Why won't 1 in 5 new moms tell their doctor they're having a hard time"
by Sara McGinnis posted in Parenting
I probably ought to be counted among the one in five women who was struggling after giving birth and didn't say anything. I say "probably" because the whole time period was a muddled mess -- but though I didn't know if what I was feeling was postpartum depression, I did know I didn't feel well.
I felt traumatized.
The grueling 20 hours of labor it took to birth my son replayed in my mind on an endless loop. Despite the healthy baby in my arms, my brain insisted that if I didn't sort through each and every detail of what took place, turn it over and dissect it again and again, something would be horribly wrong.
But I was stressed, not depressed. Right" I told myself that was the case, and that's one of the reasons I didn't speak up about the trouble I was having when I went to my doctor for my postpartum checkup.
There are other reasons as well.
When I say "my" doctor I really mean a stranger. We'd recently moved and I had no idea who the person asking me to open up about my mental state was other than an old guy with a grey beard and a stethoscope around his neck.
On top of that, I had no experience going to the doctor to ask for help. I'd made it through high school without needing more than a sports physical, and in college my doctor visits were few and far between. I also didn't know anyone who'd gotten help and shared their experience.
And let's not forget my pride. I leapt into marriage at 21, was pregnan...
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