Meghan Trainor deal with mental health challenges after welcoming baby number 2 in 2023.
“A month after having my second baby, I hit a breaking point,” Trainor, 31, wrote in an essay for Today Posted on Thursday, January 9th. “I’ll never forget it like it was yesterday – I’m sweating just thinking about it. I was holding Barry, my newborn, and he was crying and crying. My husband was with our toddler Riley putting him to bed so I was alone with Barry and he just kept crying and then I cried.’
She added: “I had a panic attack and I was just too exhausted but I felt like I was dying. I felt like if I stood up I would pass out. I didn’t feel safe holding the baby and at the same time I felt like my body was betraying me.’
Trainor and her actor husband Daryl Sabarawelcomed sons Riley and Barry in 2021 and 2023, respectively. In short after Barry’s arrivalthe singer was aware that something felt different.
Expanding their family. Meghan Trainor opened up about her and husband Daryl Sabara’s journey to becoming parents — and she offered sweet glimpses into their special moments. The singer and Sabara, who married in 2018, welcomed son Riley in February 2021. Trainor faced many challenges during her first pregnancy – including (…)
“I said to my husband, ‘Daryl, I need help.’ And he said, ‘Yeah, I’m here, don’t worry.’ And I said, ‘No, no, no, something’s wrong. I want you to pick up the baby and I need to make a few calls. I have to call my mom. I have to call a doctor. I need help,’” Trainor recalled. “So I called everybody. I knew I would get through it, but I had to hear from my support team that I would get through it. My doctor wrote me a prescription for medicine that will help me tonight. I took it and felt much better.”
Trainer had was previously diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder after the birth of her eldest son, Riley.
“It was months after giving birth and I had nightmares that I was still on the operating table and I could feel the doctor’s hands inside me,” she said, referring to her C-section birth. “She said, ‘OK, so this is a form of PTSD and we’re going to have to talk about it and work through it.’
Trainor previously struggled with her mental health growing up.
“I was on anti-depressants before I had kids. I’m kind of thankful that I had mental health issues before I got pregnant,” she wrote in Thursday’s essay. “I had already figured out how my brain worked. Going into pregnancy, I knew I would have to ask for help and be prepared.
With her doctors’ recommendations, Trainor continued taking her antidepressants throughout both pregnancies.
“At the hospital, a lot of the nurses looked at me and said, ‘Oh, it’s probably because of your anti-depressants.'” My doctors and my psychiatrist assured me that wasn’t true. Trainer added. “But then, during my second pregnancy, every day I asked myself, ‘Is this why Riley went to the ICU?'” I felt crazy. But again I stayed on my anti-depressants the whole time and my second baby was also delivered by c-section and came out crying – perfect.
Meghan Trainor and Daryl Sabara enjoy documenting life with their sons Riley and Barry. The couple announced in October 2020 that they were expanding their family, writing via Instagram: “You all know how long I’ve wanted this!!!! @darylsabara and I are so happy and excited to meet this little cutie early next year! (…)
After struggling with postpartum changes the first time around, Trainor knew she had to ask for help when Barry arrived.
“My husband and I communicate about everything, even if it’s ruthless and honest,” she stressed. “I told him that during our first try after giving birth, getting the same size as him didn’t feel fair because I was recovering from major surgery. I said, “I never told you, but I definitely hurt you while you were sleeping and I was draining and in pain.” So for our second baby he was up all night, every night, with Barry and feeding him formula.”
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, there is help. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
