Product Description

In this compelling memoir, Brooke Shields talks candidly about her experience with postpartum depression after the birth of her daughter, and provides millions of women with an inspiring example of recovery hen Brooke Shields welcomed her newborn daughter, Rowan Francis, into the world, something unexpected followed-a crippling depression. Now, for the first time ever, in Down Came the Rain, Brooke talks about the trials, tribulations, and finally the triumphs that occurred before, during, and after the birth of her daughter.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #31269 in Books
• Published on: 2005-05-03
• Released on: 2005-05-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 240 pages

From Publishers Weekly
In 1980, when she was 15, Shields starred in The Blue Lagoon. In the movie, her character accidentally becomes pregnant, and when her son is born, he intuitively finds his way to her breast as Shields looks on with love and contentment. The irony of this scene isn't lost on the grown-up Shields, who not only did not become pregnant accidentally—numerous IVF cycles and a miscarriage preceded the 2003 birth of her daughter—but suffered a devastating aftermath to that birth. "I was in a bizarre state of mind," Shields describes, "experiencing feelings that ranged from embarrassment to stoicism to melancholy to shock, practically at once. I didn't feel at all joyful." Shields assumed she'd bounce back in a few days, after resting from her difficult labor. Instead, her feelings intensified: "This was sadness of a shockingly different magnitude. It felt as if it would never go away." While Shields denied anything was wrong, the persistence of friends and her husband persuaded her to seek treatment through medication and therapy. This brave memoir doesn't shy away from Shields's most difficult moments, including her suicidal thoughts, clearly showing the despair postpartum depression can wreak. While the writing is sometimes repetitive and clichéd, it does emphasize the depth of Shields's depression. This tale will bring awareness of a problem that so many mothers have been afraid to discuss; look for this book to touch off a flurry of lifestyle pieces.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
"This inspiring story offers hope to the many women suffering from this illness, as well as to their families." -- Shari Lusskin, M.D., FAPA, Director of Reproductive Psychiatry, Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Obstetrics and Gynecology, New York University School of Medicine

About the Author
Brooke Shields has starred in many feature films, including Pretty Baby, Blue Lagoon, and Black and White. She earned critical acclaim on Broadway for The Vagina Monologues and Cabaret, among other shows. She earned a People's Choice Award and a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Comedy Series for her starring role in Suddenly Susan. Brooke continues to lend aid to issues involving children's welfare and education.

Customer Reviews

Amazing!
I got this at the bookstore one afternoon and finished it the next day. My husband is now reading it, because Brooke does a fantastic job of putting into words much of what I felt after the birth of my son, but was unable to explain clearly to others. She pulls no punches, and is brutally honest about her thoughts of disconnect from her baby, her anger at family and friends for not getting it, and even her thoughts of suicide. But what she does best is show the help that is available, so that no mother should ever have to feel alone and hopeless. This is a book for every parent-to-be, so they are prepared for the possiblity; for every family member or friend who will be in frequent contact with a new mother, so they might recognize the problem before it gets out of control; and for anyone who has ever wondered 'Can it really be all that bad?' Yes, it can, yes, it is, and yes, there is help and hope.

Good information; well written
I applaude Brooke for writing this book because thousands of women suffer just as she did. They need to know they are not alone, and that they will get well with treatment.

A common misconception is postpartum depression is a "natural result" of birth. Not so! It is a deadly serious illness but is also very treatable. I lost my daughter to PPD 5 years ago and have spent my life since losing her trying to educate the public with accurate PPD facts so that others don't die unnecessarily. For the most part, Brooke's book has done a good job of giving good information.

Anyone who confuses postpartum depression with baby blues or just being a little down after childbirth is deadly wrong. And anyone who condemns a woman for symptoms over which she has no control is grossly ignorant. (...)

Helena Bradford
The Ruth Rhoden Craven Foundation for Postpartum Depression Awareness.

The Struggle of a Caring Woman and Mother
While reading this graphic biography of a year or more
in Brooke Shields life,I was moved with enormous compassion.
She admits she had an ideal life.A caring husband and after
a painful miscarriage,a chance for new life through I.V.F.
Innocently,Chris, her husband, and Brooke prepared to be
alone the first week to bond with their new baby girl.This
proved to be more difficult than they had anticipated.The new
born baby,Rowan,required breast feeding every 90 minutes.
Brooke's body had not fully recovered from a traumatic birth
resulting in a C-Section,and she lacked sleep.In short order
both parent's felt over their heads.Brooke was unable to feel
lovingly toward her baby and was frightened.Then,unbidden images
and frightening thoughts came rushing into her head,leaving
her afraid to be alone with her little daughter.Her husband,Chris,also worried,which made Brooke upset and apologetic for her serious postpartum condition.
She finally revealed her circumstances to her gynecologist
and gets the so necessary help.Slowly,with antidepressant medi-
cation,and a trained nurse she begins to mend.Brooke acknowledges both the physical and emotional help she needed to
overcome this awful disorder,that wrecks havoc in a woman's life and soul.
Due to Brooke's high celebrity status,I think this book
will help other mother's to have the courage to come forward
when they have these hormonal symptoms.
Perhaps,due to Brookes's unwavering honesty,she will have
saved another woman's or child's life,for telling what severe
postpartum was all about.
Thank You Brooke-You are a courageous woman.