Delivered: My Postpartum Battle

In life, we are constantly faced with trials. Some trials, we have no clue what brought them on. Other times, we can look back and realize after the fact what caused us to go through that situation. Regardless of what caused the trial, I think in the end we can all agree that we came out stronger afterward.

If you would’ve told me in January 2021 that 2.5 years later, I would be 100% medication free, complete all my therapy, and return fully present to my life, I might have just laughed in your face. Correction, I definitely would’ve laughed in your face.  Yes, 2.5 years is a long time for someone to process, treat, and heal from PPD, but every story is different. 

As I’ve written about before, January 2021 is when my world started to fall apart. I was convinced that postpartum depression was going to break me. Let’s just be clear, it did. However, after an intense hospitalization, 18 months of consistent therapy, and 2.5 years of medication….. I successfully weaned off all medication on June 13, 2023! Today marks the one year celebration of that day!

When I woke up this morning, I felt an intense amount of gratitude and confidence with how far I have come in my journey. This journey was ugly. This journey was the most vulnerable I’ve ever been in my life. This journey taught me more about myself than I ever could have wanted to know prior. This journey truly proved to me that despite some of the ugliest moments in our lives, there can be so much beauty to come from it. Don’t get me wrong, 2.5 is a LONG TIME and yes it felt like FOREVER.  But I am alive and well today filled with so much gratitude and hope with a passion to help other moms find victory through their postpartum depression journey.

I think now is a good time to remember the mountain and valley analogy. If you’ve never heard it before, it implies that in life, it is filled with tons of mountains and valleys. However, you cannot climb up that mountain without having been in a valley before. Likewise, if you are on the top of that mountain, we know that life will throw a curve ball and you will probably be faced with a valley at some point. I want to encourage you today that despite the valleys of life, we can grow from them, thrive after them, and show others that life is truly worth living.

One year later, my purpose in this is to continue to spread awareness, support, and hope to other moms as they navigate their own journeys. I hope that you will continue to follow along and that you will find encouragement and strength through this outlet.

Thank you to every single person who has been by my side along for this wild ride, I wouldn’t be here without each of you. 

The best is yet to come,

XX

Athena