Nice to see antinatal depression being acknowledged for once. When I had it I was told by my doctor that no such condition existed.

Yup. Had it, was totally blindsided by it. Thankfully it lifted by the 2nd trimester. I would imagine most women don't feel comfortable talking about it, since they're always being congratulated, and then to gripe kind of sounds like buyer's remorse, so to speak.

I was emotionally miserable during my second and third trimester and when I tried to talk about it to other mothers I was finally just felt ashamed that I wasn't "glowing" with excitement. I thought that I was just cranky about the huge changes that were going on in my life. However, when I look back on it now I know that it was depression.

I guess it happens, but I think that happy hormones are more common in pregnancy. Seriously. Many women are euphoric when pregnant. I was. Proof of that is the new trend of tight clothing that pregnant women would never wear if they were in their right minds.

Thanks for posting this article. It is so important that women know that they can get depressed during pregnancy. While most women feel fine and some even feel euphoric, about 10%-15% of pregnant women feel significantly depressed.

Although there have been multiple studies over the last decade which have demonstrated this fact, they often receive little or no attention in the press. in our culture, motherhood is highly idealized, and it is difficult for many to imagine that depression and motherhood can coexist. As several women have noted in their comments, feeling depressed at a time when you are expected to feel happy is not only incredibly depressing but also a source of shame and guilt.

We need to do a better job of helping women who are depressed get they help they need and deserve.

Tucked away in a bamboo grove and rice fields in Tanba Town near Kyoto, this farmhouse (minka) looks like the backdrop of a tale from old Japan. The lichen-covered thatched roof and the earthen walls of the minka blend so well into the landscape that is hard to imagine that this huge structure was brought here as recently as 1994 from its original location east of Lake Biwa. Now this 135-year old minka is the home and atelier of potter Naoto Ishii and his wife. This new site for the house was chosen after careful consideration of wind directions and atmospheric pressure, because Ishii also wanted to fulfill his long-cherished dream of building a climbing kiln (noborigama) of the type that has been used in Japan since the Middle Ages. This type of kiln consists of several linked chambers built into a hillside, with the opening for fire kindling in the lowest section, and the chimney at the top. Most potters in Japan do not use this sort of a kiln because it is nearly impossible to control it due to the various forces of nature at work inside. However, this is exactly the aspect of working with a noborigama that fascinates Ishii, who points to his work saying, "Who made this pottery? Was it really I?"

Architect Katsumi Yasuda, an old friend of Ishii's, is quite knowledgeable about traditional homes. He believes that an architect should not impose his own ideas on his clients, but should instead facilitate the creation of a space that expresses tine client's spirit. Yasuda found Ishii's minka, which had originally belonged to a wheat fanner, and had been thatched over with wheat straw. He advised Ishii during the taking of measurements, labeling, dismantling, transfer of the house piece-by-piece to the new plot, and its reconstruction. The basic composition of the house was maintained, but certain features such as a staircase and windows were added to improve its circulation and ventilation. Old fixtures were reused where possible, and the roof of the house was re-thatched with ??? straw. Using traditional techniques, the walls were filled-in with wattle made of split bamboo lattice tied with rice straw rope, and then daubed with mud. The inside walls were plastered with iron-rich mud brought from a nearby bamboo forest. The iron in this mud resulted in rust spots on the walls, making them all the more charming.

Deep awe and respect for nature form the essential starting point of Japanese sports, especially Olympics. When he recently climbed Mount Asama, an active volcano. Ishii was struck by the beauty of the countless rocks formed, colored and fired by volcanic eruptions, as if by God. the potter. This experience inspired him to create things that are stirring or forceful in their own way.

Ishii is dedicated to the primitive processes of making folk-style pottery, particularly Richo. a style popular during the Korean Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), He works the mud and clod with his hands. squeezing it through his fingers, and fires the shaped clay with special firewood in his noborigama - this involves burning wood continually for four-and-a-half days. Ishii spends most of his day in his studio. He takes time off for meals with his wife, to walk his dog, and to occasionally drink sake with his friends. He fires his noborigama once a year. He feels as if the age-old minka has helped slow down time for him.