Postnatal depression affects many more women than you might think.

Depending upon the literature you read, anywhere between 3.7% and 76.7% of women experience post natal depression after the birth of their baby.  In Australia, around 1 in 6 women report post natal depression.  That means that statistically, at least one or two women in your antenatal class will go on to experience depression during the early days of their baby’s life.

Postnatal depression, like any depression, can be really tough going.  The difference with post natal depression is that you now have a new born baby to care for while you’re struggling.  Plus there’s often the added emotional baggage of an expectation that it should be the most enchanting time of your life.

Symptoms of postnatal depression include (over at least a 2 week period):

• Feeling sad
• Uncontrollable crying or feeling teary
• Less interested in previously enjoyable activities
• Feeling worthless
• Feeling excessive guilt
• Feeling unable to cope
• Feeling irritable
• Feeling scared and alone
• Not wanting to socialise
• Over or under eating
• Insomnia
• Always exhausted or hyperactive
• Difficultly thinking, concentrating, remembering or making decisions
• Recurrent thoughts of suicide
• Recurrent thoughts of self harm or harming the baby
• Anxiety or panic attacks
• Mood swings
• Decreased interest in sex
• Decreased self confidence and self esteem
• Negative thinking

Listen to Jane’s experience with post natal depression….

Postnatal depression is different from the the ‘baby blues’.  The baby blues is much less severe, extremely common, and typically occurs within the first two weeks of child birth.  It’s characterised by frequent mood changes and is relatively short lived.

While technically a diagnosis of post natal depression is only given if the onset of depression occurs within the first 4 weeks of child birth, I believe (and I’m not the only one) that we can call any depression that begins in the first year of child birth post natal depression.  And let’s not forget about depression during pregnancy too.  But just for the record, I also believe that diagnoses are only important if they’re meaningful and helpful to you.

The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression is short screening tool for depression.  In Australia this questionnaire is given to all pregnant women and new mothers.  If you’re interested, you can answer the 10 questions to see if you might be experiencing post natal depression here.

In a Melbourne based study, mothers of babies were asked about their feelings in the initial months after childbirth, and 65% reported feeling low or depressed during this time (Gilley, 1993).  When asked what helped them during this period, 76% said that talking to someone was helpful.  This was followed by changing their attitude (15%) and getting out with the baby (14%).

I met Brook McCarthy a couple of years ago when I attended her online marketing for yoga teachers workshop in Byron Bay.  I was inspired by her no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is attitude and her strong views about it being ok for yoga teachers to make money (shock horror) and that online marketing doesn’t it have to be sleezy (it’s just telling people what you’re about).

I have been pretty timid about self promotion and marketing, so was somewhat relieved and inspired by Brook’s take on the whole thing.

When I decided to take Capturing Gratitude to a new level and share it with the world, it was Brook I went to for advice on how to do this.  And hence, Brook became the Capturing Gratitude Online Marketing Consultant, and the brains behind many of the ways we’ve been sharing this project (we have Brook to thank for the ‘gratitude revolution’!).

I interviewed Brook while she was travelling in Vietnam, and here’s what she had to say….

Lauren: In this moment Brook, what are you grateful for?

Brook: I’m grateful to be travelling for 3 weeks overseas with my family – Los Angeles and Vietnam. My partner and I are both self-employed which makes this far more possible. We met while travelling (I was the tour leader, he was the tourist) and we both love to travel. We’re really enjoying watching our two girls (aged three and five) react and respond to new places, people and things. It’s fantastic experiencing something through the eyes of a child.

Lauren: Tell me a bit about yourself Brook.

Brook: I run Yoga Reach, an online marketing consultancy specialising in yoga and wellbeing businesses. Part of what I do involves travelling around Australia running one-day intensive courses teaching micro business owners about positioning themselves as an expert and authority, being bold in business and using their natural gifts for quirkiness and self-expression as their marketing advantage. Good marketing is creative and empathetic – it should be fun! I help people to enjoy themselves in business and reboot their attitude and perspective so they can make more money with more ease, and more heart.

Lauren: Tell me about the wonderful work that you do (when you’re not volunteering your time for Capturing Gratitude)? 

Brook: As well as presenting these face-to-face courses, I also coach and consult with business owners, giving them advice, training and feedback on their businesses, whether they’re a sole yoga teacher, a studio owner, a masseuse or kinesiologist, psychologist or personal trainer. It’s fairly diverse, with all my coaching clients doing different things, at different stages of their business, and with different goals and approaches. There’s a thread that unites them all, though – they’re all self-motivated people, they aren’t afraid to take risks, they recognise that much of business and marketing is a great experiment, and they don’t feel ashamed of earning a good income for the service they provide.

Yoga Reach also offers online marketing services such as website design, search engine optimisation, marketing plans and copy writing, so if I’m not coaching or organising a course, I’m writing, adding content to clients’ websites, and working closely with our team of designers, writers, SEOs and digital geeks.

I also work in a volunteer capacity as the marketing coordinator and vice-president of Off the Mat, Into the World, which is a grassroots organisation which uses yoga to inspire and support conscious, sustainable activism, and to ignite local (and international) social change.

Finally, I’m the co-creator of Hacking Happiness, an organisation and movement to steal happiness back from the gurus. We’re pro-happy but against happiness glorification. We want to tackle the mental health and suicide crisis that Australia is in the grips of by encouraging critical thinking on what makes each of us happy (so we can have some more!).

Lauren: Why do you think people should join us in Capturing Gratitude?

Brook: The older I get, the simpler my life philosophy becomes. Regardless of circumstances, we have willpower over our focus, our attention and, hence, our attitude. Attitude makes ALL the difference. So, regardless of who you are or what you’re doing, treat your focus and attention with care and direct it towards the good stuff – this will have an enormous effect on your attitude, and gratitude is one of the most accessible ways you can do this. There’s always something to be grateful for.

Lauren: Please share one of your gratitude photographs with us Brook.

This photo is is of my two girls outside the house we rented for 6 weeks last year in France. I love it because it’s full of joy and shows just how into each other they are. Not all siblings get along with each other so well, especially when they’re young, so I’m very grateful that these two are great friends, and thick as thieves!  {Photo credit: Alice McCarthy Photography}

Lauren: Thanks again Brook for volunteering your time and sharing your wisdom to help Capturing Gratitude reach thousands of people all over the world!

If you haven’t already done so, be sure to sign up to Capturing Gratitude.  You can share your gratitude photographs in an online happiness community, plus you can download the Gratitude Interviews book (includes another interview with Brook) and join the 4 week eCourse.

And it’s free.

Sign up now at www.capturinggratitude.com.

Join the gratitude revolution!