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Posted 5/13/2013 2:04 PM (GMT 0)
Hello,

I am 11 weeks postpartum and have never felt so imbalanced in my life. I feel very sad, and have no personality. I haven't felt myself in 2 months and I have become so desperate to feel better. I have started seeing a therapist and psychiatrist. He put me on 5mg of Lexapro to start and will up the dose to 10 or 20mg..has anyone experienced PPD and can give me some advice..does this get better? I have felt so moody and don't want to feel this way..also a bit dizziness as well.

Please help! :(

Posted 5/13/2013 2:11 PM (GMT 0)
Hi LiliBean,

The medication going into your system can cause you to feel a bit dizzy at times. This will go away.

It takes six to eight weeks for the meds to reach full potential, though you may start feeling better before that.

Keep doing what the doc says, and keep up with the therapist. Hopefully this is just situational. Hopefully in time you will feel better without meds. But in the meantime, don't give up.

Keep posting...

Welcome to the forum...

Hugs, Karen...
Posted 5/14/2013 11:04 AM (GMT 0)
Hello Lilibean,

Welcome to the forum.

the good news is that yes, you will feel better.

take the meds, write down and side effects you get from the medicatiions. call the doctor if they are serious

Communicate will with the doc and you will be feeling better soon.

Peace
Trina
Posted 5/15/2013 3:04 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Lilibean,

Yes, it gets better! I remember the early weeks of being a new mom with PPD (my daughter is now 3 years old) and how incredibly hard they were. I called a PPD support line a few times just so I could hear someone who had been there tell me that it would get better, so I hope it helps you to hear it as much as it helped me. There were days when I didn't know how I'd make it to the end of the day, so I focused on getting through each 15 minutes. I also went to a new mom's support group, and I liked my therapist. I started taking Zoloft and later added Wellbutrin, both of which I'm tapering off of now.

In addition to finding the right meds and getting the support you need, I think self care is critical: sleep, nutrition, hydration, exercise (even a walk around the block in the sunlight), time with other moms, and at least a little time for yourself if possible. When anyone offers to help with the baby, housework, meals, anything, say YES!

It's a good sign that you're reaching out for help and are sharing how you feel. If you haven't already, check out PostpartumProgress.com. It's a great resource.

Sending you lots of good wishes, Nina
Posted 6/17/2013 7:31 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the advice..I am finding I am about 60% better now that I have been on Lexapro...I started at 5mg for 4 weeks and will be on 10mg this Wednesday for 3 weeks so a total of 7 weeks..my mood is starting to improve, but still don't feel 100% yet..there are times when I still feel extreme worry and anxious with obsessive thoughts..don't get me wrong before Lexapro it was SO BAD with thoughts..but now have lessened..but is still in the background..I guess my question is do the thoughts continue to fade away until they are gone?? That is my major concern :( Please help!
Posted 6/17/2013 9:18 PM (GMT 0)
The thoughts and the worry do go away. You might need some added medication such as a mood stabilizer or something for anxiety. Your medication should be working good by eight weeks, you may need more, or like I said, something with it. You may not. I have to take an antidepressant, mood stabilizer and something for anxiety. But it all works good together. So far anyway. I had a period this spring where I thought I needed more medication, but the feeling went away. I am glad. I don't want to take anymore than I already am on.

It always seems like the improvement takes forever. We want to feel better like yesterday. I do anyway. But it is real gradual. I am glad you have some improvement. That is a good sign. Keep hanging in there. Keep your doctor posted on how you are feeling.

Take care,

Hugs, Karen...
Posted 6/18/2013 8:44 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you ladies so much for your support..so when you say gradual..that just means over time..I will notice little by little by little that I am recovering?? It's so werid because I didn't mean for this to happen..I had a baby then lost a ton of sleep which I became sleep deprived..then once I was getting sleep never fully felt like myself..so I was worrying that I would never return to my bubbly self again..it's very scary..:(
Posted 6/18/2013 8:46 PM (GMT 0)
You will return, changes are very subtle. Try to take it one day at a time. Enjoy that prescious little one. They don't stay little very long...
Posted 6/18/2013 8:52 PM (GMT 0)
That's the part that makes me so sad..it's like I feel like I can't feel myself..I just want myself back so I can laugh and play and be my goofy self :(
Posted 6/18/2013 10:22 PM (GMT 0)
Keep trying. Practice mindfulness. It really does help. Do things that you use to do. Maybe it will come back to you. In the meantime, check out this site. It is free.

http://moodgym.anu.edu.au/welcome

It might help you some.

Hugs, Karen...
Posted 6/19/2013 6:00 PM (GMT 0)
Thats exactly how I felt over welmed. Anxious, so anxious I couldnt concentrate or relax while going outside to have a cigarette with the baby monitor. I slowly calmed down when I would lay with my daughter and think of what she will be or can be one day. Sometimes it doesnt work, but you got to make the best. My daughter is 3 now.

hope u feel better ........I think taking drugs for me, wouldve just made it worse.
But whatever helps you.
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