Finally admitted defeat and have been prescribed AD's.

[Toothache]

For anyone that doesn't know my situation I had OND for about 2yrs after DS was born. He's now almost 3 and I'm due my 2nd on August 6th.

I didn't receive any help, medical or otherwise, for my PND. I struggled on ..... actually I existed in the depths of despair for most of that.

I had my 32 wk antenatal yesterday and explained to the Midwife that I was feeling down again, and having a couple of panic attacks/hysterical episodes a week for the past 3 weeks.

I tries to put it down to my crazy pregnancy hormones, but I recognise the feelings as much more extreme than that.

Anyway..... jist of the story is, the midwife did the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression test and I scored 18!!!!!! I couldn't belive it.

She fetched the GP and he had a good chat with me. I felt like such a fraud as I wasn't feeling down or hysterical at all yesterday. But he was brilliant and explained that my feelings were a great warning sign of things to come. He used a wonderful analogy:

It's easier to take a coat out with you just in case it rains than it is to get dry once your wet. I

He prescribed a low dose AD..... the name is something like Tript....... something or other, 50mg. He said it would be me very drowsy so to take one at night and it would help keep me calm through the day.

HOWEVER, I have woken up this morning feeling rrrrrrrreally groggy, shakey and 'out of it'.

Please tell me this goes away. I wanted to feel calmer and happier.... not like a zombie! I've to go back in a fortnight to talk to him again.

Does anyone have any advice re: the effects of these AD's?

Hi Toothache.Please don't think it's defeat to take ADs - have to feed DS now - will posta again a bit later.

It feels like defeat at the moment.

It's definitely not a defeat, Toothache. I like your doctor's coat analogy BTW.

Not defeat, just the right thing to do and perfectly sensible. Well done.

Thanks for the words of encouragement.

I truly hope that I can enjoy the 1st yr of this babies life. I can't remember much about ds's. How awful is that????

I just wish I didn't feel so $hitty! I feel like I could fall asleep at any second... and I can't seem to concentrate on anything apart from MN of course.

I told my Mum last night about it, and she said and I quote:

"I bet they were wondering why you've not figured out what's making you depressed and sorted it out for yourself"

WHAT THE F*? No matter how many times I try to explain to her she always resorts back to the "Well I've had 4 children and I was fine... you're just being a drama queen" attitude.

Toothache, have you ever had a look at Rhubarb's website? I think you would find it very helpful. It's here . (The site is called unplanned pregnancy but ignore that, you want the sections on Antenatal Depression and Postnatal Depression.)

Hope you feel a bit less groggy soon, I'll see if Rhubarb is about to post some help for you!

Thanks Janh - I haven't seen Rhubarb for ages. Has she changed her name?

Back again.Sorry to hear you mum has been less than constructive. You could try telling her its her lack of sympathy making you depressed!

You are depressed/anxious partly due to life circumstances, partly due to hormones and partly due to a seretonin deficiency - not due to any weakness on your part. Its easy to think that if you were a stronger person, you'ld be OK - but it doesn't work like that. It's the strongest most conscienscous (can't spell it) people who get depressed/anxious.

Anyway back to side effects. I've never taken the meds you are taking - is it tryptophan or trimipramine, but have taken other anti Ds (SSRIs). I've taken Prozac (at 30 weeks pregnant), Lustral and Seroxat. With Seroxat I was like a complete zombie the first few days, and with Lustral I was doped when my dose got increased. Never had any problems like that with Prozac. When I started Prozac at 30 weeks pregnant I had an upset tummy for two weeks, but no other problems. I think with these things you are most likely to get side effects for a week or two, and then things settle down once your body gets used to them. Also it takes four to six weeks for them to start working, so don't worry if you don't feel better immediately. I have also found the recovery process very subtle - a gradual shift from the unbearable to the unbearable that creeps up for a few months, and you suddenly realise you feel a lot better than before you started. If you do decide you can't take the side effects of the meds, don't try to stop cold turkey - can cause withdrawal problems, so try to get medical advice about coming off the pills. If you find the side effects of this medication intolerable, there are loads of other anti-Ds you can try that may work better for you.

Also are you intending to breastfeed, as the meds you are taking may not be suitable. I know that Prozac is considered safe for breastfeeding. If you need more specific advice on drug side effects, could you let us know what the drug name is - you could then put on another specific post asking for people's experiences on the drugs, or I could do a google for you if you are too busy/dopy.

Hope some of this has been of use - sorry I cannot give you any more specific advice on this drug
Hope some of the above is helpful

Thinkinf of you m2t

Don't think of it as defeat, you have felt low for some time, and now you have somethingto help you. Keep posting.

Toothache, she is still called Rhubarb but is v busy and has hardly been here lately. I've emailed her and I'm sure when she sees it she'll post - she has very much been there herself!

sorry to hear about it toothache. DP was on ADs for 12 months and when he first took them he felt awful - just as you describe, but it only lasted about 1 week. I'm sure it'll wear off soon and ignore your mum that's really insensitive. My Grandma suffered from PND apparently only then it wasn't recognised, it was more like "oh she can't cope" and an aunt had to come to stay with her for a while. Thank god nowadays there is loads of help for AND/PND.
xxx

And if your mum keeps making these helpful comments tell her she was just LUCKY to have 4 kids with no probs and she really doesn't know what she's talking about (you can be politer than that if you like!)

Thanks for that Mummy2Steven (at first I thought your name was MummytoSEVEN!!).

The name definitely has the word "Trip" in it's title as DH joked about that. I'll check when I get home tonight.... I'm at work just now.

Thanks Coddy.

You're all wonderful as usual!

I have suspected my Mum has been suffering from depression for sometime now. I think there me a hint of resentment at the fact I'm seeking help rahter than just 'muddling' through it. My Dad was next to useless at helping my Mum bring us up. He worked on the Oil Rigs so wasn't there half the time. She thinks coz my DH and I share the workload equally that I am just selfish for not coping. If I'm honest..... DH does more than me!

DH and I had a long chat last night about all the problems we've been having recently.... I've done my part to try to make things easier, I just hope he can do his part too and start listening a bit better!

ROFL! DH would be pretty worried if I had seven - one is enough of a handful at times!

I've just been sitting here trying to think of words to describe how I'm feeling today.... and the only thing I can think of is that I feel drunk!!

I have that kind of out of it feeling you get when you have a couple of glasses of wine then try to do some normal activity, like buy milk in the Supermarket. You don't feel inebriated, but feel tipsy enough to be a bit detached from reality..... am I making ANY sense?

I have followed you here from the August thread today toothache - to be honest I'm going to get no work done today and spend the day on MN (boss isn't in today )

I completely understand the feelings of defeat- I've spent years in the cycle of taking AD's feeling better after about 6 months stopping them and getting depressed again. This is the best I've felt in years maybe I need to stay pregnant forever

It's not defeat it's a lack of a chemical in your brain coupled with anxiety about the baby and life in general. If you were diabetic would you feel so bad about taking insulin to make you better? Please don't beat yourself up about it!

Hnag on in there we will all be there for you I'm sure.

Hi toothache, sorry you have gone down with depression. But don't torment yourself with seeing it as a defeat. It's an illness like any other and of course needs to be treated if you are to get better. No different from putting savlon and a bandage on a cut, or taking paracetomol if you had a headache, it's the right thing to do.

Don't think about what your mum said. Lots of people who haven't experienced depression make the mistake of thinking it's to do with weakness of character or inability to cope, but of course it is a very real illness and one's personality is no indicator of where it will strike.

Hey, I'd love to feel tipsy all day while doing the shopping! Enjoy floating through your day. Lots of people pay huge sums of money and risk being arrested to acheive that feeling

I'm sure it will wear off and you will settle down to a calm feeling which will help you get through this. Will you be going for counselling too? This can be massively helpful in dealing with long-buried emotional injuries which are sometimes the cause of depression.

However, sometimes it is purely a matter of hormonal imbalance in which case the anti-depressants should be a great help until after the baby is born and your hormones hopefully settle down naturally.

Lots of hugs.

Thanks Janstar and SK.

The GP is hoping that starting this low dose now will hopefully prevent me needing a larger dose postnatally. From what he was saying he thinks this could nip PND in the bud.... here's hoping!

I can't believe how weird I feel! And I can't imagine what I'd be feeling like had he put me right onto the full dose!!! He said that some people take 4 of these a day.... I'm on 1 a day.

It's not a defeat, Toothache, it's good sense to take action now, before things get worse. Are you still at work or can you chill out at home? Your body may well get used to the side effects, in the meantime, try to go to bed earlier and sleep your way to good health. Take care, best wishes.

Thanks Suedonim - I'm falling asleep at my desk at work at the moment.

Luckily ds stays overnight at my Mum's on a Thursday night. I finish at 4pm.... I think I'll go home and go straight to bed!

In the meantime.... how do I stay awake????

Toothache, is it Amitryptaline? If so, my dh was prescribed those for anxiety/depression and also felt peculiar for the first few days ... after that though his body adjusted and they helped enormously.
I just want to echo what others have said - don't see this as a defeat. I have recently gone back onto Prozac for the third time in 3 years because I recognised the warning signs and was determined not to slide back to where I was before. You have done the only sensible thing you could for you, your dh, your ds and the bump.
Keep your chin up - you will feel better in a few days I'm sure

Toothache/M2T, I know that woozy, remote feeling very well. It does pass - usually after 2 weeks or so when your body gets used to the new drug. I'd go home now and get some sleep and think twice about whether you should be driving while you feel like this. It might be worth phoning your surgery to see what they say.

In the meantime