Melissa Wirthlin (41), Boyd (5), and Olivia (2)
Las Vegas, NV
Melissa is a previous project participant. You can view her original photo and story here.
Melissa shares -
"After my daughter was born, my body image was terrible. Not in the aesthetic sense, but the experience was like night and day from when my son was born. I felt like a failure. She was born three weeks early due to blood pressure issues leading to an emergency cesarean, followed by a NICU stay due to low blood sugar caused by the medication I took for blood pressure while I was pregnant. She took almost 9 weeks to return to her birth weight, and I felt like my body couldn’t nourish her.
Postpartum with my daughter was a very dark time for me. I suffered from PPD worse this time around and the staff at my OB office wasn't helpful when I was trying to let them know about the medications that I had tried in the past for depression, and they gave me something that made it worse. Adjusting to life with two kids was hard. I wasn't prepared for the jealousy or guilt of trying to mother two kids. I’m an only child myself so I had no point of reference or expectations.
I loved how healing the first time was for me so I’m hoping this will help heal from my last birth and women feeling the same will know they aren’t alone.
Your best is enough. Don’t let self doubt sneak in and do damage. There is no shame in asking for help."