With very little awareness about postpartum depression, thousands of new moms are struggling with it on a daily basis. Scared of what people & society might think, these moms choose to suffer in silence. But some brave new moms are coming forward to discuss the ‘unspeakable’ topic of postpartum depression. Thereby helping drive the conversation.
Sometime back, Esha Deol shared how Hema Malini noticed her Postpartum Depression & saved her from the struggle. Even new moms like Chavvi Mittal and Sameera Reddy have been vocal about not so talked about depression – the Postpartum Depression. Now, Neha Dhupia has also joined the conversation!
Neha Dhupia gave birth to daughter Mehr in November 2018. Recently, she opened up about experiencing postpartum stress. She spoke about how she felt “void” because her body was different. She also shared her thoughts about going back to pre-pregnancy shape again.
While speaking about postpartum stress, she mentioned,
“I have never shied away from the fact that I felt like I was going through…sometimes, it was a new feeling; sometimes, it felt like I was going through something; sometimes, I felt like I was going through a lot. All of that put together…later on, I understood that it is all postpartum. whether it is feeling extremely emotional or extremely low.”
She further added,
“For me, the biggest thing is, as soon as you give birth, you feel that void because your body is different, you question whether you are going to go back to being… Especially, people like us, who are so used to being in front of the camera. As much as we own our bodies and own the life that we are living, apne andar se ek ehsaas hota hai ki (there is a feeling within that) will I go back to what I was or will I go back to being at least what I want to be? There is a beautiful saying, which is that everyone is there to hug the baby but who is there to hug the mom.”
Earlier, a magazine tried to fat-shame her because of her post-pregnancy weight gain. But rather than giving in to the negativity, she spoke about body positivity. She said:
“Be kind to yourself and your body, it’s the only one you’ve got! It took me a while to understand this and be proud and comfortable in my own skin. If you’re reading this, DON’T waste as much time as I did! Your weighing scale doesn’t define you, you do!”
Kudos to Neha Dhupia for joining the conversation about postpartum stress and depression.
At IFORHER, we request every mother struggling with postpartum depression or stress to seek help and not suffer in silence. It is not only important to seek help for your own wellbeing but also to enjoy the beautiful journey of motherhood with your kid and family.
Please spread the message that there’s no shame in admitting one needs help or therapy to tackle postpartum depression or stress and help save motherhood and moms.