Ftm: anyone else?

[Ollie918]

When I was 11 I was diagnosed with Adhd,Bipolar diorder, depression and aniexty. I am now 17(turning 18 sept 2) and right now everything is just going haywire. Before I got pregnant I had very bad mood swings and it lead me to be very lonley, I felt very down alot of the times and there was no explanation for it, now that im 22weeks with my first I feel like everything is just hitting me at once I am pretty responcible for my age, I have been attending counseling, also going to a program in my old high school (currently in tutoring) which is helping me prepair to become a sucessful teen mother, I am also looking into teen pregnancy class's, anyways I am very over whelmed and find my mind wandering off into bad places. I have been working on coping skills but cant seem to find the right one. I was just wondering is there anyone else on here who is struggling with mood swings and how do they get through it?
Thank you(:

[Ollie918]

Yes my med doc had my on lithium the lowest dose and it made me very sick and nausea she said those would be the side effects but I couldnt deal with it and stopped taking it, the childs father is involved hes acutally a great guy we have our ups and downs but dosnt every realtionship, anyways I do have my mother but her and I always seem to bump heads I moved out of her house about 7 months ago and she wants me to come back (only to use my checks) ssi/disability she is always complaining that she is so "poor" and wants me to "come home" last time I checked a home is somewhere you are comfortable at and feel loved when I was there everything was horrible I was smoking alot of marijuana and really just trying to block out the world so every since I found out I was pregnant 5 months ago shes been trying extra hard to get me to come back I refuse my goal since I was younger was to become independent amf take care of my own family and im in the process of doing that but shes setting me back, she hurts my feelings alot of the time and I feel as if she has no idea shes doing it. Theres just so much stress going on in my life I could write a chapter book, thank you for the positive feedback much apreciated

[Anonymouse88]

That's a tough position to be in, and it seems like you've already taken some good steps.  Have you ever been on medication that worked?  There is a certain risk to bipolar meds in pregnancy, but there's also a risk to you and your baby if you're going through major uncontrolled mood swings.  At 22 weeks, some things might also be safer since you are no longer in the vulnerable very early stages of pregnancy.  Ask your counselor about seeing a psychiatrist to talk about meds, preferably one who's very familiar with women's health (and consult with your ob/gyn as well).  The teen pregnancy class seems like a very good idea.  

You could look to see if there are any pregnancy yoga classes in your area.  Getting exercise is good for mood regulation, and meditation might help as well.  Ask your ob/gyn about taking fish oil (check that it's safe in pregnancy), since there's decent evidence that it can help with depression.  Keeping a consistent sleep cycle every day, including on weekends, is an important part of mood regulation.  If you don't get enough sunlight, consider getting a sunlamp to sit under in the morning, which can help elevate mood (light therapy, used especially in seasonal depression).

Do you have support from your family?  Is the baby's father involved at all, or is his family giving you some support?  The more support you have, the easier it will be to cope once you give birth, since you won't have to do everything by yourself.  A relative of mine got his girlfriend pregnant, and the baby was born almost a year ago.  They live near both sets of grandparents, who help with babysitting so that the new parents can work and not go nuts.  Having something like that once the baby's born will help a lot, especially when you're feeling like you can't cope right that minute.

Best of luck in the time to come.