Postpartum Progress

Actresses Angie Harmon & Gena Lee Nolin Open Up About Postpartum Depression

Two stories yesterday about celebrities who've experienced postpartum depression:

The first is from the website Lilsugar where actress Angie Harmon complains on video that no one told her about PPD until after she got it! Harmon had PPD after each of her three kids.

The second, from the magazine Life & Style, features Gena Lee Nolin, former Baywatch star, who experienced PPD (thanks to Celebrity Baby Blog for the story).  She also had it with all three of her kids, and used both meds and counseling as part of her treatment.  She plans to write a book about her experience. 

Actresses and other celebrities are subject to the same illnesses the rest of us are, and are just as likely to go through the darkness of PPD.  For news of other celebrity moms who've had postpartum depression, like Lisa Rinna, Gwyneth Paltrow and Amanda Peet, click here.

Actress Lisa Rinna Discloses Her Experience with Postpartum Depression

Another actress adds her name to the list of celebrities who have suffered a perinatal mood and anxiety disorder --Lisa Rinna. 

Rinna was a star of the show "Melrose Place" and has also appeared on "Dancing With the Stars". 

As reported by Starpulse:

The 45-year-old mother-of-two tells all about her dark past in her new book Rinnivation: Getting Your Best Life Ever.

Rinna admits she set out to write about diet and fitness, but she found herself haunted by visions of killing her actor husband Harry Hamlin and their daughters, Delilah, 10, and Amelia, seven.

And the project soon became a way for the actress to reach out to other women who have suffered in a similar way.

She says, "I set out to write a diet and fitness book period and that was about it. That isn't exactly who I am, I'm much more than that. I just started to open up and it became this cathartic event... People don't talk about this. It's very, very scary and vulnerable. I had visions of knives and guns. I made Harry hide all the sharp knives and take the gun out of the house because I had visions of killing everybody. Now how horrific is that? I wanted share it because I think women are so shamed by this and feel so horrible... I found help and got through it."

First of all, Starpulse, PLEASE NOTE that having suffered from a perinatal mood and anxiety disorder is not a "dark past," thank you very much.

Also, it sounds like Rinna suffered from postpartum OCD actually.  I made my husband take the gun out of the house as well.  I'm glad that she found help to get through it and that she was willing to share her experience.

Actress Amanda Peet Reveals Bout with PPD

According to Celebrity Baby Blog, actress Amanda Peet has revealed that she struggled with a fairly serious postpartum depression following the birth of her daughter Frances Penn in an interview with Gotham magazine.

The 36-year-old actress says that the feelings of euphoria she enjoyed while pregnant "all came crashing down the second [Frankie] was born; "expecting to feel fulfilled," Amanda says she instead felt "sleep-deprived beyond belief" and ambivalent about motherhood. She adds, "I want to be honest about it because I think there’s still so much shame when you have mixed feelings about being a mom instead of feeling this sort of 'bliss.' I think a lot of people still really struggle with that, but it’s hard to find other people who are willing to talk about it."

Thanks for being a Warrior Mom, Amanda.

Bloggers, Celebrity Moms & PPD: The New Guessing Game

First the celebrity blogs were obsessed with creating new names for the famous couples in Hollywood - TomKat, Bennifer, Brangelina.  Next, they became obsessed with figuring out which stars were pregnant, pointing out both real and imagined "baby bumps".  Now it seems everyone is trying to diagnose which new star moms have postpartum depression, whether it's Nicole Richie or Christina Aguilera or Jennifer Lopez.  Their latest target is Jessica Alba.

This type of speculation is uneducated and in poor taste, as pointed out by Melissa McEwan over at Shakesville.  She discusses what sites like TMZ.com are saying about Alba and about PPD, and points out:

As if "Gee, Jessica, you're so pretty—what could you possibly feel bad about?" isn't stupid enough, were she were suffering basic depression, this is the equivalent of saying, "Gee, Jessica, you're so pretty—why would your body possibly suffer a dramatic drop in estrogen and progesterone post-pregnant, possibly accompanied by a drop in blood volume, blood pressure, immune system, and/or metabolism? And you're so sexy—why would being a first-time mother to a newborn baby cause sleep deprivation or feelings of being overwhelmed and anxious? And you're so successful—it's hard to imagine that immediately after giving childbirth you might feel fatigued or emotional. I always thought postpartum depression was for ugly chicks!"

Of course everyone is potentially subject to a perinatal mood disorder regardless of their appearance, their job title or their bank account.  And celeb watchers have no business sitting around trying to make odds on who will or won't get PPD as if this is some kind of game.  If a new mom wishes to publicly share her experience to try and help others, like Brooke Shields or Courteney Cox or Gwyneth Paltrow, that's wonderful.  Otherwise they should be left alone. Postpartum depression is no joke.

P.S.  Thanks to Rachel Faulk for pointing out the Shakesville story to me!

Gwyneth Paltrow Suffered PPD

So Gwyneth Paltrow admits in Vogue magazine this month that she suffered postpartum depression after the birth of her second child.  What does this tell us?  That she is a normal human being just like everyone else and is just as susceptible to postpartum depression as the next person.  I'm glad she was willing to share the teensiest bit of her story, and find it interesting that the following short paragraph ended up spreading like wildfire around the web, as reported by E! Online ...

The Oscar-winning mother of two is opening up about her battle with depression after giving birth to her and rocker hubby Chris Martin’s second child. “You know, I had postnatal depression after Moses," Paltrow says in the new issue of Vogue. “I didn’t know I had it until after it was over. I just didn’t know what was wrong with me...I felt really out of my body. I felt really disconnected. I felt really down; I felt pessimistic.”

Girl, we feel you.  We've been there.  As to whether it was caused, as she indicates, by her cessation of acupuncture and massage treatments I'm not so sure.  But what do I know?

People Magazine Reports Britney Did Suffer PPD

People.com is now reporting that Britney Spears did in fact suffer from postpartum depression.  Not surprising.  I've been saying all along that it seemed like her life was bumping right along until she had her children, and then there seemed to be a huge change in her demeanor. 

Britney Spears has "suffered from a psychological disease for years," says a source close to the singer.

Two separate sources who are acquaintances of the family believe the singer has never been formally diagnosed with bipolar disorder, but "there is no question she is bipolar ... she's had manic episodes for years" ...

PEOPLE has learned from multiple sources that the singer also suffered from depression after both her pregnancies. "She had postpartum depression after Preston was born," says a source who was close to the family during her marriage to Kevin Federline. "She didn't want anyone's help ... It got worse after Jayden was born" ...

A close family friend says "the tragic thing is that Britney loves her children and would never knowingly put them in harms way. Her mental instability is getting in the way of her making proper judgment and it's extremely unfortunate."

If it is true, the important thing to point out here is how important it is to seek treatment.  A lot of us don't want any help, as the article states about Britney, because we don't want people to know and we don't want to admit that we may need therapy or medication.   And in her case, I can completely understand her reluctance since she knew any problems she had would be shared with the entire world.  But the alternative is SO much worse.  I'd rather admit maybe I'm not the invincible person I thought I was than to descend into a vortex of misery.  Untreated mental illness can become much worse, and have a greater negative impact on the sufferer and everyone around them.  Get past the stigma, get past the fear, get past the disappointment and reach out.  Ask for help.  You and everyone around you will benefit from your courage.

Amy Grant Discusses Her Postpartum Depression in New Memoir

Here's a link to an article that just appeared in the Nashville Tennessean about singer Amy Grant's new memoir, "Mosaic: Pieces of My Life So Far".  Apparently, Amy speaks out for the first time about suffering postpartum depression in her new book.  From the article:

In Mosaic, Grant, 46, speaks publicly for the first time about the cyclical onset of depression when the winter days grow shorter. She also mentions postpartum depression, a miscarriage and being "too wrecked and too ashamed" to say nightly prayers with her young children when her first marriage fell apart.

 

Canadian Entertainer Amy Sky's Story of PPD

For all of you Canadians out there, here's a link to a story from St. Catharine's Standard about singer/songwriter Amy Sky and her experience with postpartum depression.  Sky is a campaign spokesperson for the Mood Disorders Association of Ontario, which is encouraging people to get a Check Up from the Neck Up in a province-wide campaign.

E! Online Covers Britney's Possible PPD

Click here to see the story by E! Entertainment News about Britney Spears' potential postpartum depression.  Sandra Poulin (author of The Mother-to-Mother Postpartum Depression Support Book), Susan Dowd-Stone (president of Postpartum Support International) and myself were all interviewed for the story.

Laughing at Mental Illness - Britney Spears, Lisa Nowak & Anna Nicole Smith

There has been some discussion about whether Britney Spears is suffering from some form of postpartum depression.  It certainly doesn't seem out of the realm of possibility, given the number of stressors in her life (divorce, paparazzi, two children under the age of 2, growing up in public).  She is only 5 months postpartum.  I really feel for her and I hope she gets the support she needs and that people BACK OFF and stop making fun of her.  It's not funny when you're going through some sort of breakdown as we all know -- imagine how much worse it would be to have it drawn out in public. Here's a link to a piece from the Chicago Tribune website:  http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/features_julieshealthclub/2007/02/does_britney_ha.html

It amazes me how free people feel to laugh at mental illness.  There has been so much collective giggling about the female astronaut Lisa Nowak (who drove across the country in diapers to confront another woman), about Anna Nicole Smith (who seems to have relied on prescription drugs to get through her days), about Britney (who has just shaved her head) ... millions tune in gleefully to watch people who are clearly troubled get made fun of on "American Idol".  There's nothing funny about it.  Everyone has the potential to suffer from a bout of depression or some other illness, and some people fight against it their entire lives.  Most get help and live regular lives like the rest of us. 

Could we please stop having a laugh fest at the expense of people who are clearly suffering?  It's just. not. funny.

Tom Cruise Has Another Apology to Make

So Tom Cruise has now apologized to Brooke Shields, and she accepted his apology (see story here).  Good for them both. 

I, on the other hand, have not forgiven Tom Cruise.  It hurt all of us when he dragged our illness into the spotlight and essentially made us feel awful for having taken medications that were prescribed to us by legitimate physicians in order to recover.  It wasn't only his comments that hurt, but also the echoing, more destructive comments from so many ignorant people around the country when this story arose because of Cruise.  It was very hard to read the words of many citizens online and in print about how we're crazy and stupid and drugged up, etc.

When he apologizes to all women who have suffered or are suffering from postpartum mood disorders, I'll accept.  Until then, I don't plan to spend my box office dollars on his movies.

It's okay with me that he doesn't believe in antidepressants.  No problem.  But don't judge me because I do believe in them.  Don't make me look bad in the public eye because I had to take them.  They saved my life. 

Brooke Shields & Katie Holmes Deliver Babies

Brooke Shields had baby number two, another girl, yesterday.  We wish her well and our thoughts are with her!  I hope she has a PPMD-free experience, but if not we know she will be under good care with lots of support around her.

Katie Holmes, fiance of outspoken antidepressant critic Tom Cruise, also delivered her baby girl yesterday.  We also wish her well and hope she has a PPMD-free experience!

Tags: postpartum depression Brooke Shields Katie Holmes

Courteney Cox Arquette Had Postpartum Depression

Courteney Cox Arquette recently disclosed she, too, suffered from postpartum depression: Chicago Tribune | Cox Arquette's baby blues.

Of course, it annoys me that the Chicago Tribune chose to use the headline "Cox Arquette's Baby Blues". How many times do we have to explain that the baby blues is not postpartum depression?

Brooke Shield's Story Coming May 3

Brooke Shields' book "Down Came the Rain", about her experience with postpartum depression, will be released on May 3.  Amazon.com describes it this way:

In this compelling memoir, Brooke Shields talks candidly about her experience with postpartum depression after the birth of her daughter, and provides millions of women with an inspiring example of recovery.

When Brooke Shields welcomed her newborn daughter, Rowan Francis, into the world, something unexpected followed -- a crippling depression. Now, for the first time ever, Brooke talks about the trials, tribulations, and finally the triumphs that occurred before, during, and after the birth of her daughter.

In what is sure to strike a chord with the millions of women who suffer from depression after childbirth, America's sweetheart Brooke Shields shares how she, too, battled this debilitating condition that is widely misunderstood, despite the fact that it affects many new mothers. She discusses the illness in the context of her life, including her struggle to get pregnant, the high expectations she had for herself and that others placed on her as a new mom, and the role of her husband, friends, and family as she struggled to attain her maternal footing in the midst of a disabling depression. And, ultimately, Brooke shares how she found a way out through talk therapy, medication, and time.

Exhibiting an informed voice and a self-deprecating sense of humor, this first memoir from a woman who has grown up before the eyes of the world is certain to attract the attention and empathy of many new mothers and fans alike.

Order it here from the PSI bookstore.

Those of you living in the New York area or California can see her at the following book signings:
*  Saturday, May 7 at noon at the  Costco in West Lake Village
*  Saturday, May 7 at 7pm at Borders Books & Music in Torrance   
*  Monday, May 9 at 7pm at the Barnes & Noble at Union Square in NYC             
*  Tuesday, May 10 at 7:30pm at the Barnes & Noble in Princeton, NJ            
*  Wednesday, May 11 at 7pm at the RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT