Tresser: Yes, i have a 19 year old and a 16 year old. I'm open to talking about it. And
I know that depression can be inherited. On my dad's side, a lot of my family deals
with depression.
I made it a point to be open. I didn't want them to think that the reason mommy
can’t get out of the bed, or the reason mommy has to take medication, it didn't
have anything to do with them. My youngest is starting to understand.
My youngest daughter had an incident a couple of years ago. SHe shared with me
that she a picture out of herself. When she was in 6 th grade. But when she was in
hs, she had a fight with a girl. The youngman wanted to ‘prove’ something so he
posted the picture on social media.
She told me that she was going to let me wake up and find her dead in the
morning. She had every intention to commit suicide that night
My baby girl, sometimes has panic attacks. I get the guilt, did I pass this onto my
children. But she is open and okay with taking anti-anxiety medication.
Ayoka: Because of your openness, this will never be a stigma for your children.
Tresser: I had not thought about that. I go out and talk about depression now. Even
after all these years, I still see that many people still don't talk about depression.
Even my mom., with everything that she knew about me, she didn't know how
much I really suffered with the depression. I told her that I never wanted her to see
me as a failure.
My mom said, I always treat you like you never need help because you always
seem to have it all together. My sister, had her first child at 16. When she went to
her 6 week checkup, she found out that she was pregnant with her second child.
Soon after, I was sick, I thought that I had the flu. The same doctor that diagnosed
my depression was the same doctor who told me that I was pregnant.