Mum's postnatal depression made her feel 'like a zombie'

A mum has shared the harrowing effects of her postnatal depression in a bid to help the charity she credits with saving her life. After the birth of her third child, Emma Elmas said she began to have "petrifying" intrusive thoughts and considered taking her own life. She also started self-harming. She believes she would not be here today had it not been for Acacia Family Support, which helps parents in Birmingham going through pre and postnatal depression and anxiety. But the charity is facing a funding crisis and has launched a campaign to highlight its work and boost donations. The city has the second-highest rates of perinatal mental health conditions in the country, it said. Elmas had a traumatic birth with her second child but it was during pregnancy with her third daughter Lucy that she began to experience "horrific" flashbacks. Postnatal depression set in and she began to self-harm. The 41-year-old from Cofton Hackett, Worcestershire, said: "I started having intrusive thoughts. They were starting to control my life. It was awful. "I stopped wanting to interact with my two children. I wasn't taking an interest in things and I was crying constantly. I was like a zombie most da