Happy 2008, everyone

This year is a special one for the Mental Health Source Page, because it marks the 10th year of its existence. I created this website in 1998, to share personal stories and resources about depression and bipolar disorder. This website gave me a voice to sort out my personal experiences with depression. Little did I know how much sharing with others helps me find strength and reminds me that I’m not alone. For this, I thank you, readers of this website, for being with me over the years.

I’m a bit late with the blog carnival that was supposed to be published yesterday. Rest assured I will get to this within the week, probably during the weekend. Being a mom to a newborn proved a challenge unlike any I’ve experienced (and I thought going through a PhD program was hard; I think this is harder)! Here’s a picture of my little one when he was 2 weeks old… he’s now 5 weeks old and learning to propel himself on his tummy.

When I was pregnant, I knew that I needed to get ready for sleep deprivation and for this major life transition, but honestly, until I actually experienced it, I did not truly understand sleep deprivation. And of course, given my history of depression I’ve been watchful during pregnancy and now, in the postpartum period, to make sure that I keep healthy. For this I’m very grateful to my husband, for his outstanding support. He took 5 weeks off work to take care of me and to help with our baby. If you are interested in postpartum depression from a first-person perspective, be sure to visit Katherine Stone’s blog.

During the winter holidays, I came upon a wonderful public radio program called “To the Best of Our Knowledge”. Recently they aired a segment on sadness and depression, and whether “normal” sadness has been stripped of its human context and made into a chemically-based disease. You may listen to the streaming audio (requires Real audio player) of the December 16, 2007 program here.