PNI - do we all suffer alike?

[tinkabell]

I,m wondering how much research has actually been done into this thing and when it will stop being taboo. This is my second time with PNI i have a four and a half year old daughter and fifteen month old son. I am much worse this time i think. The first time i had thoughts of self harm but mostly they were fleeting this time i plan everything and despite being an utter coward have thought of violent and painful ways of doing it. I am taking medication as well as seeing a counsellor and psychologist. My gp is unsupportive and i have little other suppport although my partner is doing his best.
i am now wondering if there is a common thread as when by daughter was fifteenth month ( and I was REcovered i think) i started having severe neck pains, dizziness, vomiting and even passed out whilst representing a client in court. I had many tests and was told i had migraine despite nothing of the kind previously. I was told i had to take medication for life to prevent attacks and statrted to see a decrease and end to symptoms. then fell pregnant.
PNI started again with my son around 16 weeks but i stopped taking meds and relapsed badly. This week my son was 15 months and headaches etc returned with a vengance the same day as my period. Again i wonder if this is linked as partner always thought attacks concided with my period last time. Just wonder how common this is and whthether research would help

[francoise]

hi tinkabell , nice to see you again on here,

i been wondering lots of things too about how it works and what the common threads are , i started to think it was breast feeding but thinking about it not many bottle feeders on here i dont think , anyway i started dreaming about the causes , i was getting quite obssessive and i definitely think our periods is ruled by our pni , as im awful with mine now , im due anyday and im feeling really crap

i think the researchers should ask us loads of stuff eh , they would get so many answers from us ...love fran

[wendabell]

hi tinkerbell,
are you the same tinkerbell that is a member here?
yes i dont know why this is still a taboo subject.Mental illness has always had a stigma atatched to it.Stupid isnt it when so many people in the world suffer it in one form or another.
I have always wondered about the effects periods have on depression and whether pmt or s has some link or two.
ive noticed on here a few of us get worse around our time.

[Ryn]

Hi,
I certainly think there should be more research done on this area. No-one seems to be able to give an answer as to why it happens or seems to really understand it.
I do think it has something to do with hormones and that I am much worse before my period - whereas I was OK before my 2nd baby. I also think that not being able to breast feed my kids caused by PNI - I am always surprized that women with PNI can breastfeed (not really sure why - I think coz I feel so strongly that not being able to is so strongly linked to my illness - that and lack of sleep!)

I certainly think there needs to be a whole lot more done and can't understand why this isn't happening - lack of funding probably. I hope so rather than lack of interest. Though I have spoken to my HV about a support group - we don't have one nearby, and there is no interest from them in getting one set up - which is a real shame as it would have really helped me.

Kathy

[wendabell]

oh by the way,maybe coincidence but ive been on a right downer of late and then yesterday i came on?
also my pni was never around when i was breast feeding it seemed to hit after i stopped?coincidence?3 times?

[susie]

Hi Tinkabell,

I think there does need to be more research done into pni, I think in my case there was a definate link to hormones especially as I could then start to track from my mood where I was in my cycle, so many of us on here have similar symptoms and feelings yet many people seem to find it so hard to get proper support from the nhs, take care

Susie
x


Hi Wendy,

I started to ask you last week if you were due your period as you sounded so much like how I used to feel before my period, like really bad pmt, but I deleted it incase it sounded cheeky, I didnt want to belittle your problems. I definately think it is linked to hormones, and as I was starting to recover the week before my period was hell, I was so tearful, grumpy, irrational, just awful to live with, such severe mood swings, and never had any pmt before I had my son. Anyway glad to hear you souning a wee bit more upbeat this week

take care

Susie
x

[jennie]

Hi kathy
when I was pregnant with dylan my gp told me too come off ad's straight away.I did with no support whatsoever!It was a nightmare....
Later in my pregnancy I was refered to a pyscriatrist who put me back on antidepressants but said I wouldn't be able to breast feed on them.....

I decided not to take them as why was it alright to take them whilst pregnant but not whilst breast feeding...?I felt as I'd gone through total withdrawl ALONE then I wasn't going to start taking them again in month 71/2!!!!!I felt the professionals hadn't a bloody clue!

As I'd struggled through pregnancy I made the decision I'd do more good for my family back on anti des and Dylan being bottle fed...

he mid wives were very nice people but had no idea whatsever I felt...sorry to midwives reading this but that's how is was for me...and actually never felt any support from health visitors either...maybe I was just unlucky or for t o gone at the time.I mean they don't know that blank cabbage wasn't my normal state did they..?

[cokey]

Hi tinkabell

You are so right. There should be more research but because it is a female disease primarily, they don't seem to take much notice. What concerns me is that my mother went through this 30 years ago and then went through it again with the change recently and it was hell for her. I will probably be the same too when I go throught the chnage and you would think they would have come up with a cure by now.

I am sure it is linked to hormones because since I got pregnant, I have been plagued by violent migraines and other hormonal symptoms and my son is 1 now! I had one last night in fact. I also think it is linked to your personality type as we all seem fairly similar on here.

Lets hope they come up with something soon.

Cokey xxx

[annag]

Hello
I think there is definately a link between pni and periods. I have never felt as good in my life as I do when I'm pregnant really positive and happy. Also whilst breast feeding my feelings of well being continue. As soon as I stopped this time I felt dreadful for the week before and the week of my period . In fact that is whats triggered me to go back on mecication. I have said to my GP why can't you just pump me full of the pregancy hormones at which he laughs and perscribes anti d's. If it is this simple then why not?

[scrumpy]

Dead right everyone,
there definately needs to be more research into the causes of PNI. I think there must be a link with hormone levels. That said I breastfed Erin for the 1st 4 months, but had PNI from day 1 which didn't change for better or worse when I stopped. I think the issues may have been clouded for me though by the death of my friend. Sorry keep coming back to that one but for me that was such a big issue at the time. I'm also fairly convinced that going on the mini pill had a bad effect on me, as I am off it now and feel pretty much back to normal. That would tie in with PNI haveing a hormonal link I guess. How many people on here were put on the pill after their babies were born? I know some of you have mentioned the pill on here and its links with deppression.
The health care professionals are too keen to put post natal mothers on the pill i think. I know in my ante natal classes contraception and its importance was rammed down our throats. At my post natal 6 week check the gp just said ok, i'll put you on the pill now then (I hadn't been on it for years before), and i just accepted it. I would never go back on it now.
I'm going to see what research is out there on this i think.
Love Toni

[annag]

In light of what we have been discussing I did a bit of research on the internet and found this interesting article by John Studd,DSC,MD,FRCOG
"It is very likely that the essential cause of post-natal depression is the sudden decrease in hormones, particularly oestradiol that occurs after delivery. In this way it is similar to the depression of pre-menstral syndrome and the menopause which is also realted to the decreases in ovarian hormones, particularly oestrogen. Infact later on in life it is clear that those women who have the most severe"menopausal" depression around the age of 45 are the women who had pre menstral depression and significantly felt very well during pregnancy when the hormone levels were high.
Moderately high doses of transdermal oestrogens (200mg twice weekly) have been shown to be effective in post-natal depression even in patients were prolonged anti depressants have failed."

I thought that this sounded like a very plausable explanation given what we have all said. Better watch out for the menopause then!

[annag]

I have just e-mailed this guy to see if this treatment is only availbale privately or we can get our GP's to prescribe it. I ill let you all know what he says.

[scrumpy]

sounds interesting, look forward to hearing what his reply is.

[annag]

His secretary e-mailed me he's on his holidays but she will pass on the message.

[tinkabell]

thanks everyone for replies. im not a member but will get round to it. please let me know when you hear from gp. i amwaiting for a treatment cream from a friend who does admin for a natural therapist a friend of hers who had pni and her mum who had bad menopause have used it and recommend. i will try anything. will let you know if it has any effect.