Mount Pleasant Magazine May/June 2018

79 www.MountPleasantMagazine.com | www.ILoveMountPleasant.com | www.BestOfMP.com feature and to try to forge a new life balance, and 80 percent of women experience some negative feelings or mood swings known as the “baby blues.” If those feelings don’t subside after a couple weeks, it could be a sign of a deeper issue, and it is important to seek professional help. “Perinatal mood and anxiety disorders affect 1 in 7 women,” said Holly Fisher, a volunteer and past board president of Postpartum Support Charleston and a survivor of postpartum depression. “It can manifest itself in different ways – depression, anxiety or OCD, for example, but feelings of guilt or regret about having the baby or about the difficulties of being a mother are very common. It’s still somewhat taboo because it’s not easy to admit to someone else that you feel this way.” These are serious conditions, but they can be treated successfully through a combination of an experienced professional like a doctor or psychologist familiar with perinatal mood and anxiety disorders, an appropriate medication and dosage plan and emotional support. Postpartum Support Charleston offers support, education and healing through groups led by women who have been through postpartum depression or postpartum anxiety. “It’s hugely helpful for moms to have a place where they can go, talk about it, hear other people’s stories and have someone else who can say, ‘Yes, I know exactly what you’re talking about because I’ve felt the same way,”’ Fisher continued. “I had resigned myself to think that life was going to be like this forever, and I would just live like this and cry every day. It’s awful to think that you’re alone like that.” Having a baby changes everything. But mothers are strong: We grow, we adapt and we carry ourselves and our babies through incredible physical, mental and emotional change, but it’s best to get help when you need it so you can get back to doing what you do best: caring for your children.