Why is it that we are so quick to let other people dictate our life's direction because we have put them on some pedestal?
We often do this with our schools, thinking that the 'experts' know what's best for our children. We do this with our governments, police, councils, but most common of them all, we do this with the medical industry, believing that doctors, psychologists and psychiatrists know everything there is to know about our health.
But what we are really talking about here is a bunch of people who all hold beliefs about a certain field of interest. For sure they have knowledge, a lot of knowledge in this field. They have all had significant training and education, been exposed to lots of different clients, experience and information that is generally agreed upon amongst their colleagues and that definitely counts for a lot.
But is it the be-all and end-all of everything you need to know about your postnatal depression treatment? Are we just putting all our faith in the opinions of one or two people who have been exposed to, let's face it, limited information?
If you were to clean your house, there would be a certain way that you would do it right? You may start with the messiest room in the house - tidy it, clean it, polish it, sweep and then mop it and then do that with each room of the house. Or perhaps you start at one end of the house and work your way to the other end. Why do you choose to clean the house one way and not another?
Probably because you've been exposed to a certain way of doing it and you have taken that on. That's just the way you do things. Would you even consider doing it a different way? Would it enter your mind to search for a different way of doing it, or would you just do what generally works?
Because this is often what is happening as a doctor that is working with your treatment for overcoming postnatal depression. He/she is working off what they know and doing what they believe works the best.
This doesn't make them wrong, because perhaps it does work for you and you are getting great results. However if you are not, then perhaps this particular health care provider just doesn't have the information you need for your unique postnatal depression recovery.
Everybody is different so everybody will have different needs when it comes to recovering from postnatal depression. Perhaps there are many different avenues for you to explore and try simultaneously that will help with your recovery.
The point I'm trying to make here is that you need to become responsible for your own recovery. You have a vested interest in getting well and feeling happy and 'normal' again. YOU are the one who wants to enjoy motherhood, not your doctor or psychologist.
They are only doing the best they can and giving you the information and techniques that they know and can't give you anymore than that. If it's not working for you, don't just settle for that. Keep looking, resourcing, trying and applying lots of different techniques to help you to overcome this illness, because along the way you are going to learn a lot about yourself that will benefit many different areas of your life.
My Be the Change Program is one of my postnatal depression treatment programs that has worked for me personally and thousands of other mums who have learnt it. Perhaps it might help you too.
Doctors and psychologists are often the best place to start in finding out how to recover from postnatal depression and I'm certainly not telling you not to see them. I am simply stating that I believe many options need to be considered as part of your whole treatment plan for recovery and that you, as the sufferer, need to become personally active in your treatment plan and in your participation in your recovery. Take their advice on board, for they are experts in their field, however don't take it on as the only advice there is for treating your postnatal depression.
As the age old saying goes, there are many ways to skin a cat. There are many ways to clean your house, and there are many ways for you to survive postnatal depression.
You are the captain of your ship, so navigate yourself to all the resources available for overcoming postnatal depression. When you're armed with that information, decide for yourself which direction you believe you need to go and steer yourself into recovery.