Postpartum depression for years was something people just didn't talk about. Certainly a mother suffering from it was unlikely to say so out loud.

Practical help for this complex and heart-rending condition was minimal and support was nonexistent. And the mothers who had it also had their own sense of guilt and shame to contend with.

Thanks to women like Katherine Stone, the dialogue and support network for postpartum depression in all its forms, have begun to open up and spread. Stone's blog is a place to find information and resources, to find encouragement, and to find other women who have been there.

"This is the most widely-read blog in the U.S. on depression & anxiety during pregnancy & postpartum. It was created for the women who suffer & the professionals who care for them ... YOU ARE NOT ALONE."

That last sentence in and of itself may cause new hope to rise up in the beleaguered reader.

http://postpartumprogress.typepad.com