If there’s one thing that former Hear’Say and Emmerdale star Suzanne Shaw is known for, it’s her beaming smile and bubbly personality. Indeed, we had no idea that the star was battling post-natal depression following the birth of her second child.
Suzanne, 35, made the revelation this week, in an interview with Closer magazine, where she opened up about the ‘dark’ time she went through.
The actress and singer, who is engaged to Sam Greenfield, welcomed baby Rafferty in October 2015. She was already mum to 13-year-old son Corey, and had experienced post-natal depression after her first birth.
“I was trying to do everything in my power to avoid getting it again: breastfeeding, exercising, eating healthily,” she explained.
“When I had Corey, I was 23 and a single mum, so after Raffi was born, I really thought I’d avoid it, because I had a stable family setup.”
Things weren’t straight-forward with Rafferty from the get-go, however. Not only did the tot have various allergies but he also struggled with feeding. His ‘constant crying’ led Suzanne to believe that these complications were the cause of her unease.
Matters came to a head last summer, however, when Suzanne began getting ‘really paranoid’ and stopped leaving the house. She knew something was up when she lost her desire to meet with friends, attend baby groups – and began worrying about being alone with her baby.
“Things got so dark,” she recalled. “Then, one day, Sam was off work and I just couldn’t get out of bed. I thought, I’ve got two children, I can’t let this get the better of me.’”
It was Suzanne’s mother who convinced her to go and see a doctor, and she was prescribed with a course of medication as well as therapy sessions.
“The doctor was amazing. He was so supportive and caring,” said Suzanne. “Looking back, I can’t believe I waited a few months to get help.”
Sharing your story can be a draining and scary process, but Suzanne took to Instagram this morning to tell her followers that she is ‘loud and proud and far from ashamed’.
“It’s been a difficult, crazy, wonderful and magical journey. Getting help and speaking out about getting post-natal depression again was the toughest yet best thing I did,” she wrote.
We’re sure that Suzanne’s brave decision will help out plenty of other mums who need a little extra help and support right now.
