Would You Recognize the Signs of Postpartum Anxiety?

Yesterday I read an article about a woman who suffered from postpartum anxiety. It hit home for me, so I shared it with a small insight into what I felt during my first two postpartum periods and now my third. A lot of women spoke up and shared their experiences.

I even had a friend or two tell me they had never heard of postpartum anxiety (PPA). According to Postpartum Support International 6% of pregnant women and 10% postpartum women develop anxiety. The symptoms include constant worry, fear of something bad happening, racing thoughts, disturbance of sleep and appetite, inability to sit still or focus on a task. It can also manifest as physical symptoms such as dizziness, and nausea.

These days we address postpartum depression. It has finally been recognized and is no longer a taboo subject. It is important that women are able to identify the condition and get help.

Personally, I didn't have PPD, but I definitely suffered from PPA. With my oldest, who will be 5 next month, I was fine during the day, but at night, at night it was tough. I had Fiona in a bassinet. She slept on her back, there was mesh siding and nothing in it with her. I couldn't sleep. I was terrified I would lose her to SIDS. I'd already known a few people who lost a child or grandchild to SIDS and that was all I could think about. Despite doing all the right things I couldn't shake the the fear. I would wake up with the side of my face hurting because I fell asleep with my cheek on the side of the bassinet and my hand on her. I couldn't see her, and being unable to physically have my eyes on her, it would send me into a panic. My thoughts would race through every bad scenario. I would sit there and cry quietly so I wouldn't wake my husband up because it was such a weird feeling that I didn't want to wake him up and have him concerned about me. Eventually I moved the bassinet out of the room and the rock n play took it's place. Fiona basically lived in that thing. After a few months it finally started to calm down and I got back to normal.

At one point one of my doulas came to visit and asked how I was doing. I mentioned the anxiety, but didn't get in depth. I just told her I didn't like the feeling. She recognized it for what it was and suggested I talk to the doc if it got really bad. Of course I didn't. Things did get better on their own, but it took a few months.

Then came Saoirse. Two and a half years later my second daughter was born and the anxiety wasn't as bad. That is until one night when she was about 3 or 4 months old, my husband decided to take the girls to his parents for a visit and in the middle of cleaning off a shelf I started crying uncontrollably because all I could picture was them getting into an accident due to the rain and I'd lose all three of them. It was totally random and I recognized the signs. I still didn't reach out, but I fought to control it. Knowing what it is, well, that's half the battle.

With Ronin,so far it hasn't been that bad. I still have my moments, but it's not terrible. Maybe for me it gets better with each one? Of course it doesn't help that all the paperwork I received at the hospital and a pediatric dentist website talk about SIDS at length and of course just being a boy is at the top of the list. Yup, that helps *sigh*

According to Parents.com researchers at University at Heidelberg studied 1,024 women for the first 3 months postpartum and incredibly 11% were shown to have postpartum anxiety. Of those women 6% developed PPD. They apparently tend to go hand in hand. In the same article they mention that Mayo Clinic states 89% of new parents have thoughts about something bad happening to their baby, but they dismiss it and go on with their lives. Those that get those thoughts but cannot shake them, are the ones who need to examine if they have PPA or possibly PPD.

Here are 5 suggestions from Anxiety.com to help during times of nagging thoughts and panic attacks.

Breathe. Inhale for a 3-5 count and then exhale for the same.

Distraction. See family, friends, go on a walk, watch TV, read….

Talk about it. Write about it.Self-care: make sure you are sleeping and eating when you can.

Aim for 3 meals a day, and closing your eyes when the baby naps.

Remember that thoughts and actions are two totally different things. Having a thought doesn't mean that you will follow through with action.

If you need resources this link lists several! http://www.postpartum.net/learn-more/useful-links/

Remember that you are not alone. Many women suffer from the same thing you do. Talk to someone. A friend, doula, your doctor, but talk to someone. Don't try to go it alone. You don't need to. You have a whole community of women who have your back.