Britney Spears’ doctors say she has postpartum depression
Britney Spears‘ recent behavior and wild partying may have a medical reason behind it. According to TMZ’s sources, doctors at Promises, Britney’s rehab facility, think the reason for Britney’s troubles the last few months is due to postpartum depression following the birth of her sons Sean Preston Federline and Jayden James Federline. They think either bipolar disorder or postpartum depression is to blame, but they are leaning more towards postpartum depression. It is likely that the alcohol and substance abuse were Britney’s way to dull the pain. She tried to self-medicate but instead of feeling better, her problems spiraled out of control.
About.com’s Pregnancy Guide Robin Weiss, tells us, "Postpartum depression has gotten a lot of attention in recentyears. While the numbers may appear to be rising, it may also be more likely that it is simply becoming more socially acceptable to admit toneeding help and having difficulties in the postpartum period."
Following are some risk factors. It sounds like Britney has a few of the signs.
- History of depression, anxiety, panic, obsessive thoughts or behavior, mania
- Family history
- Marital conflict
- Prior episode
- Low confidence as parent
- Baby’s personality, health or disability
- Single parent
- Super woman syndrome
- Hormonal risks (thyroid imbalance, PMS, infertility, etc.)
To learn more about postpartum depression, visit pregnancy.about.com.
Source: TMZ
Have you experienced postpartum depression? Do you think Britney is suffering from it?
Do you think you might be suffering from postpartum depression? Take this quiz and get help!
- Posted on Feb 27, 07 at 1:40PM
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- 54 Comments
February 27th, 2007 at 1:48 pm
i thought she might have a problem like that. Especially since it all kind of spiraled out of control very soon after she had JJ. The separation from Kevin, the paparazzi glued to her nonstop. It had to make a bad situation even worse. I really hope she can get the help she really needs and get better for her boys.
February 27th, 2007 at 1:52 pm
I’m sorry… I call B.S.
There is no way any DOCTOR would be talking about their patient’s possibility of having post partum depression. It’s one thing for you or me to be thinking she has PPD, but I highly highly doubt and self-respecting doctor would be discussing that…
February 27th, 2007 at 2:07 pm
You need to have an option for “not sympathetic before, still not sympathetic”. I also highly doubt the accuracy of this story. I believe her problems are far more than PPD.
February 27th, 2007 at 2:07 pm
Some friends of Kevin said the same thing to Eonline:
………………
A source close to Federline told E! Online that he had shared his belief with friends that Spears changed dramatically after she became a mother.
“He feels like Britney never was the same after she had their kids,” the source said. “Even after the first baby, she had wild mood swings and her temper would go off at the drop of a hat.
“It got worse after her second pregnancy. Kevin didn’t want another baby so soon, not because he didn’t want more kids, but because her temper was so unstable when she was pregnant,” the source continued. “After she came home from the hospital the second time, she just seemed really unhappy all of the time. He said, ‘Nothing made her happy anymore. She was just angry or sad all the time.’”
February 27th, 2007 at 2:10 pm
I don’t believe this. They are giving her a convenient excuse for her ways so she doesn’t have to take responsibility for her actions. It seems to me that whenever a celebrity is trying to do damage control they enter rehab then discover some reason for way they were acting a certain way. I think she was infactuated when having kids at a young age but never thought about the time and effort it takes to raise them. Her family needs to stop acting like she’s a baby and make her take care of her own children instead of them being with nannies.
February 27th, 2007 at 2:17 pm
Well Jason Alexander recently came forth and said they were doing drugs heavily before she had either child. But maybe that and alcohol, having two children back to back and going through a divorce, along with ppd would knock the most of us down. I don’t doubt that ppd is what she has, but I’m with Lisa. A Dr. discussing this? What about the hippa law?
I never experienced ppd but, then again maybe my husband could contest to that.
Either way, I wish her and the boys the best to a speedy and long-term successful recovery.
February 27th, 2007 at 2:25 pm
I agree with Lisa that a doctor wouldn’t give out details on their patients.
Considering the list of risk factors, Britney could be suffering from post-partum depression, but I doubt. It always seemed to me that Britney never really realised she was a mom and all she wanted after she dumped Kevin was get her old, single, free self back.
February 27th, 2007 at 2:30 pm
Like others, I don’t buy it. Yes, I do think the girl had depression problems even before her kids, and it became worse through 2 pregnanacies in less than 1 year… BUT she clearly does have problems with drugs and alcohol (to me, thered flag went up when Paris entered the picture! LOL). I think she has had those problems even before the kids (look at the video on YouTube) so to basically brush that aside and ignore it is ridiculous.
As another poster pointed out, no doctor would say this to the media. And I DO think this is a PR move to steer people away from a main issue: addictions. To call poor Miss Britney a drug addict and alcoholic is just wrong, so let’s put this out there and get her back some sympathy… Sorry, not buying it.
The girl needs help – it’s not time for her PR people to make their rounds or time for the media to speculate. Let her get through rehab, work on her depression and then let’s have her do the People interview.
I’m obviously no fan but seriously PR people… leave it alone! LOL
February 27th, 2007 at 2:35 pm
I wouldn’t doubt that she does have postpartum depression but I think there are other factors involved as well. Even before the kids came along, she sometimes seemed a little unstable.
February 27th, 2007 at 2:41 pm
This is what I have thought all along. I mean, come on….two babies in two years along with the stress of a high profile life and high profile divorce!!
I went through a bout of postpartum anxiety (there is such a thing) and it was not fun……I feel for her and I hope she can continue to get the help she desperately needs!
February 27th, 2007 at 3:00 pm
I think she fits the profile of someone with PPD given the seemingly erratic behavior she’s displayed since having kids. When I saw her turn up in a bikini at a club a few weeks ago, I turned to my husband and said, ‘yeah, she’s gone a bit bonkers’… Then she shanved her head and that was the clincher for me….sorry, there’s got to be more at play here than drugs and alcohol. I’ve known plenty of addicts in my lifetime, and they all kept their hair, thank you very much.
Whether it is PPD or some other mental health issue (i.e., bipolar) at some point it seems clear to me that she’s suffered some sort of break with reality.
That being said, I completely agree with the previous poster who pointed out how incredibly unlikely it is that a doctor would discuss her diagnosis with a tabloid. If he/she values their medical license in the least, they would never — ever — share that kind of information with a third party…let alone TMZ. What is more likely is that this story is being floated by a family member who was in contact with the staff at Promises.
February 27th, 2007 at 3:09 pm
I don’t truly believe a Doctor would give out personal information like that, isn’t it against their code of conduct or some type of law like patient confidentiality? Then again there are a lot of things that get leaked to the media nowadays, even private stuff, so I won’t completely rule it out.
I wouldn’t like to say whether she does or doesn’t have PPD, all I do know for certain is that she has/had some issues and I am pleased that she is getting treatment for them, whatever the cause of them may be, I just hope she gets better.
February 27th, 2007 at 3:11 pm
I think she needed more support after she gave birth to JJ but her mother wasn’t there for her because she had to take care of her sister that had cancer and Kevin her husband was promoting his album and had to do interviews, shows, concerts and other stuff that a artist does.
February 27th, 2007 at 3:15 pm
Welll, seeing as I know this from personal experience with ppd and ptsd.
Post partum depression -maybe.
Post surgical depression -possible.
Post traumatic stress -possible.
Take a look at the stats. Women who have cesareans “can” have a harder time sliding into motherhood. I know I did with my first child (c/s for breech). I was depressed for over a year.
Now whether Ms. Spears is actually suffering from PPD is something her medical caregivers will deal with and assess. But I’d be pretty whacked too if I’d had two major abdominal surgeries within a year… two babies to look after and a marriage on the rocks.
Yeah, don’t like her all that much. Think she is a lousy role model for women giving birth (elective c/s carries very high risks to both mom and baby for serious trauma and death)… but sad for what she is missing out on with her children. I can’t get back that first year or so with my oldest… and I’m sorry.
February 27th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
Correction here – the TMZ article (as well as the CBB article) does not say that the doctors discussed this with the media. They are quoting sources as saying that the doctors have a couple theories. I’m not saying the story is true, who knows who the source is. But no one is saying this is coming from the horse’s mouth through violation of patient confidentiality. For all we know it could be her manager who was told by Britney that she may have PPD and she wants to correct the public’s perception that she is just a raging addict.
February 27th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
Even is PPD isn’t the sole cause, I had a feeling even before that it was affecting her. I have heard about PPD actually building up with each successive birth and Sean and Jayden are very close in age. Plus on top of the births, her marriage was probably on the rocks and the media has constantly been scrutinzing all her moves.
February 27th, 2007 at 3:35 pm
If the story was about another celebrity you all would believe it but if it’s about Britney you all have doubts. For example the carseat story: when you saw the pics with Britney and JJ with the carseat put in the wrong way you all begin to complain but when Madonna and Guy didn’t put David in the carseat and hold him in their arms while travelling no one noticed it. It’s not fair
February 27th, 2007 at 3:56 pm
roxi, exactly what I was thinking. because this is britney everyone assumes its false and she is just a terrible mother and person and is a drug and alcohol addict. I truly believe this all started after she had SP and has gotten worse and worse over time. The paparazzi hounding her didn’t help, the mistakes she made as a mother, the divorce. All the problems could have led to a psychological break. IN ADDITION TO possible PPD. It IS possible.People always focus on the worst with britney and i know its hard not to, but i am shocked by the level of non compassion for another human being. She IS a human being and no matter what she has done and no matter whether she is a celebrity or not she has a problem. She is now trying to deal with it and that is thr right thing to do. So, lets all continue to just “kick her while she is down”. Its sickening.
February 27th, 2007 at 4:07 pm
I really feel sorry for Britney right now no matter what is wrong with her. I think however, that at first she really enjoyed the attention from the media but now that need for attention never leaves her. She doesn’t like that either!
February 27th, 2007 at 4:49 pm
Boy, there’s going to be a lot of controversy about this one. I had PPD. I had it after both my pregnancies which were very close together. But, even if Britney didn’t know she had it, other’s (like her Mom, nannies, her husband) would have known something was wrong. I can’t believe someone didn’t force her to tell her OB/GYN what she was experiencing so that she could get help.
Medication helped me, it could help her. The bottom line is this poor girl has drug/alcohol problems as well and needs a 12 step program. I hope this rehab place she’s at is 12-step based. It’s really the only way she’s going to change her life.
I wish her the best especially for her little boys.
February 27th, 2007 at 5:00 pm
ROXI:
I think it’s been proven rather well that some commentors on CBB can be hypocritical (for starters… hidden Suri Cruise vs. hidden JJ Federline, anyone?), and I’ve personally replied back in outrage on that. LOL =P
But in this case… as I’ve said, Britney has been having problems for YEARS so for them to sum it up to PPD and expect people to ignore the drugs and alcohol (which have been on the scene for years) is stupid. PPD is probably there too but she also does have other issues and they shouldn’t be ignored.
February 27th, 2007 at 5:23 pm
I think everyone forgets that this is a 24 year old girl who had 2 babies in 1 year. I am glad she is being treated for her PPD before she hurt herself or her babies. This is a sad case but I think she can overcome this and come back to raise her boys very well. It’s too much pressure for her to be under while having such crazy hormonal issues as well. Imagine you go to the gas station and there are 50 cameras flashing in your face. Every move is scrutinized. I think even someone without PPD may snap in this situation. No amount of money she made is worth what she’s going through in the public eye. I wish her the best.
February 27th, 2007 at 5:25 pm
I believe that Britney is suffering from PPD/PPA/PTSD. Before Britney had babies she was very well liked and became famous very quickly. It is a life that she was used to and liked. After having two kids back to back, two marriages, and divorces it was bound to make her long for the “normal” lifestyle that she used to have. I also suffer from PPD/PTSD and I never felt like myself until I got help. I tried to do the things that used to make me happy and that never worked. I just felt more out of control. With PPD you feel like you have no control over anything. I think Britney was trying to go back to the way she used to be, having fun and having people not judge her for everything she did. It didn’t matter what she did everyone has something to say. I don’t like the way she has been acting but with depression you can’t control it by yourself and it isn’t her fault if she has this disorder. I just hope she is getting the help that she needs and gets better really soon. As a side note, PPD isn’t always diagnosed right away, I didn’t get any help till I was 8 months PP and no one said anything to me because I never let anyone know that I felt so out of control. I agree that if this was anyone but Britney people would have a different view on the situation.
February 27th, 2007 at 5:30 pm
I’m leaning towards that she may have PPD side. I mean, she definitely has an alcohol and possible drug problem, too, but I think PPD might have played a role in her off-the-wall behavior these past months. Britney went through a lot in the past year and she was in the public eye the entire time. I think the whole shaving her hair off episode clinched it that there was something much greater at work here. And she needs all the help and support she can get. Not just for her boys, but for herself.
February 27th, 2007 at 5:37 pm
Of course post-partum depression is part of what’s wrong with her. Was I the only one who looked at pictures of her face when she was smashing that SUV and thought, “damn, that’s post-partum psychosis, a face like that is probably the last thing the Yates kids saw.” That thought’s been giving me chills all week.
I’m glad that she’s getting the help she needs and that her husband seems to have stepped up to the plate. I’ve always thought they’d get back together, but this is the first time I’ve thought it would be a good thing.
February 27th, 2007 at 5:38 pm
i wanted to vote for “not sympathetic before, not sympathetic now” but unfortunately that wasn’t an option…CBB, how ’bout it?
i have to admit, i’ve disliked Britney since she first came on the public scene. i think that it likely IS hard to be a celeb, so i do place some of the onus on her parents for starting up the soul-less machine that has been her ‘career’…but Brit’s had a lot handed to her and despite massive success she’s shown absolutely no judgement, class, or sense of responsibility for her thoughts and actions along the way. (nor talent, IMO, but that’s another conversation). she has been a trainwreck waiting to happen for years…and a mindless, impulsive one, at that…so while PPD MAY be part of her current wallow-fest (and having been there, i’ll say i saw symptoms of things other than PPD in November when she was busy flashing the world) it’s certainly not the root nor the core of the problem, which appears to be her sense that she is a living Barbie Princess for whom consequences don’t exist. while i do hope that she’s able to get her life together, i also hope that she eventually gets the heck out of the public eye.
of course, though, who then would i focus all this vitriol on?
if it is PPD, great…she should have everything sorted out soon, once that nice doc gets her some meds.
February 27th, 2007 at 5:38 pm
EASY OUT!
PPD dont make you take your britches off and shave your head!
I think shes ALWAYS had issues!
February 27th, 2007 at 5:49 pm
well said, Beth!! PPD is something lots of women don’t talk about because we believe we may be bad mothers because of it. When Brooke Shields came out about her PPD everyone sympathized (except Tom Cruise, of course!). We have NO IDEA what actually went on inside her home during those months. She was not readily available and not as widely sought after as Britney always has been. So, for people to have absolutely no sympathy at all for something that may not have started out to be her fault beyond me. Pregnancy and birth affect every woman differently. Yes, Brit had some problems before having SP and JJ. Otherwise she would have thought about it before marrying Jason Alexander like she did. I chalked that one up to she was bored and partying all weekend. Totally explainable, but the underlying possibility she may have been pre-disposed to a psychological problem is not as far fetched as people may think. How else do you explain alcoholism “running in families”. It’s proven that it can be genetically linked. Just like PPD and depression and psychological problems. Who knows if Britney’s mom has suffered with depression, maybe another relative. Didn’t her dad have an alcohol problem that he was in treatment for?
Listen, I am NOT taking up for Britney, she needs help and has made some bad mistakes in her life. But everyone makes mistakes. Nobody is perfect. There are millions of people out there with addictions and depression. I just don’t understand why people can’t try to live and let live and hope that she gets the help she needs and gets better so she can be a good mother to her boys and have a life again. Isn’t that what we all want? Why should Britney be any different? Just because she is a celebrity? I don’t think that is fair at all. She deserves the same chances to recover as anyone does…without the photographs of it being plastered all over the place.
February 27th, 2007 at 5:55 pm
i can’t vote in the poll. There’s not an option for ‘I was NOT sympathetic before and I’m still NOT sympathetic’. yes, ppd is a horrid thing for a mother to suffer through, but Britney spears isn’t special and having ppd dosen’t make her any more special. She nees mental help, just like the millions of others who suffer from the same affliction.
February 27th, 2007 at 6:30 pm
I am not a Britney fan and I don’t listen to her music but my heart goes out to her and anyone, for that matter, who is obviously in pain.
I wish for her some peace to recover and heal. Whatever her affliction is, it cannot be easy for her or her family.
At least her boys have their father and her family at this time so hopefully her absence from their lives won’t be too traumatic.
I wish her a full recovery and as they ‘what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger’. She is still so young with so much promise ahead of her and I look forward to the day where we can all read more positives about her life.
February 27th, 2007 at 6:37 pm
jackie, no one is saying Britney is anymore special than any other mom suffereing from PPD (if its tha case). BUT, she should be allowed to get treatment for whatever is wrong IN PEACE! JUST LIKE anyone else. If anything, I am saying she SHOULD BE treated like anyone else receiving psychiatric treatment or going through rehab. LEFT ALONE to get to the business of getting well again.
February 27th, 2007 at 6:39 pm
Jason Alexander is never to be beleived. He always comes out with new details that he never revealed before. Just in time to make money. I’m not saying she never did drugs, and I think she had issues before, but she spiraled out of control quickly after the birth of her second son.
Say what you will, but she was very attached to Sean and didn’t ever go out. With JJ she was different. It can’t be easy to be going through marital problems, having your label upset you got pregnant again, having your whole family rely on you for money and have your favorite aunt die. Then she had all this pressure for a “comeback”. I do think she wanted to have a little fun to get away, but like people have said what mother wants to constantly be away from their newborn?
If she didn’t want her kids, she wouldn’t have gone into rehab and gotten help. She could have just given them to Kevin. People who can’t sympathize with someone even after all of this… I don’t know. I hope you never have these issues and have to have the whole world watch you crash.
February 27th, 2007 at 7:05 pm
What about those we weren’t sympathetic before and now are not! Ahahah
February 27th, 2007 at 7:06 pm
Oh my gosh. There is NO way that any Dr. is going to give out any information to the media about a patient, especially Britney Spears. Even the personnel (right down to the cleaning lady) at the Center where she is staying are under oath not to discuss a patient outside of the center.
Given her history of alcohol and drug abuse, there should be no question about where her bizarre behavior is coming from. Her family is doing her a great injustice if they try to pass this off as post-pardum depression. She needs to wake up and face the REAL music, get off drugs and alcohol, and go home and take care of the 2 children that she brought into the world.
As for her griping about all of the media attention….. she was loving it when she was onstage, half-naked, with a snake wrapped around her; when she was kissing Madonna, etc. She brought the attention on to herself. You can’t have it both ways, honey.
February 27th, 2007 at 7:23 pm
Nothing compares with Britney Spears come on…we should admit it,since then and till now she has a good heart and a totally sweet person inside out and I do believe that a good person will remain be good even person changes behavior inspite of challenges and struggles in Life like her suffering right now,people DO believe her she has a pure sincere heart.All of us can suffer PD if we have this factors because we are humans not perfect like Britney Spears stick with paparazzi,difficulties with two kids at her age and problems in her relationship is hard.We all have the freedom to do what we want in our life,good or bad even we stumble & fall or be the worst of all,who cares?it’s not just for us to learn or enjoy life and makes more mature for it is Life we have to experience,we pass this once even if its crazy to commits mistakes its experience you won’t forget that you will feel as a normal person it would become you a better person with a right virtue. Why people dont let her live her life? Wish your the best and hoping for your great come back Britney Spears. I Love her!
February 27th, 2007 at 7:56 pm
It’s possible, but I think only as one factor. I have a friend in the music biz who says Britney’s been doing drugs since she was a teen, and he hears that it’s always worse anytime she’s under extra stress (break-up with Justin, her parents’ divorce). It’s just that she was heavily managed and protected from letting the rumors get out. Later she became more independent and problems became more public (like her 55-hour marriage).
And btw, she’s 25, not 24.
February 27th, 2007 at 8:29 pm
Oh my God…Britney Spears gets bald she is so Beautiful I like her,she is totally a Vavavoom. She can get any hair she wants she is a bomb shell,talented muse and Gorgeous Woman like Sinead O’Connor. Oh…Britney is such a nice person inside out yeah that is true that’s why I Love her,oh…she’s such a sweet person. Doesn’t matter if she has a PD everyone gets if they do have this factors anyways Life is not perfect also we do, so Goodluck Brit I know u can pass this test in your Life that is only a trials don’t give up cheer up gurl!I know you are a strong build matured woman now. Hope to see you in a good Aura soon as you come back!Your songs nice beats goes us to dance til’ dawn.
XoXo
February 27th, 2007 at 8:42 pm
i think britney should go home to lousianna and raise her children and maybe have a few more. she has said in the past that she was happier before she became famous and changed her image. but i think that she is an attention seeker with no intentions of letting go of the money or fame. she deserves all she gets if she cant wake up and smell the coffee. she could afford a nice large white mansion with a big yard and if she manages her money well is set for life financially. i have no sympathy for her. move over britney -make way for some new celebs to come thru -ppl with morals who can be smart about their success -ppl with a clue.
February 27th, 2007 at 9:00 pm
I just want to say it is easy to judge someone if you haven’t experienced PPD. With PPD you don’t feel like yourself, you do things you normally wouldn’t do, you think things that you normally wouldn’t think. It was very hard for me to feel attached to my newborn and found myself drifting away from my two year old before I was diagnosed. It isn’t something that is easy to explain unless you have been through it. Britney has been showing classic signs of PPD. She wanted to go out and have a good time, she wanted friends, she wanted to show everyone that she would be ok without Kevin Federline but she did realize how wrong she was going about things. She has had the media following her for years and has never lost it like she did the other day. She is a celebrity but she is also a human and deserves to get private help. Who would have thought that Andrea Yates would kill all of her children before she did? If anyone knew how bad her PPD was don’t you think they would have gotten her help? I’m just glad that she has her family supporting her because that is what will help her heal as well as doctors.
February 27th, 2007 at 9:45 pm
I think that it’s totally possible that Britney has and has had post partum depression. I think what others are failing to realize is that depression and other mental illnesses can increase the risk of PPD. So just because having children is PART of what has sent Britney over the edge and she may have some PPD does not make that the only issue. She may be both bipolar and suffering from PPD. And those who’ve pointed out are correct, her doctors are not going to share, so we aren’t going to know. I think it should just be enough to say that she has some sort of serious mental issues going on.
February 27th, 2007 at 10:07 pm
I don’t want to be cruel but I still don’t find it sympathetic. I have never had PPD (I’ve never given birth) but I do know a bit about it from other people and none of them seemed to be in the partying (let me drown my sorrows in alcohol and drug) kind of mood. It was more a let me stay in bed, take my kid away from me, I feel inadequate kind of mood.
I am not saying she doesn’t have it bc like I said I don’t know alot about it but I don’t buy that it’s what she has. I think it could be a combination of depression and stress but more stress. I mean she had 2 kids in two years, filed for divorce, and no sooner after these events happened she was shacking it up with Paris and Lindsay (all smiles) mind you!
So I don’t know what to believe but I am having a hard time finding sympathy for her recent behavior.
February 27th, 2007 at 10:49 pm
“Lady”, you say that we all have the right to do what we want to in life, and “who cares?” And that everybody should leave Britney alone. Well, obviously you aren’t a mother. Because if you were, you would realize that it isn’t just about “HER LIFE” anymore, everything that she does from here on out effects the two children that she chose to bring into the world. If everybody leaves her alone what’s going to happen to them?
February 27th, 2007 at 10:55 pm
I was just waiting for Damage Control to blame it on PPD to try to salvage her image…
I think she has multiple issues going on. As for drugs and alcohol, those things were apparent during her pre-baby life. Just look at the YouTube video and other clips from “Chaotic.”
I really think she got too much, too soon. Everyone has been directing every moment of her life and she’s been handed everything on a silver platter. I think she figured she’s done and seen just about everything and that having a baby would be the icing on the cake. Well, having babies close together, especially when you’ve never had to take care of anyone before, let alone yourself, would be a monumental undertaking. I think she was not prepared for the reality of it all. Not only that, but once you’ve accomplished everything at such a young age, what’s left to do?? It’s got to be a huge let-down. I don’t think she’ll ever regain the superstardom that she had before. I’m sure she realizes that too.
I think her antics are a cry for help or maybe rebellion against everyone’s expectations of her. Depression is a possibility, but not the post-partum kind.
February 27th, 2007 at 11:32 pm
If you’ve never experienced PPD, then you have no idea what someone in that situation is capable of. Britney has her addictions, and they should not be ignored. But the PPD…seriously, you are not yourself. Going out and partying the way she was had everything to do with her wanting to buck all conventions about being a wife/mother. At 24, this was, IMO, too much, too soon. I was happily married when I had my babies 15 months apart and PPD crashed my world, but I cannot imagine the added pressure of what her celebrity status has forced her to deal with. The media and public scrutinize EVERYTHING she does & make every issue the. worst. thing. ever. Any normal person would crack under that. But add in hormones that are flying out of control, complete and utter overwhelming with life, and you’ve got one messed up Britney. I feel very sorry for her for all she’s had to put up with. Of course she is a celebrity and certain things come with celebrity status. This girl, she needs help, not condemnation. But sometimes I think the media and celebrity-lusting public are the ones who need the most help. It’s our idolization and the media’s non-stop racketeering of people like Britney and Anna Nicole that pushes them over the edge of reason.
February 28th, 2007 at 1:44 am
I said it before… I thought she had depression/bipolar disorder.
I have bipolar disorder and saw a lot of similarities.
I had ppd after my first, ppd after my second… only with my third, because I had been diagnosed and gone on meds that worked (meds are what work for me) and went back on them immediately after delivery (which was sad partly because it meant I couldn’t breastfeed because the meds that work for me are class c meds)
I feel so bad for her having suffered in silence for so long.
For me, it wasn’t as bad with my first, and faded after 6mo… was gone by the time I got pg with my second when he was 9mo, but it was so bad with my second that I just knew that I needed help.
I had thought before I had kids that there was nothing psychiatrists could do for how I felt… but the blessing of the ppd with my sons was it sent me to a psych when there had been enough info by then to properly diagnose my bipolar disorder and I finally was able to feel truly stable emotionally.
I hope that Britney has the doctors she needs helping her and that she can get better and be a good mom to her sons.
February 28th, 2007 at 11:43 am
I think she has more issues than PPD. Her publicity team is just using that to garner sympathy and to hide her other issues. I somewhat feel sorry for her. Maybe 3%
February 28th, 2007 at 11:45 am
As soon as she started acting up last fall I thought it could be PPD. I had two kids back to back as well and my hormones went crazy. I felt so out of tune with my body and emotions and soon after the birth of my second we had problems with my first and later he was dignoised with autism and the depression seemed to get even worse, it is a lot better now and it got better on its own but I still have my days, it is hard. I hope she can get through this tough time and get back to life as the mother of her two boys.
February 28th, 2007 at 11:45 am
I work with moms with PPD, and I have a hard time believing that Britney’s problems stem from that. I think it’s just a convenient excuse to explain away her behavior without leaving her responsible for her actions.
February 28th, 2007 at 11:52 am
I’m sorry but why am I supposed to be sympathetic? So she may or may not have what millions of women have after having a baby. Because she is a “celebrity” I am supposed to feel bad for her? Give me a break.
Brooke Sheilds had PPD and did we see her out partying w/out panties every night, driving w/her baby on her lap, chain smoking and drinking? No. PPD doesn’t give you license to do whatever you want.
Truth be told, I don’t buy it for a second. I think her publicists are reaching for whatever they can to try and repair the damage she has done to her reputation. In my own opinion I think she has a drug/alcohol problem and may be bipolar. The people around her and closest to her should be ashamed of themselves for not caring enough to help out sooner. And Britney herself should be ashamed of her own self for the damage she may have caused her children in the long run.
Sympathy for Britney? Not then and not now. I will now step off my soapbox.
February 28th, 2007 at 12:17 pm
I do think she has PPD – but a lot of people who suffer from bipolar disease or depression tend to get PPD at a higher rate than a normal mom. Some PPD is just pregnancy related, but I agree with some of the other posters who think that there are more mental issues at play here. I think she has an untreated mental disease that was exacerbated by the hormone shift of giving birth.
I think age has nothing to do with it (she’s 25 years old – not a child anymore!) – I think it has more to do with her lack of support system. I had a touch of baby blues after I had my baby, and my husband kept an eye on me to see if it was getting better/worse. Mine went away after a month, but if it hadn’t, he would have stepped in.
February 28th, 2007 at 2:18 pm
Reading all of these very negative comments actually leaves me feeling a little sick. When I had my son 3 years ago, I suffered from terrible postnatal depression. I felt nothing towards this little boy, who was a much wanted and longed for baby. I had lost 2 babies in quick succession and was terrified of losing this baby that I could not bond with him during the pregnancy. The depression continued for 7 months, incedentally the exact length of time I breastfed for. I never let people know how I felt and if you were to ask my husband he would be hard pressed to actually pinpoint any signs. I love my son so much now, but the 7 months I basically lost still haunt me to this day. I am desperate for another baby but have put it off for 3 years now because of being terrified that the PND will return.
I resent people who have never had a baby saying that PPD cant be that bad. I fully believe that Britney COULD have Post natal/partum depression/psychosis, if you look at the latest pictures of her before she went into rehad, she looks terrified. Have any of you watched any of those papparazzi videos? those guys seriously cross the line, I know a lot of people say “she is a celebrity, she doesnt deserve privacy” and “she courts the publicity”, but hell, if the papparazzi film you putting in gas, buying tampons at the drugstore, and going to the toilet at the gas station, how can you say she is courting the publicity?? For gods sake, everyone needs to take a pee once in a while. It makes me so sad watching Britneys spiralling drama, because I know how hard it was for me to get over the depression, and I dont know if I could have with papparazzi following my every move.
That Jason Alexander dude will say whatever the tabloids want him to for the right amount of cash, he is an absolute nobody, but whenever britney is in the news, he suddenly has a new titbit for the tabloids. When Britney and Kevin seperated, 3 different shows had Jason Alexander and Shar Jackson on for a fee. Hw said nothing about drugs then, or the many other times that the tabloids have paid him for stories. Isaac Cohen said nothing about drugs at all in his tell all to the tabloids, but he did say how her self esteem was down to absolute zero. That was her in private times, when she wasnt “courting the papparazzi”. I just feel really sad for her, I have seen so many people posting on other sites that she should just OD like Anna Nicole, it is horrifying what vultures people become when someone is so obviously unravelling before our eyes. I am hoping and praying that Britney recovers and takes her boys and loves them with all her heart. On a parting note, Brooke shields said when she had her first daughter, she was in such depression that she just lay in bed, was not interested in doing anything for her daughter and on at least one occassion when her daughter was alone in the car with her, wanted to drive the car into a wall so that it would kill them both. But everyone still loves Brooke, something to think about????
February 28th, 2007 at 4:43 pm
Actually a doctor could state that if they had permission from Brit her self. I think it could be true. Seems like she has been diffrent since her last child. Funny no one seen him and when they did she wasn’t holding him. I don’t know I suspected this all along really. I had it with my premmie and it is a very crazy feeling you get. I would not wish it on anyone.
February 28th, 2007 at 11:20 pm
Having experienced PPD myself, I know that it can be a very real and serious condition. But the truth is, that someone with PPD doesn’t want to get out of bed, socialize, or see the light of day.
How can anyone even compare someone like Britney Spears to a CLASSY lady like Brooke Shields? I don’t think that Brooke was out running around without her underwear flashing herself for everyone to see, or parading out in public in a borrowed bikinni and fish net stockings. Sorry girls, but this doesn’t sound like ANY kind of depression to me. Sounds like someone under the influence who certainly doesn’t have good moral judgement to begin with.
If everbody keeps making excuses for this woman’s behavior, how is she ever going to get well? She has already admitted to being an addict, TAKE A LOOK AT WHERE SHE IS RIGHT NOW. SHE IS NOT ON VACATION. SHE IS IN A TREATMENT FACILITY.
April 9th, 2007 at 8:36 am
When postpartum depression kicks in women often feel sluggish, unconnected to reality, and often undergo several other symptoms that include depression. Women who undergo postpartum depression (PPD) often go through sessions of uncontrollable crying and very hardly ever do they understand the cause.
Their thinking is often illogical and their emotions are often tangled. One minute they are struggling hard to go to sleep and the next minute it seems as if they can’t be waken up at all. Once a baby is born the family, friends, mother and so forth suppose to join in a joyful expedition.
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