Feeling spaced out?

[Zamaz]

Hi all,
I'd be really grateful for some advice. My daughter is 10 days old - I had a tough birth and real post natal anxiety since. I'm on a small dose of diazepam (an anxiety drug) which I am coming off. The thing I really scares me though I how spaced out I feel - like I am thinking through fog. Makes me feel I am going mad! Has anyone else experienced this kind of thing? I think the anxiety is about feeling spaced out - can't work out if it's normal to feel this way after what I've been through and lack of sleep, would be grateful for others experiences. Thank you! :)

[Plantpot83]

I had this - I had a tough labour, and spent four days in hospital. I was very stressed and utterly exhausted and began to feel almost slightly dissociated from reality, like I couldn't get a grip on things. I found it difficult to recall details of the birth (I have read that women actually process memories differently after giving birth so that they're not put off having more babies!) For a couple of weeks after the birth I had baby blues manifesting in anxiety and feeling very overwhelmed and emotional and still 'foggy'. I found it very scary but it got better and after a couple of weeks the fog sort of lifted (to be replaced with pure exhaustion!), and didn't turn into anything more serious. I was totally honest with DP about how I was feeling which really helped, if you have a supportive OH/mother or friend maybe tell them how you feel. You should also talk to your HV or GP if you're worried that it's not getting better and you're starting to feel worse.
I was sad at the time because I thought that I was missing out on these wonderful couple of weeks when I brought my baby home. However having spoken to lots of women since then I have realised that actually those first few weeks are incredibly hard for lots of people and they're not necessarily an amazingly happy time.
Good luck - honestly 3 months on, despite the sleep deprivation I feel almost normal - at the time honestly I didn't know if I'd ever feel myself again