How do I now whether it's pre-natal depression or hormones?

[ObsidianBlackbirdMcNight]

I mean, I know PND is hormonal too but you know what I mean. I haven't experienced depression since I was a teenager, apart from a drop of post-miscarriage blues that I dealt with quite effectively, but now I'm feeling so blue and flat, tearful, negative, anxious, not trusting my relationship, insecure and afraid I'll stay like this after it's born (I'm 30+3) and get full on PND.

I'm not like this all the time, as in I can motivate myself to get to work, out of the house, and see people, but I'm not my usual social self (although I haven't been since getting preg for energy reasons)

I just want to know, am I having a hormonal slump combined with pre baby nerves, or do you think it's more serious?

bump?

Kat Could be either but I think antenatal depression can be an indicator of potential PND so it is worth talking through this with your midwife. I've had PND before with first baby - it isn't fun - so worth taking seriously how you are feeling even if it lifts in a week or two - no-one will mind you raising it as an issue. Good luck...

Thanks,
I've decided I'll discuss it with my midwife at the next appointment if I still feel this way. I've taken today off work and feel a bit better.

Kat - I think if you're feeling so bad you've had to take time off it may be worth calling your midwife or going to see your GP. I know the gaps between appointments can be pretty big these days (I go weeks and weeks now it is my third!)

kat, please go to your gp, I suffered crippling PND last yr and also suffered with a few low spells during my pregnancy. I should have gone to my gp during my pregnancy, but life was ridiculously manic and time crept up on me, the next thing I new, I'd had my DD.

I'm pretty sure there are therapies you can be offered during pregnancy.

Please please don't suffer when there is help out there. AND don't be afraid to ask for help or admit your feelings.

I had really bad AND that resulted in suicide attempts while pregnant with ds1. As soon as he was born in went away and I didn't experience it in my second pregancy and hopefully won't in this one either.

Talk to someone. The only person who knew what I was going though was dh, and I wish I had said something to someone. I was too embarassed to admit that I wasn't this happy, pregnant woman everyone thought I should be.

That sounds like exactly what happened to me - the only difference is that I just assumed I was tired and pregnant and that's why I kept doing nothing and feeling down, so did nothing about it. It was only when I did get PND, that I realised I'd probably been depressed beforehand too.

I don't think the two are necessarily linked - in my case I was very fearful of pregnancy, as I'd already had a missed miscarriage, and my older sister had died at birth, and there are dead children throughout our family. I was much better after the birth, then got PND later on.

So definitely go and talk to someone - I really wish I had instead of wasting six months of my life and thinking this was just what pregnancy was like! And I certainly think that if I had tackled the AND, the PND might not even have happened.