โI never understood postpartum depression. Just like I never understood motherhood. I mean, how can you if you havenโt lived it first hand?
Sure, you can imagine what it would feel like. But imagining and understanding are two very different things.
Iโll admit. Before postpartum came knocking on my door, I unfairly judged those who walked this path before me. I just couldnโt understand.
How could a mother feel such strong sadness as the result of having a baby? How could a mother ever dream of regretting her children, leaving her family, or even worse, taking her own life? Itโs unfathomable.
Especially when you dreamed of being a mother your entire life. Especially when you believed postpartum could never happen to you. Knowing what I know now, the answer to those questions is actually fairly simple. And itโs not because that mother has a character flaw or weakness. Itโs not because she doesnโt want to experience the magic.
Itโs because she has a disease. One that affects 1 in 7 women who gives birth each year. Which is close to 1 million women annually in the United States. And hereโs the most shocking statistic of them all: close to 850,000 of them never seek help.
This is unjust to mothers and children everywhere. And too many of us just donโt understand.
I never understood postpartum depression. Not because Iโm ignorant, but because itโs not talked about. Itโs not addressed in doctorsโ offices. Itโs not addressed on the birthing table. And itโs typically not shared among friends.
Not enough women are being saved, and too many women are slipping through the cracks. And Iโm not about to stand for it. Iโm not about to sit here and feel ashamed of the battle Iโm fighting. Iโm not about to let you believe I donโt love my children, or Iโd ever trade them for anything. Theyโre my world and I want to continue living it.
Itโs just sometimes I struggle to make it through the day, because Iโm 1 in 7.
But Iโm also one of those who went to seek help.
Letโs get that number lower and allow those women to start living.โ

This story was submitted to Love What Matters by Annie Lawton. You can follow her journey on Facebook. Subscribe to our free email newsletter, Living Betterโyour ultimate guide for actionable insights, evidence backed advice, and captivating personal stories, propelling you forward to living a more fulfilling life.
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