St. John's Wart

[shish]

Have any of you used St. John's Wart to treat pnd?? I'm really trying to avoid taking the anti-depressents my GP prescribed for me this morning..

If so, did they work? How long did it take? And what happens when you stop taking it?

[Horton]

Why are you trying to avoid taking the medicine that's been prescribed for you, shish? I think it would be best to at least start this course of tablets. If they don't work you can always try St John's Wort later.

[mollyroger]

shish - sjw is for mild depression,
you need to take them with food as they can m,ake you feel quite sickly; you cannot use sjw if you are on the pill, as it makes the pill less effective, you have to be carefu using it i the summer as some people develop light sensitivity; and you have to take it for several weeks to get the effect.

if you have been prescribed ads I really think you should take them. Whay are you trying to avoid taking them?

[shish]

Cos they scare me. She just wrote me the precription without discussing other options such as counselling

[mollyroger]

ah shish....sorry you're feeling so down.Sorry I don't have a lot of time tonight, but I want to ackowledge your feelings.
the gp should perhaps have taken some time to talk to you about pnd. counselling is not neccessarily the best answer for pnd, unless it is triggered by something else in your life.
pnd is more about a chemical imbalance triggered by hormones, combined with a reaction to the changes which new motherhood brings to your life.

pnd should really be post natal illness as some people don't feel depressed as such, some people feel extremely anxious.

There are things you can do to help yourself such as: regular exercise, a healthy diet, sleep (!), talking to friends/partner/someone but ads can help you get onto an even keel.

If you don't feel you have people in RL to talk to, there are plenty of people on here who will know what you are going through.
There are also several helplines offering support if you google PNI or PND.

But, although I am not an expert, I'm not sure SJW will really cut the mustard if you have been diagnnosed as suffering from PND...

[shish]

This is baby number 2 for me and a lot of my anxieties are about handling the 2. I'm also feeling very guilty that I don't have the same bond with ds2 as I do with ds1. Keep on wishing we had stuck with being just the 3 of us.

Thank you for being so kind. I seem to go through real highs and lows. This morning I felt like I had hit rock bottom and this evening I feel like I'm someone different. I know that doesn't make much sense.

[mollyroger]

What is the age gap?
I have 2 boys and I was terrified I wouldn't feel the same way about ds2 when he came (and he was unplanned, bless him!)

And how old is ds2 now?

This is a blip, you will get better and one day you will realise that you love ds2 fiercely - but differently!

I sometimes feel gps are very good at identifying pnd these days but absolutely rubbsih at talking to mums about it. it's ''oh yes, pnd, take these, bye'' when you really need to talk about it a little. Do you like your HV? Could you talk to her about how you are feeling?

[shish]

Ds1 is 3 years and ds2 is 13 weeks. How old are your ds's. when did things seem to improve for you?

I wanted to see a particular Gp who is very good but she is very busy and can't see me until 6 July. My HV pushed me to see anyone in emergency today. I'm thinking of going to see the other GP on the 6th anyway. She seemed to show compassion and understanding when I saw her at my postnatal check. My HV is coming to see me at home on Tuesday afternoon. Youhave described the GP down to a 'T'

[mollyroger]

well, I had it the other way around, as it happens. I was very low with my first but didn't really realise how low I had been until I had my 2nd when I was on top of the world.... They are 3 years apart too!
However, I work with mums suffering from PND so I do empathise.

Only you can tell whether you can cope until you see HV. ads do carry a risk of side effects and you might feel worse for several weeks when you start taking them.
But I don't know many people who have recovered from pnd without drugs.

Of course, this does mean that some people have managed it.


x

[Steaknife]

Shish - my dr prescribed me sjw for pnd. He refused to give me anything else as i am still bfing. (we are in france and i do not know if this is a national thing or his personal view) I am not sure about how effective it is. Maybe my lows are not as low, but this could be because of practical changes such as dd sleeping better. Having people to talk to makes a big difference too.

[shish]

Mollyroger Ihad mild pnd with ds1 but I never saw the GP about it or took anything for it. I was with a different GP and HV then and I had discussed with my HV. I found that things got a lot better when he hit around 5-6 months. After he was weaned onto solid and I felt more in control. I thought that second time round I wouldn't feel it cos I would know what to expect.

I'm lucky my dh is so supportive and ds2 is sleeping through the night (although he can get a bit grisly in the night). He's spent the evening looking up about pnd and what alsternatives there are. It looks like although I felt like I had hit rock bottom this morning it may still only be a mild version of it.

GP didn't discuss any side effects with me. Just wrote the prescription, told me I should take them and told me to come back for a review. She just said that they would take a couple of weeks to take effect - didn't even warn me that could make me feel worse at first.

[shish]

HV coming to see me this afternoon

[mollyroger]

hope it went the way you hoped \Shish!

[shish]

She has suggested that I keep my appointment with the GP on Monday and get referred to see a councellor. Also to have a blood test for the tiredness. She's going to call me the next day to see how I got on.