You are not alone!

Hi there!

As the arrival of my 4th child approaches rapidly I am reminded of all of the feelings that come with newborns. Joy, terror, elation, exhaustion, shock and calm, etc.  As a person who struggled with depression and anxiety throughout most of my 20's I have always been flagged as "high risk" for postpartum depression. While I have experienced bouts of crying and feelings of "how in the hell do I do this?", I have never officially been treated for postpartum depression. Perhaps my previous experiences with keeping my depression and anxiety in check without meds has given me tools to process these hormonal mood swings, maybe it's just not that bad. Either way, I am a big proponent of mental health care and especially care for mental health postpartum. It's scary as hell when they hand you a baby, assist you for 1-3 days then send you home with a few vague pamphlets on infant care. Where's the mom care info? This video made me laugh after my 2nd was born. Could have used it the first time around! WhatsUpMoms Elle: How to Recover *Down There*

The arrival of my 3rd!

Yet, there is still a lack of mental care info!

All my babies so far

They always recommend rest. Pft. Rest, right. The newborn's days and nights are backwards and we need to get breastfeeding established; but yeah, I'll nap. My DH is an amazing man but still only 1 person and goes back to work after a week or so. We have 3 other kids under the age of 7! My 4 year old likes to say "Mommy!" until I answer, always getting closer to my ear and ever louder until I respond. They give you a website and a phone number for counselors and a single page of info on new mommy classes at the hospital. While this bit of info is wonderful it just seems lacking. Plus new moms feel such pressure to be perfect. There is an extreme fear that if you don't do everything "perfectly" than you're not a good mom. This can be very isolating. What is perfect though? You! No matter what, you are the perfect mother for your child. My saving grace after my kids births was a determination to not be a hermit. To make myself take them all to the grocery store, to go to the park. Always keeping it as short as possible and trying to go between feedings (I hate feeding in public).

Most of all I recommend finding a Moms group or some other kind of support group of women and moms in all sorts of stages of parenthood and with all different ages of kids. My church's MOMS (Moms Offering Moms Support) group has been wonderful in reminding me that my kid is not the only one with night terrors (Oh yes.) or that I'm not the only homeschooler on the planet or I'm not the only woman with the desire to have 4 kids! If you find the right group they'll love you if you haven't washed your hair in a week or if you couldn't be bothered to change out of your pj's. They'll just be happy you made it.

Lastly, there are a few amazing books that have helped me through hard times as a mom.

1. Out of the Spin Cycle-Devotions to Lighten Your Mother Load
2. What Every Mom Needs
3. I'm a Mom! Now What?

Goodnight Moms!