I’ve written before about the intense emotional tailspin I went through in the weeks following the birth of our son and my need to reach out for help. Here’s a segment from the post (read the whole thing here):
On the night we came home, I was crushed – absolutely crushed into pieces – by my love for my son, and my terror at all the ways in which the world could hurt him. I couldn’t stop crying, and simply didn’t know what to do with all the pain that I felt – both physical and emotional. It wasn’t rational – I knew that – but it was a misery so overwhelming that I turned to Kendrick and told him that I needed help.
I don’t know that I’ve ever said those words so plainly in my life, or meant them so much.
I ended up turning to medication until the storm passed (about two weeks) because…well, it worked for me, immediately and completely, and because it felt like the most expedient way to give me the emotional and physical strength I needed to care for our newborn. But medication is not for everyone, and for those looking for a different kind of support, there are options.
Reader Marianna wrote in to tell me about a business that she started with the goal of providing emotional support to mothers during the post-partum period without the additional demand of asking them to leave their homes. Services include Preemie Support, Single Crisis Visit, access to psychiatrists, Lactation Consultation, and a comprehensive Post-Natal Package, and this honestly sounds like exactly the kind of organization that I would have reached out to had I known it existed. In any case, it’s nice to know that this kind of support is out there, if you need it.
Learn more about Parenthood Psychology Practice here.
