PNDSA

PNDSA exhibited at the Baba Indaba in Cape Town on the 25th of July.  This show is aimed at pregnant ladies and parents with small children and it showcases all the latest and greatest baby and child paraphernalia.  Obviously our stand was slightly different as we had nothing to sell and we were not dealing with the most popular topic.  What I found incredible was people’s reticence to simply be informed.  We were handing out information brochures and the comments we received from a number of people were, “I’m fine thank you”, “I don’t need that”, “I don’t plan on getting depressed”.  While I completely understand the desire not to be depressed, would it not be in a person’s best interest to at least be aware of the signs and symptoms of PND?

So for those who want to know what to look out for:

• Are you irritable and confused?
• Do you feel like crying for no apparent reason?
• Do you feel exhausted all the time?
• Do you feel helpless, inadequate and unable to cope?
• Do you feel scared and panicky at times?
• Do you feel ashamed and guilty?
• Do you feel that you don’t know who you are anymore?
• Have you lost interest in everything?
• Are you unable to sleep the way you used to?
• Are you unable to eat the way you used to?
• Do you feel that you don’t have any feelings for the baby?
• Have you lost the desire for sex?
• Do you sometimes think of hurting the baby or yourself?

If you are unsure of whether or not you are experiencing Post Natal Depression, please speak to your Clinic Sister, Midwife, GP, Gynecologist or call our help-line.

“Let’s create a Blog on our website” uttered one of the office staff! “Great idea” everyone replied! A deathly silence  followed as we realised none of us had the faintest idea how to go about doing it!!

The problem you see, is that all of us had been born between 1960 and 1975! Not one of us had had the good fortune of attending computer literacy classes at school and while we are quite able to send and receive e-mails, the whole social networking thingy was a bit overwhelming. Needless to say, we were not going to be daunted by the challenge of entering the 21st century and so we contacted our very capable website designer Nic! (Surfice to say, Nic was born in the 1980’s) After a brief tutorial on “Blogging”  and a few warnings about which buttons “not to press” he left us to explore this amazing new cyber world!

And so here I am about to launch the first official PNDSA Blog page/site/thingy! I must say I have been encouraged by the fact that my sister, who is a mere 1 year and 10 months my junior, has just started her own Blog page/site/thingy and is experiencing great success, so, how hard can this really be…..?

The aim of this Blog is to inform all interested parties as to who, when, what and why the PNDSA is and does! (Does that make sense??) In the blogs that follow I will give you  brief updates as to who we are, how we began, what we have achieved up until this point and what our future goals are. We will also keep you updated as to any  future events on our calendar.

Well, I think that’s enough of a sneak preview for you all! Wish me luck as I work out how to publish this now……! (more…)

PNDSA will soon be starting their own blog. Please subscribe via the RSS button on the top right of the site to stay informed of all future progress.