Post natal depression

[shiney01]

Does anyone have any advice, suggestions, experience they can offer? My baby is almost 3 weeks old and he's lovely but I'm struggling terribly and its getting worse every day. I keep crying and am suffering from anxiety and insomnia. Even when he sleeps I find it impossible to sleep, despite having a night-nanny for a few nights to help out - I was still awake for hours. I feel anxious and sick a lot of the time and the tears keep flowing (I did have to re-house my cat that I've had for 13 years yesterday as I can't trust him around the baby - devastating!).

Any words of comfort, advice, etc, would be gratefully received!

Thanks.

First of all, congratulations on your DS

oh your poor thing..First thing I would suggest is making an appointment with your HV/GP who will be the most help.

3 weeks is still very early on, and you're still very much getting used to the idea of having a little one.. it's so overwhelming and such a shock,

The things that helped me most in the early days (and I'm sure there will be people along soon to say the same thing) is just getting out of the house.

It's a mammoth task with a newborn, even getting out to post a letter is a massive achievement, but it will make you feel better, even just setting tiny tasks like that (having a shower, setting foot out of the door) might help

Are you on your own, or do you have a partner?

Sorry this is short, I could reel off a list of things you could do, but that would be presumptious and might not actually help...

So sorry you are feeling rough at the moment. I have 2 ds's and am on AD's for PND now. I started taking them when ds2 was about 3 months as felt I couldn't cope.
When ds1 was born, I think I had PND then too, but didn't get it treated.

I had to re-house my dog when ds1 was a year because he kept hitting the dog and she kept growling. I was so very upset about that.

I would agree that you speak to your gp/hv. It is early and might be baby blues. I would also try to get out of the house when he is sleeping. Put him in pushchair, get a good book or magazine and find a nice bench in the park and sit and have some time for you.

It really does get easier. It takes a while to adjust though I think.
What about friends? Anyone that can come round?

Thanks. I do have a husband who in general has been very supportive but I think he's struggling with the newness of everything too. He's gone back to work this week and I hate the fact that I feel jealous that he can escape and go back to his 'normal' life while my world has been turned upside down and inside out. I have a few friends I can speak to - I'm off to visit one of them now. I think it's the crippling insomnia from anxiety which skews everything and it all seems worse in the middle of the night anyway.

I think I keep forgetting what early days it still is - I want to have it all sorted at 3 weeks!

Ah... that makes so much sense. The third week for me was hell as my partner had gone back to work and I was just completely bewildered/exhausted/confused/lonely/terrified etc etc. Couldn't leave DS alone even to go to the loo as I was convinced he would stop breathing, constantly waking up in the night and patting down the duvet as I thought I'd fallen asleep with him in the bed after feeding..

it WILL get better, things do get easier.. talk to people and don't shut yourself away - it's perfectly normal to feel a bit anxious in the early days, although if it persists it's definitely worth talking to someone.

DS is 21mo now, and I'm still on Citalopram for anxiety-related depression, which in turn caused awful insomnia, so you're not alone.

..argh, meant to add at the end of that post that I'm fine now!! I didn't talk to someone about my PND until about 6 months in - if I'd sought help earlier I think life would have been much easier.