Between the raging hormones, sleep deprivation, and overstimulation that occurs on the daily, it’s no wonder most moms feel a little “off” for a few weeks after delivery. But how do we know when the baby blues develop into something more? In this episode, Sarah chats with contributors Emily Roark and Kia Hammond, who share their personal postpartum mental health journeys, including how they recognized signs of postpartum depression and postpartum anxiety, when and how they got help, and which coping strategies worked best. We also get into preparing for mental health support during subsequent pregnancies, how the COVID upended mitigation strategies for pandemic babies, and more. We hope you’ll join us for this important conversation.
LINKS MENTIONED:
If you’re struggling, you can speak to someone right now about how you’re feeling by reaching out to Postpartum Support International’s HelpLine at 1-800-944-4773. If you ever feel like you might harm yourself or your baby, text HOME to the National Crisis Text Line at 741741 for immediate support. You can also find a trained provider on their website here.
- Sarah interviewed Kate Rope in Voices 26 to talk about her journey through postpartum anxiety, and how moms can support each other during new motherhood.
- Kate Rope wrote Strong as a Mother: How to Be Happy, Healthy and (Most Importantly) Sane From Pregnancy to Parenthood: The Only Guide to Taking Care of YOU! (affiliate link), a book we highly recommend
- Kate Rope also wrote an article with more about Why new moms have scary thoughts about their babies
- Kia and Emily were also featured in our episodes Pandemic Babies And The Moms Who Love Them, Part 1 and Part 2.
- Meagan interviewed Monique Dozier in Black Motherhood & Mental Health: Voices 69
- You can hear more from Kia in a conversation with Meagan about Preparing Kids (Of All Ages) For A New Baby: Voices 67
- Follow @kiamhammond and @Emilyeroark on Instagram
- Emily found the book The Postnatal Depletion Cure (affiliate link) by Oscar Serrallach very helpful throughout her postpartum journey
- Emily and Kia recommend the following instagram accounts @biglittlefeelings, @pedsdoctalk, @psychedmommy, and @happyasamother.
- Kia recommends the book Good Moms Have Scary Thoughts: A Healing Guide to the Secret Fears of New Mothers (affiliate link)
MORE HELPFUL LINKS:
- Visit our website
- Check out deals from our partners
- Follow us on Instagram
- Join our private listener group on Facebook (be sure to answer the membership questions!)
- Sign up for our newsletter
Thank you for sharing your post partum depression stories! I am an adoptive mom and I think it’s important to know that PPD can also happen for moms that grow their family through adoption. I think I had the misconception that it only happened if you birthed a child but it can occur in all different types of scenarios.
Thank you for this, Nellie. Really appreciate hearing your perspective and I know it will help other moms, too.