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Kathy's Postpartum Depression Story

In Her Own Words

By Kathy Woltman

The nurse at the office told me that the OB had called in a prescription for Prozac for me and that if I took that I'd feel better by Christmas. HA! That still annoys me to this day. What total misinformation. Better in a few days! I was horrified that I would be taking a drug like Prozac. It made me feel ashamed and humiliated. Drugs to be "normal." However, the women on the PPD discussion board encouraged me and helped me get over my fears and so I took the Prozac.

Three days of Prozac and I was doing worse than ever! I spent Christmas Day thinking I needed to be hospitalized. I couldn't even join my family to celebrate. I spent the day in my robe, near collapse. Again, I called the OB's office and they said they'd call me in an anti-anxiety agent, Xanax, and if I felt really bad I should take that. Now I was even more humiliated! They also told me I ought to find a psychiatrist. This put me in tears again. I felt like a total loser.

However, with the encouragement of the women on the PPD site, I made the appointment. The Xanax helped me very little and the Prozac seemed to do nothing for me. The psychiatrist I saw explained that it would take weeks for the Prozac to work and that the Xanax should be taken around the clock at regular intervals in order to better help my anxiety. He said I needed to stick with the Prozac. He also gave me Trazadone to sleep. I had diurnal insomnia. The Trazadone was a Godsend as at least. If nothing else, I slept well at night.