‘I couldn't look at the baby’: Celebs who have struggled with postpartum depression

Postpartum depression is a mental illness that affects several mothers within the first year after giving birth. Some of the most common symptoms include difficulty bonding with their newborns, insomnia, and mental instability. Some celebrity mothers have struggled with it, but fortunately put it behind them. Find out more about their stories here.

In 2020 model and TV host Chrissy Teigen had a candid talk with Glamour magazine, talking about the ups and downs she faced after giving birth to daughter Luna, in 2016, Chrissy revealed she did not realise she was suffering from postpartum depression until her baby was three months old. She said: "You hear these horrific stories of people not seeing their child as theirs, or wanting to hurt them, and I never felt that way. That's why I put off getting it checked as I hated myself, not my child. I don't know why I didn't realise, as it was so obvious to everyone else!"

‘Charmed’ star Alyssa Milano has two children, Elizabella and Milo, born in 2011 and 2014, respectively. Following her eldest child’s birth, the actress faced tough challenges in the form of postpartum depression. In a candid essay published by TIME magazine, Alyssa recalled: "That first night, after we returned from the hospital, I suffered my first anxiety attack. I felt like I had already disappointed my child." Alyssa then got the help she needed and was able to move on. She ended her essay with the line: "And if you see me on the street, please come tell me that I am not alone."

In 2014 the ‘Remember the Titans’ star was diagnosed with postpartum depression following the birth of her daughter Kaya. At the time, her representative told People that the star was “voluntarily seeking professional help at a treatment clinic.” Panettiere later opened up about the trauma during an interview on ‘Live! with Kelly and Michael’. She said: "There's a lot of misunderstanding — there's a lot of people out there that think that it's not real, that it's not true, that it's something that's made up in their minds, that 'Oh, it's hormones.' They brush it off. It's something that's completely uncontrollable. It's really painful and it's really scary, and women need a lot of support."

‘Easy on Me’ singer Adele welcomed baby boy Angelo in 2012 but faced postpartum issues. In a 2016 interview with Vanity Fair, the Grammy award winner talked openly about her struggles. Adele said: “I had really bad postpartum depression after I had my son, and it frightened me. My knowledge of postpartum — or post-natal, as we call it in England — is that you don't want to be with your child; you're worried you might hurt your child; you're worried you weren't doing a good job. But I was obsessed with my child. I felt very inadequate; I felt like I'd made the worst decision of my life.”

‘Legally Blonde’ actress Reese Witherspoon is a proud mother to three children. Ava, Deacon and Tennessee were born in 1999, 2003 and 2012, respectively. While chatting on Jameela Jamil’s ‘I Weigh’ podcast, the Hollywood star opened up about the difficulties she went through after giving birth to them. Reese said: "I've had three kids. After each child I had a different experience. One kid I had kind of mild postpartum, and one kid I had severe postpartum where I had to take pretty heavy medication because I just wasn't thinking straight at all. And then I had one kid where I had no postpartum at all."

Charlotte and Rocky, born in 2009 and 2012, are the ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ star's children. In 2017 Sarah took to Instagram to share a powerful message to other women. She wrote: “I love my children more than anything in the world. But like a lot of women, I too struggled with postpartum depression after my first baby was born. I got help, and made it through, and every day since has been the best gift I could ever have asked for. To those of you going through this, know that you're not alone and that it really does get better."

‘Thank U’ singer Alanis Morissette is mother to Ever, Onyx and Winter who were born in 2010, 2016 and 2019 respectively. In a heartfelt interview with People, the music star talked about how she was diagnosed with postpartum depression a year and a half after giving birth to her eldest. Alanis said: "I'm used to being the rock of Gibraltar, I'm used to providing and protecting, and for postpartum times, I was devastated, and it had me questioning my identity. It had me questioning everything."

In 2017 the ‘Game of Thrones’ star told The Edit how a postpartum diagnosis impacted on her while filming the HBO fantasy series following son Wylie’s birth in 2010. Lena recalled: "I saw a doctor for the medical check, and I just burst into tears. She said I was postnatally depressed and I went, 'Am I? Why is that?’ I saw a great guy and he sorted me out, but I did the first year [on 'Game of Thrones'] in that space, figuring out motherhood and going through a weird time personally. It was tricky."

Professional tennis player Serena Williams’ daughter Alexis Olympia was born in 2017. The athlete opened up about her post pregnancy struggles during an interview with Harper’s Bazaar. She said: "Honestly, sometimes I still think I have to deal with it. I think people need to talk about it more because it's almost like the fourth trimester, it's part of the pregnancy. I remember one day, I couldn't find Olympia's bottle and I got so upset I started crying … because I wanted to be perfect for her."

In 2005 ‘The Blue Lagoon’ star published a book called ‘Down Came the Rain: My Journey Through Postpartum Depression’, where she talks about her struggles following the birth of her son Rowan in 2003. After the book was released, Brooke told ABC: "It was devastating to my whole family. I had gone through numerous attempts to have a baby and when I did finally have this perfect, beautiful, healthy baby and it all but destroyed me. I couldn't hold the baby, I couldn't do anything for the baby, I couldn't look at the baby."