post natal depression so late

[miabl2]

Not sure if I'm suffering from post natal depression as ds is 9 months old and it only started a couple of months ago. Feeling really down at times at other times I'm fine but the slightest little thing can send me retreating into myself and feeling really down and emotional and tearful. Never had any mental health problems in the past and don't want to voice it out loud for fearing of it being real. Does this make sense

[Dragonbrandybutter]

with both children i've become depressed around their first birthdays.
i don't know if it's just a cumulative things that builds up to that point for me and a year of no sleep and breastfeeding finally comes to a head or whether I finally can see that i'm depressed once the kids start sleeping and i'm no longer bfing and despite those things i don't feel better.
who knows.

this time i went to the doc and got antidepressants and it has made a huge difference. I feel like the old me again. The fun creative one I was before i had the kids.

I don't know if it is classed as PND or just depression at this late stage, but either way you can get help to get over this.

Good luck.

[backalleysally]

I was diagnosed with PND when DD was 7 months old. I had been depressed for 4 months I think but had just got gradually worse to the point where I contemplated leaving my family . I have since been told that PND can appear up to a year after the birth....I'm not sure if this is true but TBH it doesnt matter does it? You're depressed, whether it's PND is neither here nor there, and you need help.

Go to your GP and discuss how you feel. I started taking antidepressants 3 months ago and can't believe the difference in how I feel. Good luck .

[candyfluff]

hi mia i had pnd around the nine month mark too ,i think its the calm after the storm sort of thing,when your baby begins to sleep through the night weaning is well established and all seems to be well thats when it happens i was told anything up to 5 years for pnd .
i went on ad's and they saved my life !
had it again with 3rd child and it was no where as bad as the first time round.
go to see your gp or even the health visitor there is no need to suffer in silence.
keep posting its good to put it down in words.

[louisedun]

I had a nervous breakdown just after my d 2nd birthday, was in a really bad place and didnt leave my bedroom for a month-gp put this down to untreated and undiagnosed pnd which i prob had from my daughters birth, i didnt feel particularly depressed when she was a baby but did have panic attacks. If you are in doubt i would def see gp before it gets on top of you, like candyfluff the tablets changed my life i am so relaxed and happy with my child now

good luck

[RaspberryBlower]

It's scary to voice it, but actually once you do you regain some control over it and start to feel better once you realise that there are options for support and treatment. I didn't want to go to the docs at first, because I didn't want to accept that I was depressed but I'm so glad I did. They've been very helpful, and it turned out with me that it was an underactive thyroid causing the depression, so it's as well to make sure they give you blood tests for this and for lack of iron. Good luck.