PND or just moody?

Hi,

i need your opinion... my husband thinks i might have PND but i think im just moody from being tired.

i dont feel down every day, just here and there for a few days. some days i walk around with my head down feeling compleatly overwhelmed and the rest of the time im a cranky cow. i get realy stressed out when my bubs cries, its like... when i dont know whats wrong, i cant deal with it. i just want him to stop. i rarly feel "great". i had a miserable pregnancy and i didnt cope too well with the birth (even though it was a fast one). My husband has an illness that prevents him from working so he is home "all" the time and sees exactly how i am. i dont get much time to myself and now that bubs is here i dont realy get any time to myself except for when im in the shower or on the net and even then bubs is at my feet in his rocker being rocked with my foot! ive lost my sex drive, ive put on weight, i feel unatractive, i dont realy have any friends that i can have a heart to heart with (i lost most of my friends when i got married! dont know why.) so i feel so alone. i dont have a social life. next week i start going to parents group in my area so hopefully i will make some new friends but im not easy to befriend cos im kinda shy when im face to face with people. Anyway, i was just wondering if this sounds like PND or if im just moody. My maternal and child health nurse said she was starting to worry about me because i was paranoid that something bad would happen to my bubs and cos i seemed overwhelmed but i kind of lied and said i was coping fine now (although it wasnt realy a lie as at the time i thought i was, till the next day when all i wanted to do was cry again!). i dont want to take anti-depressants, i dont know why but i am weird about taking them. My husband suffers from depression and i just dont think im like that. i cant talk to my mum about this like i read was advised in one of the other posts cos she has never been one for heart to hearts, she would just say something like "thats part of being a mum" or 'stop feeling sorry for yourself" or something like that. i know because ive tried talking to her when i was a teenager and thats pretty much the kind of things shed say. i think she just doesnt know how to deal with people when they are upset. its not her fault. Then of course on top of all of this theres the money issue! not enough to realy have a life on top of living (did that make sence?)
Anyway, any feedback would be great. ( im kinda hoping youll say im just moody cos then i know its something i can get over!)

Man, i realy sound like a winger dont i!

hi lizz,
really your not a winger!!!! that what this forum is for, support, and from other mums that are in the same position, or can try help and offer advice.
honestly..i think you may have mild PND. but im not a professional to diagnose you, but i think you need to talk to someone about this. 1 positive step you have made is going to mums group next week. just make sure you go, and not make excuses not to! meeting people is important, not just for you but for the kids too. you should try mingle them with other kids, for their social development.
i have been on anitdepressents on and off for the last 5 years. i was diagnosed with pnd when my 2nd was about 15 months, then got it again with my 3rd. i am now pregnant with my 4th, and when i found out i went back onto medication, as i new i wasnt going to cope, and well i was becoming an emotional wreck. i dont think its just about feeling depressed either, there is the element that you just dont feel you can cope. i become very irritable and sort of shut off. i dont like my kids, but i love them to death.
i found it hard to accept my pnd at first, and was determined to not be on medication for the rest of my life, but sometimes you may only need them for a few months! i was doing well without them until ifell pregnant this time. but i knew that being on medication is better for my baby than stressing out all the time. but now, it isnt an issue for me, and can quite openly talk about it.
like you said with your mum, well she doesnt have to know. my mil, is a bit the same....old school, just deal with it she would say. so i dont tell her. you can be discrete about it, but you will find talking bout it makes it seem better. you may find that if you try medication, if thats what you need, then going out and meeting people will seems soo much easier!!
i know ive dribbled on here, but i hope its helped.
kristy
my msn is kristymae77@hotmail.com...if you ever want to have a chat!