Post partum blues

I totally get why some people get post-partum blues, depression or even psychosis. Medically, we tend to associate it with lower social class, family problems and predisposing individual factors like family history or past history of psychiatric illness.

However, that is not to say that 'normal' people are immune to it. Personally, I think we Asians are more susceptible to it. I'm sorry to say that I will attribute it again to our culture and social norms, and it's easy to understand why once you in a post-partum woman's shoes.

Case in point is 'mua' self. Hehe. Currently I am elegantly clad in T-shirt perfumed by stale breast milk and kain sarung lying in bed at 2 in the afternoon. And did I mention my best friend? the infamous bengkung. Yeah, I'm feeling ever so glamorous.

my 'modern' bengkung

Not only that, I am also a prisoner in my own home. My only function is to look after the baby and of course to obey the 'berpantang' rules-avoid sitting/walking too long, no tripping over stuffs, no ice, etc. I haven't stepped outside of the front door since the day we came back from the hospital; I think I must be vitamin D deficient by now. The only people I have contact with are my family and the baby. My source of information from the outside world are the television and internet-Thank God for technology!

Gone also my excitement of food-I am currently on a strict diet consists of rice and grilled fish. Everyday. This will of course ultimately leads to my worse enemy-constipation and haemorrhoids.


Now all of these served one purpose, that is to help women get back their pre-pregnancy shape and health (according to my mother la). Although I find it hard to become 'kurus' again with minimal activity and eating rice everyday. Right now, I'm desperately craving for Cadbury chocolate bar, which I rarely do in the usual days. I just hope I don't gain more than my pregnancy weight and somehow miraculously get rid of stretch marks on my hips, belly, bum, etc..