I think it is so important for women to see other women’s journeys like these. I meet so many women who don’t even know that they are “allowed” to question convention; it is eye opening when you hear about those who do.

Long, but good reading.

http://bluffoowhy.wordpress.com/2007/10/14/jessicas-birth-story/

Are olives good for pregnant women? YES. While it varies upon the type of olive and how it’s processed (fresh, jarred, canned, watch out for sodium levels!) the olive is an awesome source of essential fatty acids needed for your baby’s brain development. Don’t like olives? get some olive oil. The good extra virgin stuff. Replace your other cooking oils with it. Drizzle it on salad. Goood stuff. Also a source of vitamin E, which is great for your skin.

(BTW- omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, which are abundant in olive oil are excellent for preventing various types of depression. )

Learn more about fats and the olive here:

http://www.calolive.org/homecooks/nutrition/skinny_fat.html

http://www.hormel.com/templates/knowledge/knowledge.asp?catitemid=40&id=189\

http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-C00001-01c208D.html

http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-C00001-01c20Vh.html

This is one of my favorite recipes for using olives and olive oil. I used to make this all the time before we went gluten free. I’m sure it would probably work with rice penne as well.

 http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/One-Dish-Vegetarian-Dinner/Detail.aspx

Question #2- how to get sap off a pvc fence. I have no idea how that got you here. But because I’m feeling helpful, this should help.

http://cleaning.lifetips.com/faq/85924/0/how-can-i-remove-tree-sap-from-my-pvc-furniture/index.html

http://www.physorg.com/news108666685.html

I found this article interesting just because I wonder if sometimes smokers in general are a little more prone to depression. It’s a way to destress that is ironic because nicotine is a stimulant, which makes stress worse, then you crash, and get more depressed. What a cycle.  I can only imagine how that would play in with the stress of pregnancy, and the fact that let’s be real, most women aren’t so stupid that they think smoking is ok while pregnant.

Much like other depressed mothers these ladies may not realize they need help. It is hard to see the signs in yourself, and it’s easy to say, “oh I’m just addicted oh well”.

Just one more thing to think about.

I get more hits per day than nearly every thing else on my prenatal depression article. I wanted to revisit this subject and post a site I came across that has SO much information on prenatal depression that I’ve only just began to tap it’s resources.

http://www.pregnancyanddepression.com/

I think this topic is so very important and so rarely discussed that it needs to be brought to the forefront of my discussions far more than once.

I’d also like to note that personally, I think a lot of my depression comes just from being tired and feeling depressed that I just can’t keep up as well as I can unpregnant. I think it’s one of the reasons I knit so much is I feel like I’m accomplishing something. I felt so validated just by finishing my yarn today that it completely lifted me out of any funk I’ve been in.  Spinning is something thats active and takes focus but can be done without expending a whole ton of energy, the kids find it fascinating, and you get to make something else out of it when you’re done. Love it.

So, pregnant, feeling depressed? Find a hobby! If that doesn’t help, it’s time to seek help. Find a friend, find a doctor, find a midwife, find a religious figure, find a counselor, whatever you have to do.

Here is a checklist I sometimes hand out to my post partum clients on signs of post partum depression; I think this just as easily could fit signs of prenatal depression as well. Write it down, hand it to your partner or a good friend and ask them to help you look for signs. This is one place where the responsibility shouldn’t have to be all on you, you’ve got enough to deal with!

Risk Factors

I am more at risk for post partum depression and psychosis…

If I have suffered from depression before

If I have a family history of depression

If I have had other hormonal problems, such as PMS or PMDD

If I’m taking certain medications

If I had a difficult pregnancy or birth

If my pregnancy was unplanned

If my partner is away from home a great deal

If I’m experiencing marital tension and/or feeling unsupported by my partner

If I am going through a separation or a divorce

If someone close to me is ill or recently died

If I’ve just moved to a new home

If either of my parents died during my childhood or adolescence

If I recently changed jobs, quit, or was fired

If I’m used to spending the majority of my time outside the home

If I have been under a lot of stress

Post partum depression is very real, and also very treatable. Many women suffer unnecessarily because they are embarrassed or uncertain that they have PPD. Keep a copy of this list for yourself, and give one to your husband, mother, father, sister, or your best friend. Help them know how to help you.

Baby Blues

Experienced by 25-50% of women

Severity level: Low

I may not be able to sleep well

I may cry a lot, even about little things

I might experience mood swings

I may seem irritable

I may express that I feel very vulnerable or inadequate

I may not feel like myself anymore

I may start showing signs of baby blues 3-5 days after our baby is born

I should not feel like this for more than a couple weeks and if I do, it may be the sign ofa bigger problem for which I need help

Post partum depression

Experienced by 10-15% of women

Severity Level: Medium to High- seek treatment promptly

I may seem to be tired all the time

I may not be able to sleep well

I may cry a lot, even about little things

I may have trouble remembering things

I may have a hard time concentrating or seem confused

I may express feelings of guilt or inadequacy

I may be very irritable or hostile

I may seem very anxious

I may say that I can’t cope

I may not show much interest in the baby

I may be hyper concerned for the baby

I may worry about harming myself or the baby

I may have headaches or chest pains

I may not care about how I look

I may not want to leave the house

I may not feel like myself anymore

I may stop finding enjoyment in the hobbies or activities I previously loved

I may not want to socialize and may withdraw from friends and loved ones

I may not be interested in sex/intimacy

I may be likely to start showing signs of depression anytime within six to twelve weeks after our baby is born but these signs may also show up anytime in the first year

I may feel like this for more than a year if the depression is not treated

Post partum psychosis

Experienced by .1-.2% of women

Severity Level: High- seek immediate treatment! Possibly life threatening to mother or child/ren

I may seem to be tired all the time

I may not want to eat

I may seem confused

I may have severe mood swings

I may feel hopeless or ashamed

I may talk about suicide, or hurting the baby

I may seem hyperactive or manic

I may talk very quickly or incoherently

I may act very suspicious of others

I may be having delusions and hallucinations or might hear voices (such as that of the baby)

Don’t accept being told to “just snap out of it”. It’s not that easy, and if simple things like getting more sleep, a new hobby, or other distractions aren’t helping, seek more help!

I was talking with two friends tonight about an interesting phenomena that seems to hit all mothers.  Why is it our husbands can get a night out, or just up and go to the store, or whatever, and not feel an ounce of guilt, but if we want a mom’s night out, or to go run an errand sans kids, we often feel really guilty about it and in some families even have to ask hubby to “babysit” as if he didn’t have a hand in producing these children as well? I have heard the excuse of “oh well he works all day he deserves time to himself”, but 1. WE work too, child rearing is a pretty damn important job, and 2. even when I worked full time I still felt guilty about going to the store by myself or going on a mom’s night out or shit even taking a bubble bath by myself. So why is this? Why is it we can’t seem to find time for ourselves? It is so incredibly important. If we don’t take care of ourselves we can’t easily take care of anyone else, and yet we’re often the last person we think of when it comes to special care. I admit frequently I can’t even spend my own birthday money on something frivolous for myself. If I get a $50 gift card to say, Target or something I usually wind up getting myself a $5 bottle of bubble bath and blowing the rest on the kids. One needs new shoes the other is out of underwear, etc.

So many stay at home moms are so isolated and suffering from post partum depression and I really think a big part of it is as much as we love our children, we don’t do enough for ourselves. We need hobbies. We need to spend time talking to other women, about shit other than our kids.  It’d be nice to run to the store to buy milk without saying “honey will you watch the kids?”.  Instead can’t we just say “hey, I’m going out to buy milk, bye!”?

I say everyone who reads this plan yourself an afternoon out pronto! Take other mothers with you. And don’t feel the slightest ounce guilty about it.  Really.

It happens in 10-15% of pregnant women. And it is far less likely to be properly diagnosed or treated than post-partum depression. Know that if you’re depressed during your pregnancy, it’s normal, and that you can get help for it. Talk to a friend, to your doctor or midwife, join a group, do what you need to do to help yourself and your baby. I’ve had this affliction with the first two pregnancies and it’s kicking in early with this one. Frustrating to say the least. At least I’m at a point where I can expect it, know what to look for, and can fight back.

Pre-partum blues
Depression symptoms pose risk to mother and fetus

One in five pregnant women may be experiencing symptoms of depression, but few are getting help for it, a new University of Michigan study finds.

And those with a history of depression any time before their pregnancy – about one in every four women – are about twice as likely as other women to show signs of depression while pregnant, the study results show.

A study of 3,472 pregnant women, conducted by researchers from the U-M Depression Center in the waiting rooms of 10 Michigan obstetrics clinics, was published last year in the Journal of Women’s Health.

And recently the U-M team presented new results at the American Psychiatric Association’s annual meeting, showing that many pregnant women with depression aren’t being treated. And even if they are taking antidepressants, the doses are likely to be too low to help much.

Growing scientific evidence suggests that hormone imbalances associated with depression can affect the fetus or put a woman at higher risk of post-partum depression. Population-based evidence has also shown that babies of depressed mothers do worse at birth, and beyond, than other infants.

“A woman’s childbearing years are also her highest-risk time for depression. Doctors used to think of pregnancy as a ‘honeymoon’ away from depression risk, but this is turning out to be a myth,” says lead author Sheila Marcus, M.D., a clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at the U-M Medical School. “We now know that the hormones and brain chemistry involved in depression are known to be affected by changes in other hormones related to pregnancy. And we know this may affect the fetus.”

Studies have shown that babies born to depressed mothers have lower birth weights, higher risk of premature birth and birth complications, delayed cognitive and language development, and more behavioral problems. Scientists are beginning to speculate that these effects may be due in part to the unbalanced sea of hormones and reduced blood flow that these fetuses are exposed to in the womb. Even minor depression, Marcus notes, may affect the fetus.

Fortunately, Marcus notes, recent studies have shown that some standard depression treatments – including some antidepressant drugs – do not appear to increase the risk of birth defects. A few longer-term studies suggest that infants exposed to some antidepressants in pregnancy look very similar to their siblings who are not exposed, both in terms of IQ and learning problems, when compared at age 5. But she notes that more work is necessary in this area.

She and her colleagues hope their study will help raise awareness among pregnant women, and their doctors and midwives, about the need to recognize depression symptoms and seek treatment.

Explains Marcus, “We need to educate women about the signs of depression, and encourage them to be open about how they’re feeling during pregnancy and after delivery, rather than feeling guilty and embarrassed.”

Medications and psychotherapy can regulate the stress hormones and other brain chemistry involved in depression, helping alleviate women’s symptoms, improve their quality of life, and reduce their chances of debilitating post-partum depression, self-harming acts, and suicide.

The U-M Depression Center, has launched a website about depression designed specifically for women, www.med.umich.edu/womensguide. The site recognizes that one in four women will experience depression sometime in her life, and that hormone-related life transitions such as puberty, pregnancy and menopause are strongly associated with an increased risk.

Special note:
If you or someone you know is experiencing symptoms of depression during pregnancy or after delivering a baby, it’s important to tell a medical professional such as your doctor or nurse midwife. Treatment, including talk therapy and medications, can help lessen symptoms for the mother and reduce the impact on the baby. Click here for a list of resources that might help.

Resources:

U-M Depression Center
http://www.med.umich.edu/depression

A woman’s guide to understanding depression
http://www.med.umich.edu/womensguide

U-M Depression Center: Depression Related Resources
http://www2.med.umich.edu/psychiatry/umdc/resourcesrch.cfm