MOTHERS Act (My Postpartum Story)

I suffered from postpartum depression after youngest was born. Early on it probably could have been diagnosed as postpartum psychosis. By the time youngest was 4 weeks old I didn't feel like I could handle life. I didn't want my children to grow up knowing that their mother abandoned them so I was going to take them out with me. I had a plan. It all made perfect sense.

Sitting in my room on my bed with my 4 week old nearby I was contemplating my plan. Running through it all in my head. Timing it so that I would be as merciful as possible but also would complete the job. I couldn't live the way I was. I didn't want them to live without me. I knew I couldn't live with what I was going to do so I had to be sure it would be over for all of us.

Sitting on my bed, clear as day I heard His voice. HE said, "This is a lie." Clear as day I saw the truth. I don't know how to explain it. One minute, what I was planning was the only thing that made sense. It seemed so true. The next minute I could see so clearly the lie that it was. Reality came through. All I could do was cry and put myself before God in awe that He would want to save me and thankful that He did.

The next few weeks were difficult but the lie never tricked me again. By 6 weeks I was able to kinda admit to people where I was at emotionally and talk through things. I was terrified at this point that if I was fully honest my children would be taken from me and I would lose all respect/ trust from my husband. By six months I still felt disconnected from life but I felt so much better and even said, "I suffered from postpartum depression." By 1 year I realized that even at 6 months I was still suffering from it, just not in the form of psychosis. By 2 years I hit a day where I thought to myself, "I remember you. This is what it's like to be me." It took 2 full years after youngest was born to feel like "myself," even though I hadn't realized how much of myself I had lost.

It is by the voice of God that I sit here 4 years later with healthy happy children and a wonderful marriage.

There is currently a bill before the Senate called the MOTHERS Act. I rarely support government involvement and dollars for anything, preferring it to come through the private sector but I think this is a good idea.

The Moms Opportunity to Access Help, Education, Research and Support for Postpartum Depression Act, or MOTHERS Act (S. 1375), will ensure that new mothers and their families are educated about postpartum depression, screened for symptoms and provided with essential services. In addition, it will increase research into the causes, diagnoses and treatments for postpartum depression. The bill is sponsored by Senators Menendez and Durbin.

Postpartum depression is a serious and disabling condition that affects up to 20 percent of new mothers -- as much as 800,000 American women each year. Yet only 15 percent of these women will receive any assessment or treatment. Let me repeat. With all we know and as smart as we are, only 15% of 800,000 women will get diagnosed and treated. That is so wrong on so many levels. Women are not being diagnosed because they're not being educated and they're not being screened. Untreated, the consequences of maternal mood disorders range from chronic, disabling depression to death. The impact of untreated maternal depression on infants/children ranges from behavioral and learning disabilities to depression and, in the worst case scenarios, death from infanticide.

Specifically, the MOTHERS Act will help new moms by:

• Providing important education and screening on postpartum depression (PPD) that can lead to early identification and treatment. The legislation includes two grants to help health care providers educate, identify and treat PPD.
• Expanding important research to improve and discover new treatments, diagnostic tools and educational materials for providers. Since the exact cause of PPD isn't known, research continues to be the key to unlocking the mystery of this condition.

The bill is currently with the Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee of the Senate. If the majority of the HELP Committee members endorse the MOTHERS Act, the bill will move forward for consideration by the Senate. Without Senate sponsors, the bill could languish in committee and await reintroduction at a future date. The moms of America can't wait for that. Most Senators rarely hear from mothers (and others!), and phone calls from you and your readers will cause them to sit up and take notice on a specific issue. Writing or sending emails has much less impact.

Today, October 24, 2007 bloggers all over are joining in the call to call. Please take time right now to call your senator and ask them to support this bill. Below is a sample of what to say as well as phone numbers. It will take very little time to call. Please call. If I didn't include your state senator you can go here for a list of all the state senator offices: http://www.postpartum.net/take-action.html

Suggested Script: "Hello this is (your name) one of Senator (Senator's name) constituents from (your town). I am calling to ask the Senator to co-sponsor The MOTHERS Act bill number S. 1375, sponsored by Senator Menendez, which will provide funding for research, education, screening and treatment of postpartum depression."

Arkansas: Lincoln (D-AR) 202-224-4843Pryor (D-AR) 202-224-2353

California: Boxer (D-CA) 202-224-3553 - Thank you to Senator Barbara Boxer for signing on as a sponsor. Feinstein (D-CA) 202-224-3841

Montana: Baucus (D-MT) 202-224-2651Tester (D-MT) 202-224-2644

Pennsylvania: Casey (D-PA) 202-224-6324Specter (R-PA) 202-224-4254

Virginia: Warner (R-VA) 202-224-2023Webb (D-VA) 202-224-4024

Wisconsin: Feingold (D-WI) 202-224-5323Kohl (D-WI) 202-224-5653

Thank you to Katherine Stone of Postpartum Progress for her segment yesterday on The Morning Show with Mike and Julie, for her work in bringing awareness and support to this and for her wonderful blog site devoted to this subject.