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Moana Hope reveals she's experiencing postnatal depression following traumatic birth with son Ahi

By 9Honey Parenting|

Moana Hope has revealed she is experiencing post-partum depression following her traumatic birth with son Ahi, who was born not breathing.

Saying she cried for days following his birth in June, the AFLW star shared the harrowing experience on Jessica Rowe's podcast The Big Talk.?

Hoped revealed she is working through the trauma with the help of a psychiatrist and said it had been very hard to deal with.

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Hope and her son Ahi, who she shares with wife Isabella Carlstrom (Instagram)

"I've definitely experienced it. And it's why I needed to reach out to my psychiatrist because I wanted to make sure that mentally I was getting that support, because there was things that I just felt like I wasn't good enough," she told Rowe.

"I think I've done really well by talking with my way through it and working my way through it, which has been amazing. And I don't feel that ... scariness about it anymore, but that was really hard to deal with."

Hope says she had 'never experienced pain like that' during her 24 hour labour and although she'd 'go through it 100 times over' to have Ahi, it had been difficult to comprehend how suddenly things got very serious.

"[Labour] is really challenging. I got the epidural after about 10 hours and once we got to the 24, 25-hour mark, the little guy's heart rate started to drop just suddenly," she revealed.

Asked to start pushing suddenly, before before her obstetrician had arrived, Hope said she never knew what was happening, or why.?

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Hope and Carlstrom share some bonding time with Ahi. (Instagram)

"I had no idea why we were in such a rush, when my obstetrician got in I pushed once for her and she said, 'No, we have to get him out real quick'... and in this moment, I was awake 25 hours going through this labour, I was going in and out of consciousness, I was exhausted," she said.

After Hope was given an episiotomy, Ahi was born, but wasn't breathing.?

"[They] pulled him out and he wasn't breathing, right, so he wasn't breathing when they put him on me," she said.

"I just felt like he's not moving and I just straight away said, 'Take him, fix him'. They worked on him for a couple of minutes and got him breathing."

Recalling how medical teams rushed in to work on Ahi, Hope said while she was grateful they were helping him, it left her feeling very exposed and vulnerable.

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The couple with Ahi and their eldest, daughter Svea who turns two in November. (Instagram)

"In that moment of about 15 people coming in, I was in stirrups, completely naked, blood everywhere. All these 15 strangers coming into the room to save my son. I wouldn't change that for the world, but afterwards that was very confronting for me."

Ahi is the second child for Hope and wife Isabella Carlstrom. The couple are also mums to Svea, who turns two in November. However, this was the first birth for Hope, with Isabella having carried Svea.

In an Instagram post sharing news of Ahi's birth, Hope hinted at the difficult birth.

"We are proud parents of this beautiful little baby boy. His name is Ahi Joseph Carlstrom 24.6. Coming in at almost 4kg's, we endured 24 hours of labour that was the hardest and most challenging thing I've ever done in my life both physically and emotionally," Hope shared.

"It brought us to the most beautiful little boy. You my little guy are perfect and your mums love you."

Anyone having trouble coping can visit www.panda.org.au or call the PANDA Helpline on 1300 726 306 Mon to Fri, 9am - 7.30pm AEST/AEDT. You can also contact Gidget Foundation Australia, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 (24/7) or talk to your GP.

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