Postnatal anxiety 7 months on?

[gemgems2214]

Hey.
I'm just wondering if anyone could offer some advice or reassurance that I'm not going mad..
I had my girl 7 months ago and lost my dad three month ago.. and since then I am crippled with anxiety.. Like something will happen and I'll die or my baby will die and things. I'm making an appointment with the doctor tomorrow but I'm scared antidepressants will make me yo worse while they kick in. I don't know.

Hello, firstly I’m so sorry to hear you’re feeling this way. Having a baby is hard enough, let alone losing your dad and suffering anxiety. (I suffered anxiety postnatally after my first and it kicked in around 7 months for me) I think going to the doctors is a great move; they may recommend a range of things and not start out with pills (even though there’s nothing wrong with pills). Talking therapies are really helpful for dealing with anxiety. Have you got much support with minding baby, someone that could look after them so you could get out for an hour or two regularly? Exercise or yoga classes are some other things that have been really helpful for me. Also hopefully you have a good listener in your life - talking about it to a friend or close family member can help you get the thoughts out and just knowing they are hearing you can be a big step forward.

I really wish you well in dealing with your anxiety, and though it is very scary it gets much easier once you find the help and things that work for you. Xxx

I'm sorry to hear you are going through this, sorry for your loss and well done for making the GP appointment. I was diagnosed with post natal anxiety when my baby was about 10/11 months, it had been going on longer than that but I was ignoring it in the hope it would go away which I regret.

I was placed on sertraline and did CBT through talking therapies and quite quickly I felt like a different person and family life got a lot happier. I had never taken anti-depressants before and I did suffer with some physical symptoms when starting them, mainly nausea, but the benefits far, far outweighed those few days. I felt I owed it to myself, baby, husband and family to do everything that was offered to help myself recover.

The CBT with Talking Therapies was great, I enjoyed it actually. I am very lucky that I have a very supportive husband and mum and dad but the CBT felt like a private space where I could work through what I was feeling and was just about me.

I am still on sertraline, nearly been a year now and hoping to wean myself off soon.

Best of luck, well done again for recognising you need some help.