got worse.
When I reached 23 weeks, I just became obsessed with whether my baby would make it to each stage, I set milestones and everytime I reached one, it wasn't good enough, and I would set another one. I was constantly just either depressed or worried, to the point where I wouldn't be able to go out without needing to check.
In late second trimester, I was always feeling extremely low. I was certain I wouldn't ever be a good mother, and I just wondered why I would put myself through any of this, but some days I would just look at the positives, and feel at least half way decent.
And its true, women are pressured to seem over-the-top happy about their pregnancies.
I still feel as if something is wrong with me, because I'm honestly never all that happy. I mean, I'm happy at times, but it doesn't last long and its never significantly happy. 

I've tried to talk to the first doctor I had about it, though I was reluctant to tell him at all, but he kind of just shrugged it off. The MA even told me to just "breathe in and out of a paper bag" if I felt worried, and to just deal with being depressed because it was "just hormones." 
After the worrying I had done, my doctor dismissed me as a patient because he simply couldn't handle the attention I needed.
With my new doctor, I'm afraid to even mention anything as I'm afraid he'll think I'm just making it up or exaggerating as my last doctor did. 
I'm glad to know it is something real, and I haven't totally lost my mind.

I've gone back and edited a lot out, as I don't know if I'd like to share some of what I wrote publicly.
But I really am glad to see this as a thread, it really makes me feel not-so-alone with this.
I really had to keep this all in and its nice to sort of vent about it and let it out for once.


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## MadamRose

Only just seen this thread here was suggested to join by lily. I have been diagnosed with low-mild prenatal depression, but they dont want to give me anything becuase of the risks. i am being monitored every 3weeks at the doctors at the moment


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## mumtobrandon

I haven't been diagnosed with pnd, but have a therapist for existing depression, who I have been on the waiting list for ages. Before getting pregnant, I was coping...I had my meds, nice weekends out where I would get rather drunk and just forget about any rubbish that had happened during the week, I had my gym which I went to almost everyday and generally was in a fairly good place. On finding out about my 'surprise' pregnancy-which I am, believe it or not, very happy about, I have sunk right back down again and my ocd is taking over...I am irritable, and constantly on edge about everything. 
Given I have a health concern with this pregnancy, 2 in fact (hepatitis b and possible weakened cervix) and I am just so worried I am going to cock it all up like I do most things in life. I can't look at the positives like my therapist keeps asking me to do because the negatives are so overwhelming. I am deeply paranoid and posted a thread about my hepatitis on here yesterday which quite a few people read but no one replied to and it made me feel like they were all laughing at me and thinking i am pathetic but I am in such a dark place. I would do anything to protect my unborn child, yet I am feeling suicidal frequently and I just can't shake this feeling. : (


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## Dopeyjopey

Hi everyone

I can completely understand all of the posts on here. I have bi polar so chances are my depression is linked to that, but is exacerbated by not taking my medication since I discovered I was pregnant. 

Whilst I was with FOB I was really embarrassed about being pregnant as we had only been together for a month before getting a BFP. Then everyone started saying about how excited I must be and I felt terrible that I wasn't. Even now I'm proud to be pregnant, I well up at someone asking me if I'm looking forward to it because I feel like I should be more than I am. I'm scared I won't be able to love LO or that LO won't love me. I am also starting to obsess about something going wrong and it all being my fault because I sometimes feel like I don't want a baby (even though I do). 

I'm just hoping that going through all this now will reduce the likelihood of me developing the post-partum psychosis that all the health professionals seem to think I will get!


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## threeplus

I am new to this forum and just found this thread :)

Not sure if I have it or not as when I went to the consultant today she dismissed it, I keep getting palpitations, tingling down the arms, shortness of breathe and sweaty palms! are these symptoms? 

Thanks


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## Dopeyjopey

threeplus said:


> I am new to this forum and just found this thread :)
> 
> Not sure if I have it or not as when I went to the consultant today she dismissed it, I keep getting palpitations, tingling down the arms, shortness of breathe and sweaty palms! are these symptoms?
> 
> Thanks

Sounds like the start of an anxiety attack to me. I was prescribed beta blockers pre-pg but can't take them now, but I find 'mind over matter' works better! Best thing that works for me when I get one is to breathe right...

Breathe in through your nose for a swift count of seven (not seconds!)
Breathe out through your mouth for a swift count of eleven

Concentrate on your breathing which should then stop the palpitations and tingling. There are also a couple of other methods that I find to be effective, if you would like to know any more feel free to PM x


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## lily123

Yes threeplus it definitely sounds like the beginning of an anxiety/panick attack. I get these and was also prescribed beta blockers pre-preg. I find what helps me now is getting somewhere very small and contained. I don't know why but i find it calms me down when i'm in a tiny room or space such as a bathroom or even a toilet cubicle! I've been told thats quite strange behaviour lol and usually people like to be in a large space, but not me :wacko:

xxx


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## Dopeyjopey

lily123 said:


> Yes threeplus it definitely sounds like the beginning of an anxiety/panick attack. I get these and was also prescribed beta blockers pre-preg. I find what helps me now is getting somewhere very small and contained. I don't know why but i find it calms me down when i'm in a tiny room or space such as a bathroom or even a toilet cubicle! I've been told thats quite strange behaviour lol and usually people like to be in a large space, but not me :wacko:
> 
> xxx

You're the opposite to me :) I have to find an open space but close my eyes! x


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## hayzeb

Thanks for posting this. I too have been suffering prenatel depression :cry:. I have been put onto antideppressants because I was starting to not look after myself very well, eating and sleeping had become difficult. 

This is my 4th baby and I have never experienced PREnatal depression before. I have had POSTnatel though. 

Hayley xx


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## Heavenx

threeplus said:


> I am new to this forum and just found this thread :)
> 
> Not sure if I have it or not as when I went to the consultant today she dismissed it, I keep getting palpitations, tingling down the arms, shortness of breathe and sweaty palms! are these symptoms?
> 
> Thanks

Hi as the other girls have said it does sound like anxiety/panic attacks that you're experiencing, I too was prescribed beta-blockers before pregnancy but to be honest I'm not sure they actually helped, I think in my case they acted more as a placebo. 
You can buy a natural remedy from Holland and Barretts called Bachs rememdies, the specific oil for anxiety is called 'Aspen', but check first that it's OK to use during pregnancy if it is then you simply put a couple of drops on your tounge or mix with aglass of water. 
You can also try breathing into a paper bag when you're actually having an anxiety/panic attack this will help with your breathing to calm you down. :hugs:


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## Heavenx

Hi Ladies, I have been attending a support group with other pregnant ladies, we each have our own reasons for being there (but all experiencing prenatal depression) and listening to others and realising that my deep, dark, terrifying thoughts are also someone elses really helps me to know that I'm not alone, I'm not going mad, that it's ok to have these thoughts and feelings. I feel better after ech appointment (which is weekly) by listening to these other ladies and speaking up about how I feel too. So if any of you are offerred to be referred to a support group/network then as daunting as it may seem, please give it a try :hugs:


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## mumtobrandon

Hi, I have been offered antenatal support for my depression. I have regular therapist but this one is actually for pregnant women. Problem is, if I say some of the things I have been feeling I worry that social services would get involved even though I am so protective over my son and only slapped him on the bum a few times in four (nearly five years) and each time felt so so guilty as I feel cruel doing it. Because of this my son gets away with a fair bit, but as long as he doesn't upset anyone I don't really care, he is however, very sensitive like me and is the one that comforts ME when I am really down, and it shouldn't be that way. I am worried social services may think he is exposed to my emotional state too much. I try to hide it but it's impossible : (
During this pregnancy I have been inconsolable at times and did something rather silly at the weekend (cut my arms) which I used to do regularly before becoming pregnant but had managed to stop for the last 3 months. I have an antenatal appointment tomorrow and am so scared as to what they will say or who they may contact.
How do you ladies cope without your meds?? because I am struggling to say the least.
Thank you for reading x


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## mummof2

Hi everyone - I have just found this thread - I have never felt so depressed in my life - I am 27 weeks pregnant with twins and there are severe health issues regarding one of the twins. I am so down that I don't know what to do - I am seeing a psychiatrist for depression that I had before I was expecting but it was never this bad. I feel that I am not able to cope - especially with the prospect of having a baby with health problems. I have found comfort in reading this thread as I now know I am not alone in suffering.


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## Heavenx

mummof2 said:


> Hi everyone - I have just found this thread - I have never felt so depressed in my life - I am 27 weeks pregnant with twins and there are severe health issues regarding one of the twins. I am so down that I don't know what to do - I am seeing a psychiatrist for depression that I had before I was expecting but it was never this bad. I feel that I am not able to cope - especially with the prospect of having a baby with health problems. I have found comfort in reading this thread as I now know I am not alone in suffering.

:hugs: Sorry to read that one of your unborn twins has health problems, this would be worrying for any mother to be but if you've already been experiencing depression before pregnancy then this kind of news will clearly impact the level of depession and anxiety you feel. It's good that you are seeing a psychiatrist, is he or she able to touch on and help you with regards to the prenatal depression you're now feeling? Is there possibly and antenatal group that you could join? I have found that group counselling with other pregnant women has really helped me. 
Have you got a supportive OH and friends/family around you?

x


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