One Mom's Journey to Motherhood: Infertility, Childbirth Complications, and Postpartum Depression, Oh My!

Author Ivy Shih Leung shares her not-so-perfect road to motherhood in this book that is part memoir and part self-help guide, reflecting lessons learned in the form of helpful tips and information to empower readers on the biological and sociological roots behind postpartum depression (PPD). She also seeks to raise awareness of the myths of motherhood and the stigma of PPD that contribute to the silent suffering of many mothers, as well as the importance of adequate social support in the early postpartum weeks.
 
A culmination of Ivy's frightening PPD journey and her emergence from it with a passion to learn more about perinatal mood disorders, this book is fueled with passion to help other women and their families, anger from the unnecessary suffering Ivy went through from the lack of information available to the public about PPD, her doctors' ignorance and lack of sensitivity, and public remarks like, "There is no such thing as a chemical imbalance"--all of which shows there's still a long way to go in terms of educating the public about an illness that is suffered by one in eight new mothers.
 
With side effects that include shame, helplessness, and despair at a time that is supposed to be one of the happiest in a woman's life, Ivy wants to help fellow PPD advocates get the message out that PPD is not a mind-over-matter thing, as those who don't know any better tend to believe. PPD is an illness that must be taken seriously. We must all remember that the health of the family unit depends on the mother's well-being.