Speaker 1: Women are so busy in their lives, but not for themselves. So going to a health professional is really at the end of their to-do list.

Speaker 2: Probably the biggest hurdle to overcome initially, is to have to admit to yourself, "Is this more than just having a few bad days? There's something more serious going on." And then having the courage to speak to somebody about how it is that you're feeling.

Speaker 3: It's important to find the right GP or health professional. In the beginning, I didn't ask questions 'cause I guess I didn't know what was going on. I sort of left it up to them.

S1: You need to be in control of that situation, because with depression or any of these anxieties, you're feeling outta control.

S2: I think it's very important to know that you can ask, you're allowed to ask questions that are important to you.

S3: For me, it was a huge relief in knowing that I had that power to ask that question and it was my right, because this is my health we were talking about.

S2: It's your experience. It will be your recovery, and it's very important that you play an active part in that.

S2: Ask what all your options are, because there's such a wide range of treatments available from medication to counselling to exercise, eating well, getting enough sleep, and other behavioural things that you can do.

S3: The more information I have, the better it was for me to prepare myself for what I was gonna go through.

S3: Deciding upon the best options for me and what pathway to take came down to looking at the pros and cons of all the different options that the doctor put forward, and weighing those up and saying what my preference was, what suited me personally and also with my lifestyle and also what their professional recommendation was.

S2: You may need to try different things until you find what works for you. You may need a combination of things to help you get better.

S2: Having it explained to me that this is something that's going to take time allowed me to have a realistic view of where I was going to be going over the next few months.

S1: It gives you some sort of hope that things will improve. They're not gonna set you up for disappointment. They're gonna base things on experience.

S2: And that was like someone throwing me a lifeline, because when you're in that frame of mind, you think that you're going to feel like this forever.

S1: I can still look after my family, and I can still do those things that I'm superwoman about, but somebody else is looking after me.

S1: You are still a good wife, a good mother, a good friend, but it's your turn to be supported not to be the one that's supporting.