stopping Post Partum Depression before we get to the post partum part

When I found out that the Bean was taking up residence I made the decision that I was going to make sure I felt good about myself during the pregnancy. Having gone through post partum depression with the Peanut, it was and is important to me that I take steps to bypass the PPD this time around. One of those steps involved getting my hair cut and coloured this weekend and not a do it at home colour and a cut at the hair school (which has been what I've gone for over the last four years) but a real professional job. There's something about spending a few hours with someones attention solely on you with the outcome of you looking fabulous that is good for the ego.

On top of that I'll be contacting the councilor that I was in touch with at the beginning of our pregnancy. Now that we're in the final trimester I want to touch base and talk about the anxieties that I've been experiencing lately and make sure that I'm headed in the right direction as we head into the home stretch. The one thing that I feel confident about is the support systems we'll have this time around. Having family close by is a huge difference from our experience with the Peanut. Knowing that we have someone close by who can and will jump in and help is a huge weight off.

Any thing else that we'll be putting into place will have to wait until the Bean makes her appearance. Things like co-sleeping so that my sleep is less disturbed and making sure that I get some time just for me or doing something just for me. I feel like I'm already ahead of the game this time around. The thing about PPD is the sense of failure that accompanies the diagnosis. Having a baby is supposed to bring happiness and fulfillment not deep despair and the feeling that you've lost who you are with that baby. Taking the steps to bypass those feelings now is a big part of getting ready for the Bean.