Tamera Mowry Talks Postpartum Depression & How Adrienne Bailon Helped Her

Tamera Mowry-Housley recently opened up about her post-partum depression on “The Real.” The mom of two admitted that as she dealt with the condition without knowing what was affecting her, it was co-host Adrienne Bailon who pointed her in the right direction to get help.

After giving birth to her first child with husband Adam Housley, Tamera Mowry experienced what at least 20% of moms go through after childbirth: post-partum depression.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, post-partum depression is “a mood disorder that affects mothers after childbirth, leading them to experience feelings of extreme sadness, anxiety, and exhaustion that may make it difficult for them to complete daily care activities for themselves or for others.”

DEALING WITH PPD

Mowry, 40, who has talked about her experience on “The Real” before, touched on the subject once again this week, revealing that her co-host and friend Adrienne Bailon was a key player in her recovery.

Tamera explained that one of the hardest parts of her PPD was being back on “The Real” but not feeling like she was her authentic self because she wasn’t ready to accept her condition yet.

“I was afraid. And you guys know me to be a very type-A person,” she said. “I always like to be in control of my emotions and my feelings, and I like to be described as a strong person. [But] at that moment, I didn’t feel any of that. I felt weak.”

She continued by stating that PPD has a vast spectrum, and sometimes women that experience it can feel like killing themselves or their babies, but luckily, she didn’t feel any of that.

“I wasn’t just having baby blues. I would find myself literally in a ball sometimes just crying and then my husband...it was his face. He looked up at me, and he just felt helpless,” she recalled.

A FRIEND’S INTERVENTION

It wasn’t only Adam who grew worried, her co-hosts did too, and that’s when Adrienne decided to approach Tamera about the situation, as Mowry evoked:

“She’s like, ‘Tamera, can I be honest with you?’ You were like, ‘Tamera, I think maybe you should possibly, you know, look into postpartum depression. I think, girl, I think you might have it.'”

Bailon replied she remembered the conversation and asked the “Sister, Sister” star if she felt offended by her approach. Mowry explained that she didn’t feel offended but instead “loved” and “seen.”

"It doesn’t mean you’re weak because you have postpartum depression. You’re actually stronger once you identify it and get the help you need."

Adrienne admitted that she wanted to reassure her friend, who admittedly felt “crazy,” that she wasn’t “crazy” at all.

“The same way people tell you ‘go to the doctor’ if you have a throat infection or if you have bronchitis, our minds are the same way,” Adrienne pointed out. “It’s a part of our body. Hormones are real! If we feel them doing PMS, why wouldn’t you feel it after giving birth to a whole other person?”

Mowry-Housley was brought to tears by Adrienne’s words, but they ended up high-fiving each other as Bailon commended Mowry for being able to overcome the PPD.

GETTING HELP

Tamera wants moms to know that they’re not alone and that “it doesn’t mean you’re weak because you have postpartum depression,” she said. “You’re actually stronger once you identify it and get the help you need."

According to the NIMH, any mom that experiences symptoms such as “feeling sad, hopeless, empty, or overwhelmed, crying more often than usual or for no apparent reason, or worrying or feeling overly anxious,” should seek professional help.

Going through counseling or therapy with a mental health professional, and taking the necessary medication to act on the brain chemicals that are involved in mood regulation, is essential to deal with post-partum depression.