Jennifer

East Brunswick

"Before I became pregnant, I was motivated, optimistic and had a full-time job as a preschool teacher," said Jennifer. "I loved my work. I had an active social life focused around friends and family. During the first two trimesters, I was so excited to be pregnant."

Jennifer continued to work up until two days before her son was born. But in her third trimester, she started to feel tearful. "I didn't pay much attention to my mood," she remembers. "I figured it was normal."

Then, during the birth, things didn't go as expected. "After 21 hours of labor, I went through an emergency C-section. My son was in the neonatal intensive care unit for observation for three days. Everything was fine, but for 15 hours I didn't meet him, which was traumatic for me. I had had visions of holding him as soon as he was born."

Soon after Jennifer returned home from the hospital, she realized her depression was something real. "The mornings were hard. I had a lot of anxiety when my husband left for work."

Jennifer's undergraduate degree in psychology helped her recognize something was wrong. Her gynecologist and her husband, an OBGYN resident, also noticed some warning signs and encouraged Jennifer to seek help.

"Even though I knew I had postpartum depression, it wasn't easy to admit I had a problem," said Jennifer. "I had to get to a place I never thought I would be, where I could accept that I had PPD. It's easy for me to sit here and sound well and make it seem easy, but it was very hard to admit. The moment I finally accepted help, I felt relief."

Jennifer started seeing a psychiatrist who prescribed the right medication. "Two to three weeks later, I started feeling better," she said. "At first I would have good moments, and then the good moments started to get longer.

"The best thing I did for myself was to use the support of my family and friends. I joined a support group and started seeing a psychologist for talk therapy. My anxiety eased and I was able to get out every day to accomplish something real. Once again, I like talking on the phone with my friends, going out to eat with my family, and going to the baby store to get little things for my son. He's about 7 months old now, and I love being a mother. I have the energy to be social again!"

Perinatal mood disorders are treatable. But first you have to ask for help.

call the helpline 24/7 at

1-800-328-3838