As the single mother of unexpected twins, Melissa Fry of Roseville, Calif., felt she had to do everything on her own so she wouldn't be a burden on her family. "I was determined to do it all by myself and not ask for help," says Fry. "I became physically and mentally exhausted."

Eight weeks after her daughters were born, Fry went back to work full time and tried to care for the twins on her own. She quickly became overwhelmed, but did nothing about it. "I lied to my doctor when he asked me questions about how I was feeling, because I thought I should be handling things better than I was," says Fry.

After being hospitalized twice for attempted suicide, Fry was diagnosed with postpartum depression (PPD). With therapy and a low dose of antidepressants, she is recovering.

Unfortunately, Fry's story isn't unique. According to Nancy Bowers, R.N., author of The Multiple Pregnancy Sourcebook: Pregnancy and the First Days with Twins, Triplets, and More (McGraw-Hill/Contemporary Books, April 2001), the incidence of PPD and anxiety disorders in mothers with multiple infants is estimated at 25 percent. In mothers of singletons, only about 10 percent of women are affected.

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