Jessica Rowe has revealed the depths of her struggle with postnatal depression.
The former Studio Ten star, 50, says she was struck down after welcoming daughter Allegra Overton, now 14, in 2007.
‘I had panic attacks and I’d never had panic attacks before. I had obsessive thoughts about things that might happen to Allegra, and they were quite frightening, intrusive thoughts about how she might be hurt or what might happen.
Difficult: Jessica Rowe (pictured) has revealed the depths of her struggle with postnatal depression. The former Studio Ten star, 50, says she was struck down after welcoming daughter Allegra Overton, now 14, in 2007
‘Thoughts I’d never had before,’ she told the What’s Up Instagram live stream this week, adding that she thought she was a ‘bad mum’ and a ‘failure’ because she struggled to breastfeed.
‘I could feel myself getting very numb and it was like there was a pane of glass between me and the rest of the world,’ she said.
‘I missed my life before I felt lost because I was someone who up until that point had defined myself through my career. And then when I didn’t have that, I thought, “Who am I?”‘
Jess admitted: ‘I had panic attacks and I’d never had panic attacks before. I had obsessive thoughts about things that might happen to Allegra, and they were quite frightening, intrusive thoughts about how she might be hurt or what might happen.’ Pictured with her daughters Giselle and Allegra
Horror: Jessica said she was most worried about ‘fixating’ on a carving knife in the kitchen. ‘I would think about what could happen with that carving knife, and then I ended up wrapping it a newspaper and throwing it in the rubbish bin at 3 am one morning,’ she admitted
Jessica said she was most worried about ‘fixating’ on a carving knife in the kitchen.
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‘I would think about what could happen with that carving knife, and then I ended up wrapping it a newspaper and throwing it in the rubbish bin at 3 am one morning.
‘I thought, “What am I doing? I really am a crazy lady”,’ she said.
Jessica said she finally began to heal when she told her husband Peter Overton, 55, what was wrong, and went to see a GP, later being prescribed antidepressants.
Safe: Jessica said she finally began to heal when she told her husband Peter Overton (left) what was wrong, and went to see a GP, later being prescribed antidepressants
‘Being the beautiful man that he is, he took me in his arms and he told me it was going to be okay. And that is what I needed,’ she said.
‘He validated what I was feeling and although I had a long way to go, I started to feel some weight lift off me when I was finally able to voice those terrible fears.’
Peter and Jess have been married since 2004, and also have a younger daughter, Giselle Overton, 12.
Jess announced in March 2018 she was leaving Studio 10 to spend more time with her family. She has since appeared on the show as a guest.
For confidential support, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.
Family: Jess announced in March 2018 she was leaving Studio 10 to spend more time with her family. She has since appeared on the show as a guest
Source: Daily Mail
