Our brains need fats, vitamins, and minerals to be healthy. At no point in our lives is our need for nutrients greater than it is in pregnancy, when we are creating a whole new life. Pregnancy may leave you deficient in key nutrients that keep your brain healthy. As a result, you may end up…
Category Archives: Pregnancy & Postpartum
The end of postpartum depression
It is officially “the end of postpartum depression,” in this house in any case. This week my child turned one. Should my family find need to send me to the looney bin today, I would not be diagnosed with “postpartum depression” since that technically happens in the first year after birth. I chronicled my story…
A day in the life of postpartum depression (aka “Signs of postpartum depression”)
You wake up with that daily bone-tired exhaustion. It doesn’t help that your 9-month-old is still waking up in the wee hours for a feeding (or two). Aren’t they supposed to sleep all night at six weeks? Over breakfast you become angry that someone put the eggs on the wrong side of the refrigerator. You…
Depression in pregnancy
In my first pregnancy eight years ago, there was little said about “depression in pregnancy,” and yet I found myself in a deep pit in the beginning of the third trimester. Other expectant moms are designing nurseries and enjoying baby showers and you just can’t stop crying or snapping at everyone. Anxiety starts to paralyze….
Postpartum psychosis in the news
There is a story in the news today that is really too horrible to repeat but I thought I would write something briefly about postpartum psychosis. I would really discourage people from searching for the story. In my first pregnancy I did actually believe that my baby was “infested” with demons. I had someone pray…
Second chance baby in pictures, plus the giveaway
I was reading the Afterword for the book (which is now available) that I wrote about six months ago now. I describe in the new version of the Afterword how emotional I was when I realized that not only did I have another baby, but I had a second that looked just like the first….
Depression in pregnancy and postpartum: Rebuild resources
This website contains a good bit of information on improving your status if you struggle with depression in pregnancy or postpartum. In the article on depression in pregnancy, learn about potential underlying nutritional causes: Depression is complicated, but one key reason depression hits some of us in pregnancy is biological: it takes a whole lot…
Second chance, second baby (a recap)
Just over one year ago I announced here on this blog that I was expecting a baby in December. “I don’t know if I am feeling more fear or excitement, but it’s definitely a combination of the two,” I wrote in 95% excitement and 5% fear. We did not plan to have a second child,…
Baby misery makes it so complicated
We have been busy here transitioning Alastair from casts to braces. He has bilateral club feet, diagnosed a bit late because they are a fairly mild case. Mild or not, they do have a protocol and the protocol is necessary for good use of his feet when he begins to walk. It’s hard to tell…
Savoring
In my quest to appreciate, we spent last week taking pictures of Alastair in his sleepers. He can’t wear them with his brace. The sleeper in the picture has angel wings. (Awww, shouldn’t they all?) A key tool in my “appreciating” quest has been the camera. I take it on walks and drives and try…
Surgery is over + gardening and exercise = 3 on the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Score
Things looked pretty ugly around here in the couple of weeks leading up to Alastair’s surgery. I scored myself on the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale and got a 16. The scale ranges from 0 to 30. Folks get concerned with numbers above 11 or 12. My score of 16 was pretty bad. Anyone whose baby…
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Endorsements
The best book on depression and food I've seen is Rebuild from Depression, by Amanda Rose, who understands the condition from bitter experience.
Nina Planck,
Author of Real Food
Rebuild from Depression is going to be a very important book. Its dissection of the role of diet and nutrition is well-researched and an eye-opener.
Robert Kotler, MD, FACS
Clinical Instructor, UCLA
Rebuild from Depression provides real answers for reversing depression caused by common nutritional deficiencies.
Jan DeCourtney, CMT
Co-author, Recapture Your Health
Read sample chapters
& more endorsements.
Buy the book!
Foods for depression@ Amazon.
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About
Amanda Rose, Ph.D., is a political scientist and author of "Rebuild from Depression," on the link between nutrient deficiencies and depression. She has been depression-free for over four years, even during the recent pregnancy of her second child. Read her postpartum depression success story.
Life After Depression
There really is life after depression. I am so excited by that point, in fact, that I neglect this blog and find fun/quirky projects to do with my family. We live in the Sequoia National Forest in a house (and former brothel) designed by Irving Gill. My 7-year-old son Frederick and I chronicle our adventures at Gill on the Hill when we're not exploring. Frederick posts some of his homeschool projects at "Frankly Frederick."