List of the most popular hashtags for theme #MATERNALMENTALHEALTHMATTERS

I took my kids to the park the other day and met a mom who had kids the same ages as mine and we started talking and hit it off right away. She told me about her postpartum experience with both of her children and how much more difficult it was because of the endless advice she received that didn’t match what she thought was right to do. I told her I experienced the same thing and it really did make life harder especially in those early months when you’re already trying to figure things out and you find that people’s opinions on what you should be doing aren’t even close to what you’re actually doing. ⁣ ⁣ We talked about the nonsensical advice we were told about not holding our children “too much” or not responding to their cries and to teach them how to self-soothe. We talked about how difficult this can be for a mother to hear when she’s already feeling overwhelmed, exhausted, and sleep-deprived and making it seem like it’s all her fault she’s feeling this way. This type of advice can also make her feel that there’s a much better way to parent her children and nurture them than the way that feels instinctively right to her. ⁣ ⁣ It’s unfortunate that these types of mythical ideas about caring for children are so widespread. Wouldn’t it be so much better if we comforted mothers and let them know that they’re doing the best they can and that motherhood can actually be so hard regardless of how things are done? Wouldn’t it be more helpful to see how we can support a mother to rest more, and care for herself more rather than make it seem like it’s her fault that she can’t get a good night’s sleep because she has instilled “bad habits” in her babies?⁣ ⁣ Some might say “well why do you care so much about others’ opinions if you’re comfortable with what you’re doing?” The short answer is that we’re human. Something we hear or read can impact us even at a subconscious level. There could be this nagging thought in your mind telling you what you’re doing is wrong based on what someone has said to you. Words can be very powerful and can linger for a long time in our minds. ⁣ ⁣ You are the mother of your children and you know what works best for all of you.

Welcome to the #TogetherWeAlwaysRise Loop! ⋒ I have a mental health disorder. Before my boys were born those words, that statement, would not have been formulated in my mind. It is incredible to me that one of life’s greatest blessings could lead to such an internal war. Still I fight. Still I know that my need for help, both pharmacologically and therapeutically, does not define me as a person. Still I know that it does not define me as a mother. In April 2016 I became a member of the 1 in 5 tribe and three years in what an honor it has become. This group is made up of some of the strongest women there is. Women who are changing and saving lives, including their own. Women who are standing up, facing their most terrifying fears, and facing themselves. Still we fight. The past three years have been some of the longest and hardest years I have ever known. When you’re fighting for your every existence time seems to stand still. I have often asked myself, “What have you become?,” because I can get so lost in the darkness, so lost in the spiral of emotions, thoughts, and worry. There are days where nothing quiets the beast inside me and it takes seconds for all of my progress to be erased from my memory. Still I fight. I always come back. Back to myself, back to the hope I never lost, back to the life I have been so blessed to have been given. I have a mental health disorder. I am a damn good mother. I am a survivor. I matter. And so do you mama. This week is #maternalmentalhealthawareness week and today is World Maternal Mental Health Day! I have teamed up with some incredible mamas who are changing the narrative and moving to end stigma against mental health. . Check out these amazing women who are breaking barriers and sharing their journey thru MMH. Join the fight and rise with us! . @dionnachambers @mrsbrittanypride @thepeacefulhomemaker @this.mama.is @trainer_tamara @completely.maginlee . Give It All You Got tank @coveredhands

What a beautiful opportunity to shape the voices in our kids minds to be loving and compassionate. Also a great time to be mindful of the “inner critic” in our own mind and reflect on whose voice that might be (often it is not our own voice). Naming that inner critic in our mind and talking back to it with truth and learning self compassion can help us not be bullied by this “inner critic” and learn what our real voice has to say. How do you speak love to your kids? Share below! Second graphic: @journey_to_wellness_

"This is the last picture ever taken of my wife with our daughter Adriana. The following morning Alexis took her life. #MyWishForMoms is that no mom has to feel like Alexis did. #MyWishForMoms is that every mom gets to watch their babies grow up. #MyWishForMoms is that no mom feels like their loved ones are better off without them here. That no mom feels they are a burden." ❤️ After losing his wife in October 2013, Steven D'Achille founded the Alexis Joy D'Achille Foundation, an organization dedicated to helping women and families who are suffering from and affected by perinatal mood disorders. He's also involved with @AHNToday's Alexis Joy D'Achille Center for Perinatal Mental Health in Pittsburgh, which along with postpartum depression survivor @ChrissyTeigen, just launched the #MyWishforMoms campaign to raise awareness around PPD and anxiety. Tap the link in bio to read more about initiative and learn how you can get involved. #MaternalMentalHealthMonth : Steven D'Achille on Facebook

This week is Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week. As someone who suffers from prenatal depression and someone who has suffered from postpartum depression and anxiety in the past I wanted to share some things if you may be suffering too. #mywishformoms is to know these things 1. You are NOT failing. Being depressed or anxious after having your baby and still finding it in you to go on each day is a success. 2. Meds or no meds- you’re still a good mom 3. Some days (and sometimes what seems like eternity) you will feel guilty for being depressed or anxious when the world tells you to be over the moon for your baby. Your guilt does NOT define you. You are amazing and being a mom is the hardest job in the world. 4. Don’t be afraid to reach out. Tell your spouse, a friend, a family member or if you have none of the above reach out to someone on social media you know (or don’t know) that gets what you’re going through. Trust me, we all have to stand together. 5. It’s okay to love yourself, your new body. It’s also okay for that to be a process too. We change, our bodies change our minds change and it’s okay if you don’t love it right away. Part of this journey is learning how to love ourselves. I will never forget feelings of guilt, feelings of failure, depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation and everything that came with my experience of postpartum depression. I go through it now, only as prenatal. With 25 days left I am trying to have a positive outlook on tackling my postpartum depression if it arises and working through it and with myself. Momma, I know not all of the days will be bright. But they will all be worth it. I promise you that. What you’re doing matters. ❤️ . . . . . #maternalmentalhealth #maternalmentalhealthweek #maternalhealth #maternalmhmatters #maternalmentalhealthawareness #maternalmentalhealthawarenessweek #mentalhealth #motherhoodintheraw #motherhoodunfiltered #maternalmentalhealthmatters #postpartumdepression #postpartumbody #postpartumanxiety #postpartumhealth #postpartummentalhealth #overcomingdepression #overcominganxiety #mentalhealthrecovery #momsirl #joyinthejourney #throwback

We had not planned to have kids. In fact we loved our independence and life until one night I asked my husband if we would regret not having kids when we’re older and if we would feel there was a void at some point. We both answered, “Yes,” to that question and the journey began. After a great deal of testing I found out I had challenges surrounding my ovarian reserve. If we were going to become parents IVF was our best shot. In May 2015 we had our first failed attempt. I was devastated and felt weak and incapable. Incapable of having a body to grow a child, incapable of making my husband a father, incapable of having the strength to try again. And we didn’t. We took a break, enjoyed our summer and at the end of July began our last covered round of IVF. If this didn’t work I could not put my body thru it again. September 2015 we saw two heartbeats and two sacs that resembled angel wings. April 2016 we welcomed two healthy baby boys into the world. Within 48 hours the lights went out. I was on the brink of panic attacks, I would shake, hysterically cry, stare out of the window of the hospital swallowed by a numbness that left me lifeless. We went home four days after they were born and I remember walking thru the door to our home with a feeling as if I had been slowly drowning the past few days and now have been pulled under. For one week I contemplated giving one of my babies up for adoption because two babies just seemed like too much. “I don’t want this, I can’t do this!,” played on repeat in my mind. I couldn’t do it, until I did. I talked about the fear, the sadness and the breathlessness. I fought, hard, clawing my way to a light I had to believe was there. I clung to hope like a life raft. It was all I had left. Three years later I am still fighting and so proud of how far I have come. My journey thru maternal mental health is raw, real, and terrifying at times, but to have pushed thru that kind of hard has been one of the greatest victories of my life and I will never give up.

Postpartum OCD: Let’s talk about it. • Have you ever experienced unwanted thoughts or images about bringing harm to your child? Do you find these thoughts unbearable, gut-wrenching and deplorable, and yet, you can’t control them from entering your mind? Have you noticed that the more you try to get rid of them, the more often they seem to terrorize you? • If you answered yes to any of the above questions, there is a chance you could be suffering from a less commonly spoken about form of OCD known by many names: Postnatal OCD, Postnatal Anxiety, Postpartum OCD or Postpartum Anxiety. More commonly referred to as Postpartum OCD, this post-pregnancy illness is an anxiety disorder that is associated with disturbing thoughts or images revolving around common OCD obsessions. • Harm obsessions and sexual obsessions are especially common in Postpartum OCD ― both of which cause the parent to distress about the baby’s safety or their ability to keep the child safe. • Parents suffering from Postpartum OCD often find their intrusive thoughts or images fall into the following three categories: 1. Unwanted violent thoughts or images (about intentionally harming the baby) 2. Unwanted violent thoughts or images (about unintentionally harming the baby) 3. Unwanted sexual thoughts or images (involving the baby) • You’re not alone. This illness is so aggressive it often manifests itself in these terrible obsessions in people who have never experienced the symptoms of OCD before. • The most important step to recovery is accessing the right information. Intrusivethoughts.org has an extensive symptoms list which can help kick-start your journey to recovery. If you want to chat or need some resources DM. #postpartumrealtalk • @postpartumstress • #postpartumocd #postpartumocdawareness #postpartumanxiety #momssupportingmoms #youcanrecover #postpartumjourney #postpartumbody #postpartumhealth #maternalmentalhealth #letstalk #maternalmentalhealthmatters #motherhoodunplugged #motherhoodunderstood

Anxiety you saw me at 9:41 that morning. You waited patiently and didn’t want to move in too swiftly. I was wheeled back to my room following the boy’s delivery where this photo was taken. Little did I know, Anxiety, that it would be the last photo where I felt connected for some time. Shortly after this photo was taken I became very ill. You watched as my body temperature dropped to 94 degrees and I became so tired and afraid to close my eyes. You stood there as my boys were taken to the nursery so I could rest, and rest I did. But not for long because you had other plans. The next day came and I woke excited to see my boys but the air started to feel thick. I now know that was you. At the time I shrugged you off. Surely this wasn’t you or your friend depression visiting, it couldn’t be. It was just the power of the past 24 hours, had to be. You and depression lurked in the shadows that night, making me unable to sleep. Yet I woke up the next morning still not sure of your existence, until you saw your opportunity. An opportunity that only took you 48 hours from the birth of my boys to seize. In the days ahead you made a feast of my body. You flooded my tears and ate your way thru my soul. You met a barrier when you reached my heart though Anxiety. Even Depression tried to break thru to it but was powerless. Powerless because hope would keep me whole. Hope clung to my heart and shielded it from your persistent strength. Hope held up those barriers against you and never let you in. Hope kept me alive inside. Depression, you soon became tired of losing the battle against me, so you finally came to your senses and gave in, but Anxiety? You are fierce, strong willed and oh so stubborn. Three years later and you are still exhausting yourself trying to break me. Possibly you underestimated me? Possibly you didn’t realize how I can outsmart you with my resources? Anxiety you can keep showing up day after day and continue on your hamster wheel trying to break me. I am ok with that because you have helped me define my true strength, one that will always, always be greater than yours. Challenge accepted.

#postpartumdoulasdothat #maternalmentalhealth #maternalmentalhealthweek #maternalmentalhealthawareness #maternalmentalhealthweek2019 #mmhweek2019 #takebackpostpartum #motherthemother #postpartumdoula #postpartumdoulas #postpartum #postpartumsupport #postpartumwellness #maternalhealth #maternalhealthmatters . . . . . . Via @thelactationtherapist