Susan didn't know anything about postpartum depression before experiencing it herself; having information in advance would have been helpful.

Transcript

Interviewer: Is there anything you know now that you wish you had known before this had happened?

I wish I’d known more about postpartum depression. The signs to look out for, what it is and why it happens to people. And I wish that, you know, I’d been told that, you know, if you do find yourself going through it that it’s okay. That there is, you know, like one in five women go through it. So you know, there’s another mom in your mom’s group that could be putting on a good front too and you just don’t know it. Knowing that there are groups out there to help you and there are supports out there designed to help you get through it. I just wished I’d known about it.

Interviewer: What would have been the best way to inform pregnant new moms about this condition?

Well I think whether you’re with a midwife or you’re with an OB I think that one of your visits, you know, they should focus on it. They should talk to you about it and they should say like, look, you know, this is a reality, this happens to one in five women. It is something that happens to more women than you’re aware and a lot of people don’t go for help. You know, you hear in the news, you hear about the moms that do the horrible things to their children, you know, and end up killing themselves or their children, but you don’t hear about the women that suffer in silence and don’t end up doing those things but are tortured every day with those feelings and I think the awareness, you know, letting women know that this is a reality, this happens and it’s okay if it happens to you, you know? You just ask for help. It’s okay to need help once in a while. It’s okay to ask for support.

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