My first experience with depression was postpartum after the birth of my son almost 29 years ago. I was sitting on our back porch watching him play, thinking he was a beautiful child. I had chosen to have a baby, but I was having feelings of wanting to die. I thought I had the baby blues, but they didn't leave.

I told my OB/GYN how I was feeling, and he referred me to a psychiatrist. I was diagnosed with postpartum depression and started on medication. I started to feel better in 4-6 weeks. I think parenting is a hard, stressful job and not feeling well makes it even more difficult.

Depression is a disease, not a character flaw or lack of will power. If you think you may have postpartum depression, please make an appointment with a psychiatrist to get an accurate diagnosis.

Caramel