A Postpartum Progress reader made the following comment in an email to me last week:

“If only I had been more open to medication in the beginning, maybe this wouldn’t have taken as long?”

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard that, not only in relation to medication but to any treatment at all. So many have told me after the fact how much they wish they’d reached out for help sooner or been more open to certain treatment methods sooner.

We are all so convinced we should be able to get over perinatal mood and anxiety disorders like postpartum depression ourselves. So we wait. We hope it goes away on its own. We hope we figure out the key to getting better. Many of us do everything other than ask for help, partially because we are afraid of the treatment itself. It’s not an uncommon thing to do, so don’t beat yourself up about it.

At the same time, I hope you won’t prolong your misery any further. Whether it’s therapy, or medication, or some combination thereof in addition to sleep, nutrition, exercise, acupuncture or whatever you do, please do it. I know it’s scary. It was scary for me to go see a counselor. It was also worth it.

If you feel you have the signs of postpartum depression or anxiety, ask for help. The right people can help you and hasten your recovery.