I was recently perusing through one of the local newspapers and spotted an ad from Yad Rachel. You weren’t asking for donations, your weren’t hosting a dinner, and you weren’t advertising a Chinese Auction. Your ad was inviting all women who are experiencing pre or postpartum distress/depression to reach out to you for help.

The advertisement brought back a rush of memories- all the way back when I was in 8th grade. My mother had given birth to our youngest, and everyone knew there was something wrong. My mother was completely not herself, constantly crying, and was hardly talking. I didn’t understand at the time what it was that she was going through, and I thought that I could do something to help the situation. I took to cleaning the house from top to bottom, bathing and caring for my younger siblings, and acting as the mommy at bedtime. All the while waiting for that expression of thanks from my mother. None was forthcoming. This continued for weeks, and I felt like I would crack. That’s when Yad Rachel, then a fairly new organization stepped in. Someone started coming to make suppers, someone got the extended family to get involved to come and take the children on outings, and most importantly, Someone was helping MY MOTHER GET BETTER.

The whole episode took about 2-3 months at most, but while we were going through it, it felt like forever. Only many years later did it dawn on me what my family actually went through. It was a truly frightening experience. Now, as a young mother myself, b”h, I realize the tremendous chessed that Yad Rachel does and how it gives everyone involved a new lease on life.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart!