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I started at 5 months pp, took it till a little past my DD's 1 yr bday. I took zoloft, lowest dosage. I felt better after a few days. I didn't do counseling afterward, but I'm sure I could have benefitted from it! Best of luck!

I went on Zoloft 3 weeks postpartum and felt better almost instantly. I stayed on it about 6 months and then went off it cold turkey with no issues. I still take one now and again if i feel bad.

@LovelyPlum: Just curious...are you still on the Zoloft now during your pregnancy?

@cmomma17: @sotofamilia: Zoloft is consider safe both in pregnancy and breastfeeding. Obviously there are slight risks in taking either (even if you're not pregnant or breastfeeding). But according to my doctor the risks are very minor when compared to those associated with a anxious/depressed mama. *My doc considered putting me on Zoloft during my pregnancy, I was extremely anxious due to a prior miscarriage*

@cmomma17: I researched the heck out of Zoloft, and very, very little to none is found in expressed breast milk. It was important to me to keep nursing, so Zoloft is the med my OB and I agreed on

@IRunForFun: yes, I am. My doctor said that as long as I need it, it's the right choice right now. He didn't even hesitate, actually...it was pretty much a non issue. I was so scared that I would have to go off of it, but I didn't. I am thinking that I will wean off as third trimester comes around, but I'm scared!

@cmomma17: I have this relationship with food too! Not eating healthy makes me feel awful about myself, which doesn't help. We ended up throwing out all of the sweets and adding in a lot of veggies wherever possible. I would still eat some carbs, but it would be on the order of something like a fake-out version of crustless chicken pot pie, made with a skim milk roux and loaded with veggies. I also like a lot of soup, but we would try to pair that with a salad, or with lettuce cup tacos instead of tortillas. That way, I still felt like I was eating my comfort foods, but it didn't affect me so terribly.

One more thing: take your vitamins!!! When I'm having an episode, my mother always told me to take my vitamins, and she gave me a B complex vitamin as well. I have found that if I am vitamin-deficient, it's so much worse. Same goes with dehydration. I need to try to drink a lot more liquid when I'm sad, and I try to limit the caffeine. I'll get a half caff if I need coffee, or if I've got a headache, a small glass of coke at night. Otherwise, it's green tea or juice that I find helps.

@cmomma17: well, at least you know your vitamins are up to snuff-that's great news! B6 might not hurt, you could always try it.

And don't beat yourself up over the food-it is hard!! It's so hard, especially when you feel completely like crap, and you know you can get a momentary break by eating something yummy.

Can I ask, did your doctor recommend medicine? Honestly, it's what got me to a place where I was then able to make the other choices I needed to take care of myself better. I knew that I needed to do both things in order to feel better, but I was physically unable to until I had some help. There's no shame in it, though I don't always believe that. But really, there's not. You can't take care of anyone else until YOU are taken care of.

I'm currently pregnant with my first, but I started taking lexapro about 2 years ago while taking care of my mom while she had cancer. It was an incredible stressful and difficult time. I took a low dose, but felt like it was helping. I became pg a few months later and weaned off of it. That pregnancy ended in MC, and coping with that in addition to my mom's passing, was very difficult for me. So I started the lex. again, along with weekly therapy. I was also TTC at the time. The combination, along with exercise and a pretty healthy diet, made a big difference. After 7 months ttc, I became pregnant again in May and weaned off the medication. About 16ish weeks into the pregnancy, I was struggling with some anxiety and mild depression, so after much research and consulting with my Dr, I decided to start taking the medication again. It's really helped with my mood and anxiety a lot. I feel like I made an educated decision, and my life stressors right now combined with a history of anxiety/ depression put me at risk for ppd. I'd rather continue taking a low dose of the meds now in preparation for that. Phew, sorry for the novel! And thanks to others for sharing their stories- it helps to know you're not alone dealing with these issues! Let us know what your Dr. recommends, OP!

@cmomma17: I also had an anxiety med that was taken as needed (maybe 20 or less times total? only when I REALLY needed it, like wasn't walking or talking or anything) but the main thing I took was lexapro 10mg. I started that and therapy at six weeks pp and also had A LOT of baby help. I started feeling better by 4-5 months pp, like myself at 6 months pp, and really happy and optimistic about life again by 8-9 months. It was severe but since I got help so quickly and intensely I recovered relatively quickly (although it certainly didn't feel quick.)

@IRunForFun: this is another reason why I'm still on it...because I have a feeling that if I weren't, things would get bad QUICKLY after baby is here.