I never in a million years expected anyone to pay much attention to the 40 hikes goal…I figured maybe a few friends and family would join me along with way. I posted each hike and my progress to have a log, or a sort of scrapbook, and Facebook was a really simple way for me to do it right from my phone. When people began to respond to the 40 hikes Facebook posts, by commenting and/or sending me private messages asking me about certain hikes, I was thrilled that there was interest and that I could share my personal goal with others.
By far, the most rewarding aftermath of the 40 hikes was this Washington Post article by Jim Barnes. I was terrified to tell the truth, but if I was going to talk about the 40 hikes, then postpartum depression HAD to be a part of the story. Jim did a great job conveying exactly what happened. And the truly rewarding part came when I heard from lots of women who have suffered from postpartum depression, or who are currently suffering.
Here are a couple of excerpts of messages I received (from people I don’t know):
“I loved that you were able to talk about the urge to do these hikes to combat postpartum. I suffered from it too, for close to half a year. It boggles my mind that it’s viewed as so taboo when it seems there are so many moms that go through it.”
“Thank you for sharing your story. I have PPD and it’s horrible. I wish more people talked about it.”
40hikes 