My daughter has panic attacks, Now seems to have postnatal depression. Advise please

[maddie]

My daughter started to suffer panic attacks at university, She's done well since, but now has a 4 month old baby. The responsibitiy seems to have brought back her anxieties and some attacks, The baby was weighed togay and has dropped weight as she changes him onto soild foods, She's a highly inteligent girl, but doesn't seem able to take in the information she needs to change his diet, I am very worried and don't know how to help.She's very sensitive and thinks I'm criticising when I try to help her. She's frightened the baby wiill be taken from her, Can anyone tell me how they felt with postnatal depression and how I can positively assist her, please.?

[amandaj]

i had post natal depression its so difficult to cope with everything goes in one ear and out the other unfort maybe you could have a word with the health visitor and work together to try to get her better its a horrible illness

[samc100]

Hi - I agree, have a chat with the health visitor or your Dr. Is your daughter socializing with other new mummies ? If not could you go with her to some baby and tot groups, often listening to other mummies and just being out can help. Also there are some excellent websites with forums for mummies who and she can get support there.

I do feel for her - being a mummy can really knock your confidence.

[diane07]

Aww maddie so sorry to hear that,

Its a hard one, i would also suggest the health visitor be involved, i had post natal depression with my first and they offered me some sort of hormone injection with my second to help me, i refused it but it was offered, there is alot of understanding now into post natal depression, no-one will take baby away.

Here they actually do an appointment when the baby is so many months old and the health visitor asks whether you feel you have it or not, i'm not sure how it works where you are.

I hope things get better hun and she gets on the mend soon

best wishes

di xx

[alihud]

HIthere,sorry to hear your daughter has this you need to try andget a diagnosis first,will shegoto the doctoror see a health visitor who shouldreally be keeping an eye out anyway.There are alot of support groups out there including meet amum whospecialise in helping women with post natal depression.Ive had it twice severely,i remember thinking they wouldtakemy babies away butthey never ever did.Its ahorrid illnessand i wouldnt wis**ton anyone.I just wanted som eone to bethere if i neededthem but everyoneis different.Its likeur brain stops working properly and you are frightenedof anything and everything mostly urself.I wasput onto prozac which helped alot and ihadmy thyroid tested which turned out to be underactive after both pregnancies.If you need any more support please let me know.
Ali xxxx


This post has been automatically edited by the NMP post filter

[jacqui doll]

Hi there, sorri to hear about your daughter. I suffer from post natal depression after my second child. I was very good at hiding it from health visitor and my gp. It got to the stage were i was a walking zombie and good help anybody who told me what to do with my child. I eventually let everything out at a check with my health visitor who refered me straight away. One thing I would point out is that they give you a questionaire shortly after you have a baby to see if you have postnatal depression but it is very easily to mislead health visitors as you know what to put instead of how you actually feel.
I hope you can get the help and advice needed for your daughter.

thinking of you
:hugs:

[maddie]

Thank you everyone for your replies. Baby is now doing well and has started to sleep from 7pm - 11pm so my daughter gets a few good hours to set her up for the night, when he still wakes 2 hourlyand won't accept anyone but her. She's had less panic attacks, but has a lump on her neck she's been told might be cancer so she's waiting for tests. Both of us feel numb about that, but I've been having bad anxiety and nightmares. The health visitor is giving her no support - just told her he's a very active, high need baby. He hardly naps in the day unless taken out. He looks around for 1/2 hour or so, then drops off, so I have been walking round and round the block for hours at a time to give her rest. I can't go further as I'm agrophobic. It's not the way the books say, but the only thing that works. Unless someone has any other ideas?

[diane07]

Maddie i wish your daughter well,

As for the little one not sleeping much, i had this with my first, doc didn't help me at all, i don't really have any advice, looking back i'm not sure how i got through it, i did what you are doing, alot of walks in the pram, my son used to sleep for half hour out of every four, so i learned to sleep when he did, not much but it was all i could do.

I do feel for her, sleep deprivation is so awful.

best wishes to you and your daughter hun

di xx

[belle]

I'm sorry to hear about your daughter - i hope everything turns out okay for her.

As for baby....reading this brings back SO many memories for me. My little man was very very hard work for the first year. He suffered colic/reflux/and fed every 2 hours...all day....all night. I would feed him, he'd throw it all up(hence why he was always hungry) and then he'd get colic which was horrible to watch. My son would just not bring up his wind, no matter how hard i tried....and because this carried on through the night, i just didn't sleep.

I can't say i suffered with PND but i definitely broke down many times because the worry of him not getting enough food. Even when he started "solids" he'd instantly throw up. He couldn't eat ANYTHING lumpy until he was 2 years old.

As for sleeping, they will - when they're tired....i know its hard and stressful, but babies don't tell you anything, it's all guess work...so if he's not sleepy, he won't sleep no matter how many times you put them down for a nap.

x

[Thumbelina]

I had postnatal depression after my both kids.
Was telling to GP, nobody listened, managed to hide it,

Poped out years later and turned out into GAD, followed by depression.
Trying to recover from it for almost 4 years Also I did not have emotional support from my husband, which contributes mainly to PND.
Now trying to get as much info as possible from the people about their recovery tools.

I read Panic Away by Joe Barry, visit doctor, take Cipralex 10 mg for almost 4 years now, correspond to people with anxiety, depression, GAD, PND, PTSD and all together it somehow helps.

Your daughter needs cuddles, hugs, kisses, and to understand that you are only there for her. This is what I felt like then, I had no mam next to me. And I felt nobody could understand how i felt.

Make her feel you do.

Take care,

[maddie]

Thanks for your replies, everyone. He is so gorgeous - he's just learnt how to blow raspberries and is trying to clap hands. It's so hard on this merry-go-round of anxiety to cope with the highs and lows of him and the worries about his Mum too. We all managed 5 hours sleep last night and the world seems brighter today!