Episode 31- Maternal Mental Health with Peggy Nosti

Today’s episode is going to kick off a theme we are doing for the month of May. May is Maternal Mental Health Awareness Month, and it is a serious issue that doesn’t get a lot of attention not because it’s not important or not because it’s uncommon, but because women feel embarrassed, or confused, or guilty about feeling anything but bliss after bringing home a new baby. Feelings of depression or anxiety leave mothers feeling hopeless and isolated. Often times women don’t recognize the symptoms in themselves and continue living under a dark cloud, when they would otherwise be feeling more joy.

I feel like the Extraordinary Moms Podcast is a place where we can get real about motherhood. We can cheer each other on, we can cry for one another, we can identify with the emotional ups and downs that occur every day in this job… and when we can put down our walls and share our stories with one another, we can in turn help others to feel less alone. My fear was that doing a whole month of mental health-related stories in a row would be too…. “depressing”… but there was just something in me that felt like these stories needed to be told… now! So today I’m talking with Peggy O’Neil Nosti, who personally suffered from Postpartum Anxiety after her third baby, and went on to start a nonprofit called the Bluedot Project, which created a universal symbol to promote maternal mental health awareness. She is honest, she is vulnerable, and she offers great hope to those who may be feeling similarly in their lives.

In the coming weeks I will bring you several more episodes featuring mothers who have dealt with postpartum mental health issues, and I will also include a few episodes focused on self-care, because that can have a strong effect on one’s ability to cope during a difficult time.

I hope these episodes help you feel validated in your feelings and encouraged that YOU ARE NOT ALONE. There is hope, and there is help. We are not doctors, so if you or someone you know might be suffering from a mental health issue, talk to your doctor and find out what you can do to start feeling like yourself again!

Blessings to all of you moms out there… you are warriors!

Show Notes: 

• To get your BlueDot: http://www.thebluedotproject.org/
• To advocate, including information on the May Campaign- National Coalition for Maternal Mental Health:  http://mmhcoalition.com/
• Check out this awesome resource for mental health and addiction: https://www.drugrehab.com/guides/pregnancy/
• If you need help, go to BlueDot’s website, or start at the national level and follow it to your local area- Postpartum Support International: http://www.postpartum.net/
• To find a screening in your area of the documentary ‘Dark Side of the Full Moon’: http://www.darksideofthefullmoon.com/
• • The place to order meat: https://www.instagram.com/maryheff.5marysfarms/
  • The TJ’s cookbook: http://www.amazon.com/Cooking-With-Trader-Cookbook-Companion/

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