"I wanted things to be different than they had been for me; I wanted to be a different kind of parent with a different kind of relationship. Somehow, having my daughter brought back all the feelings of frustration and failure I had struggled with during my own childhood."

"We talked about breast-feeding, co-sleeping, and maternity leave. We talked about the laundry piling up, but we never talked about postpartum depression; we never talked about the overwhelming, persistent fear."

"I had a full on, crying, whining, screaming, melt-down. I was a professional before I was a mother, and after I was a mother, I felt like a seven year old. I didn't know who I was, I couldn't see my future, and all I felt was ashamed."

tried to mention my strange thoughts, my feelings of incompetence, my confusion. I tried to bring it up to a friend, then a relative, and even a health care professional. They said everyone goes through this. If everyone goes through this, where was the way out? Why did I feel alone and hopeless?"

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"Finally, someone noticed and asked the right questions.. 'How are you doing?  How are you really doing?'"


"I had no idea the thoughts that could arise... It was difficult for me to even put them into words because they were so awful and I didn't know why I was having them, where they were coming from, or what was wrong with me - these were dark days and I felt I couldn't tell anyone about what was happening inside my mind.  The therapist I saw asked me straight out about my thoughts, not with any judgment or condemnation but with a gentle, curious, soft, empathetic concern.  I felt human again, not like the monster I felt I might become."

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"I began to feel better - less anxious with more control over my thoughts, and my body felt calm.  I had been so tense, so ready for disaster.  I found someone to connect with who understood and I felt my body and my mind physically relax and feel hopeful."