When Jenni Pirtle of Bluffton gave birth 10 months ago to her first child, she had no idea her world was about to be turned upside down. While she knew motherhood wouldn't be all champagne and roses, she didn't know it would be the emotional roller coaster it became.

Most new moms have a tough time learning to care for a newborn. There's dealing with a fussy baby, struggling to breastfeed and whatnot. But others, such as Pirtle, experience something much more life-shattering -- an endless flow of tears and uncontrollable emotions, anxiety and sometimes even suicidal thoughts.

Pirtle, with the help of a friend, is taking steps to make sure other moms don't go through the same trauma.

'SOMETHING THAT'S REAL'

Dr. Kristi Blessitt, an obstetrician on Hilton Head Island, said many mothers experience minor depressive symptoms often called "baby blues" that last between a few hours and two weeks after delivery. But she said about 10 percent of new mothers experience more severe symptoms that can last for a few weeks or for a year or longer if left untreated. This more severe depression is known as postpartum depression.

Pirtle had such a bad case she was unable to sleep or care for her new son, Win.

"I understand that (having a baby) is supposed to be the happiest time in your life," Pirtle said. "Nobody really wants to talk about (postpartum depression), but it's something that's real, and it affects a lot of women."

She already had been through quite an ordeal by the time her son arrived. She had two miscarriages and then a difficult pregnancy that required daily injections, sometimes three a day.

And when it came time to deliver Win, Pirtle had a painful and traumatic Caesarean section because of the way he was positioned. She said she could feel pain that under normal circumstances she would not have.

To top it all off, Win was born with a club foot and had to go to the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston once a week for casts for the first eight weeks of his life. Then he had to have surgery on his foot and wear special shoes for another six months.

Aside from all the other stressors in her life, Pirtle knew there was something wrong with herself. She knew her body and knew something was just not right, but no one could tell her what was wrong.

"A lot of people think you make it up," Pirtle said. "I did not make this up."

She checked herself into two hospitals, and the doctors didn't know what to do for her. Some thought she had a generalized anxiety disorder.

And then a friend called Pirtle one day, saying she found an old newspaper article about a local woman suffering from postpartum depression. The woman in the story wanted to help other women going through the same thing.

The woman in that article was Shari Lloyd of Bluffton, who had been through something very similar to what Pirtle had endured a few years earlier after having her daughter, Sophia. Pirtle called Lloyd, who came over right away and offered her the comfort she had sought so badly.

"If you haven't lived it, you don't understand that pit-of-the-stomach feeling of anxiousness," Lloyd said about the condition. She said everyone kept telling her it would be OK, but no one really knew what to do to help her. That's why she was so willing to rush right over and help Pirtle in her time of need. Pirtle eventually got better with the help of Lloyd's counsel and through the help of hormone therapy. She said the progesterone cream treatment, which she rubbed on the insides of her wrists, was an instantaneous relief for her.

Lloyd, who also had complications with her pregnancy and had to deliver her daughter by emergency Caesarean section, started showing signs of postpartum depression a few days after her daughter was born.

With the help of antidepressants and counseling, Lloyd got better, but she yearned for the support of other women who could relate to what she had experienced. There was a support group in Charleston, but that was a two-hour drive -- way too far for someone who didn't even feel up to packing a diaper bag.

REACHING OUT

As Lloyd and Pirtle went through their individual battles, they each wished they could someday help other women struggling with the condition.

So that is what they are doing today. The two women have started a group called Willows Breeze Postpartum Foundation. They hope to be the first responders to anyone suffering from postpartum depression on Hilton Head Island, in Bluffton, Beaufort or Savannah. They hope to be able to give those women the resources they need to get back on track.

They have a network of women who have experienced postpartum depression and are willing to be a source of support for others currently struggling with the condition. They have a lending library of books donated by the Zonta Club of Bluffton. They also have names of doctors, nurses, counselors, a childbirth educator/lactation nurse, an acupuncturist/doctor of Chinese medicine and more whom they can recommend.

Lloyd and Pirtle are working on achieving nonprofit status for the foundation but need the help of the community for funding. They also need volunteers, particularly people in the medical field who specialize in perinatal mood disorder. For more information, call Lloyd at 843-301-5933 or go to www.willowsbreezefoundation.com.

"We just want to keep mothers and infants safe," Pirtle said.