Famous Friday: Featuring YOU!

Ok, so some of you have been making AWESOME comments on here and to me in person.  I feel like we can learn from each other.  One thing about PPS is it is never the exact same for one person as it is for another.  I do great on Anti-depressants; I have a friend who does awful with them.  My lil sis really learned and thrived with counseling, I have another friend who found counseling too impersonal.  Some people can't sleep and are too wired up, some people can't get out of bed!  So, I am very thankful for everybody's comments.  Perhaps one of your suggestions/tips is just what somebody else needs to know/feel/think about.

So today, I thought I would feature the most fabulously famous people I know, YOU!

Here are a bunch of comments that perhaps you missed as you were reading the posts.  They were too good to just pass up!.

Welcome to the group Girlies!

"Another important thing to realize is that every postpartum experience is different. I had no problems postpartum with baby #1. Baby #2 PPD reared it's ugly head. Baby #3 nothing but baby #4 was the pit of despair. I actually wanted another baby because I just didn't want baby #4 to be my last newborn experience. I also have crazy high risk pregnancies that got more dramatic with each baby. I tried to convince hubby that I only had PPD with even numbered babies, so we were good to have another. He was not convinced. My recovery with #4 took so long and I was not the parent my other children needed, so after much prayer we decided that it was OK to be done and I needed to focus on the babies I had managed to get here safely"

Judi: Thanks Amber for posting that.  It totally surprised me when I did so bad with baby #2.  I figured I would be a pro since it was my second baby, so I was taken back when I struggled so badly. 

(in reference to sleeping with a heating pad) "I'm still obsessed with my mattress pad heater (the dual control is a must for husbands who like to keep their sheets freezing cold). It was so nice to have this time around since it's a bit chillier this time of year. Sometimes I'd turn it on before I got up to feed my baby so my bed was already pre-warmed by the time I got back (so I could fall back asleep almost instantly). It was FANTASTIC. Best $100 I ever spent. Here's a link to the one I bought: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003ZSHDEK/ref=as_li_tf_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B003ZSHDEK&linkCode=as2&tag=listhelazblo-2" 

Judi: Thanks Lisa, great tip!

(In reference to dealing with negative thoughts about things we are actually bad at...like laundry!) "I just ask myself, does it matter if I am good at it?  Does it matter if I am good at folding laundry? No.  Life will go on, I can still be a good human being without being awesome and X, Y, Z."

Judi: Such a great idea, Joni.  I really like this.  Some things just don't matter that much.  If it doesn't matter, don't stress over it or beat yoursefl up because of it.  

"I got stuck in the "over-generalization" pattern. I thought that things would "never" get better. Once I figured out what was going on with PPD; I wanted a steady climb out of the darkness. I wasn't ready for the two steps forward, one step back. In my head, every bad day after a better day meant I was back at square one; that I had made no progress; that I was failing. I had to learn that even bad days were not backward progress. A bad day meant holding on right where I was until I was ready to move forward again. My mantra became "Heavenly Father sent them (my kids) to me so there must be a way for me to do this, just as I am." 

Judi: I totally love this.  I tend to do this if I have a bad day.  I figure all progress is lost.  I am now going to see my bad days as holding steady days!

(also in refernece to dealing with bad thoughts that are true) "If I CAN'T control it, why worry about it? And if I CAN control it, what can I do, and what am I waiting for?" I used to get so envious reading blogs--I felt terrible after reading them, feeling so "less than." Then one day I realized that envy is such a wasted emotion (not to mention a waste of energy, a precious resource as a mom). Even though I can't control everything about my life, there's so much I can control and my happiness is ultimately up to me. I focus my energy on the things in my life that I want to change and start working on that!"

Judi: Lisa, you are totally awesome (and famous too)

I didn't dare share some of the other comments, I was worried they were too personal, BUT thank you ladies for giving such great advice.  What I love is that some of your advice has totally been helping me!  Go figure :)

Thanks for being fabulously famous!