 This was such an honor and I still feel so unworthy of it when all I've done to advocate for maternal mental health is to share my struggles and my story. I'm honored and so humbled to be in amazing company with these incredible women.
I am grateful to anyone who listened to us moms - the doctors, the nurses, friends, families and strangers - who saw past the cuteness of our newborns and really tuned in to our internal battles and struggles. **did you know 1 in 7 moms suffer from postpartum depression?** I am grateful for those that fought in the trenches of postpartum depression and anxiety with me, and those who joined in on advocacy efforts, and those who encouraged me to keep sharing, keep speaking, keep championing. Organizations like 2020 Mom, Momma's Voices, Postpartum Support International (PSI), my peer support efforts with International Association of Premenstrual Disorders (IAPMD) have fueled this mama's cup and have been such incredible lifesaving resources.....think of them this December 1st (Giving Tuesday) or find an organization that supports your passion *also, find what fills you up and find a way to give back* https://www.2020mom.org/2020-ambassador-finalists
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 I recently did an interview with Dr. Kat from Mom and Mind. I'm always so thankful for every opportunity given to share my story.
Please have a listen here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-journey-through-preeclampsia-nicu-ppd-and-finding-hope/id1125550872?i=1000498769991 So I got some exciting news a few days ago.... and of course, once the excitement died down, anxiety came in to settle.
“What have I done that was worthy of this?” Kept popping in my head. I’ve been sitting with that thought when I got some things I had to go over. And then I read other people’s accomplishments. Anxiety laughed. And the cloak of uselessness, of pity, of not enough weighed heavy on me. What have I done that was worthy of this?! This morning, I woke up. Did a workout to get some clarity. And looked down at the cup I was drinking from. Clarity: I share my story because I wanted other mamas who feel the same way, feel less alone. All I managed to accomplish in this covid pandemic nightmare, doing pandemic homeschooling, in between doctor and lab visits, in the midst of #pmdd hell week, in living with #anxiety is telling my story. In a few weeks, I will be telling my birth story, my #pregnancyanxiety story, my #preeclampsia story, my #postpartumdepression story for the THIRD time this year. I get to sit and share what other mamas before me (and those after) won’t get to do. And that alone is more than enough. I am incredibly thankful for every opportunity that I get to share my story. I'm doing a 30 day grateful November post on my Instagram and Facebook. Yesterday was the 12th, and I posted that I am grateful for moms. Moms who champion for change. Moms who show the messy and beautiful and awe inspiring stories of motherhood. Moms who continue after a loss. I put my mom leaf on the bottom because it starts with us. Moms, our “work” may be “unseen.” We teach, we nurse, we play, we pray, we do. But what a privilege. And it’s an honor that is not lost on me. Our babies are watching what we do. Listening to what we say. Advocacy, passion, the want for change starts with us moms. I will probably circle back to this later for affirmations. But for now, I will dry my tears, swallow my thoughts on not being enough and practice saying my story aloud. And just in case you need to hear this too: “the one thing that you have that nobody else has is you. Your voice. Your mind. Your story. Your vision.” - 2020 Champions for Change summit. |
MAMAIn 2012, my daughter was born at 31 weeks due to Preeclampsia and spent 43 days in the NICU. When I found out I was pregnant again, I became anxious about history repeating itself. He was born at 34 weeks in 2016. I had another premature baby, another NICU stay, another preeclampsia diagnosis. This time, I added postpartum depression to my history. Archives
October 2021
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