Adele Has Shared A Heartwarming Post In Support Of A Friend Suffering From Postpartum Psychosis

Adele is not one to regularly post on Instagram. So when she does, we listen up.

Sharing a snap of herself and her best friend Laura Dockrill, Adele explains the ‘heartbreaking’ ordeal her friend has endured since giving birth to her son earlier this year.

Laura suffered from postpartum psychosis, a severe mental illness that affects thousands of women a year after childbirth. The symptoms can include depression, mania, confusion, hallucinations, and delusions, which can be a very frightening experience for the woman and their family.

“This is my best friend,” the singer wrote.

She had my beautiful godson 6 months ago and it was the biggest challenge of her life in more ways than one. Mamas talk about how you’re feeling because in some cases it could save yours or someone else’s life x

She shared a link to a blog where Laura speaks very openly about her experience with postpartum psychosis in an honest, witty, but heart-rending piece.

In the article, Laura states “It’s not easy to admit that the worst time in your life was when your baby was born”, describing her dealings with the mental illness as like “being the main character in a horror film”.

Laura shares that she was hospitalised for two weeks following an intervention, where she attended group therapy and began her recovery.

The second I got home and into bed I was drenched in this terrifying overwhelming sense of fear and dread. Like that Sunday night before school feeling times a million. I felt like I was dying. My breath was short and tight, my heart was pounding out of my chest and my stomach churned. I turned to my partner Hugo and said “Something’s not right with me, I don’t know what it is but I’m not OK.”

“My psychosis took a dark turn. I still can’t exactly work out what exactly happened or what form it took on, all I know is I was completely terrified, lost, confused and scared for myself and my son and that I didn’t trust ANYBODY,” she writes. “I even accused Hugo of kidnapping our baby.”

With the support of her friends, family, and partner, she’s now on the mend, and is taking medication “to feel secure”.

Laura wrote not only to highlight her own personal struggle, which affects 1 in 1000 women, but to encourage all women to talk about their mental state post birth, no matter how they feel. “You don’t have to brave it alone. You don’t have to act like a hero, you already are one.”

• wellness