Chrissy Teigen Reveals Her New Cookbook Helped Save Her From Postpartum Depression

Chrissy Teigen’s latest book, Cravings: Hungry for More offers delicious recipes for pancakes and grilled cheese anyone can try — making the cookbook also saved the mom-of-two from deep depression.

She was pregnant with her second child, Miles, while working on her latest cookbook, which she worked on with food writer Adeena Sussman. After having to put her first book, Cravings, on hold in 2016 because she was suffering from postpartum depression, she says creating this book helped her feel “normal” again.

Chrissy published an essay in Glamour last year, writing that after the birth of her daughter Luna, her “bones hurt to the core” so she had isolated herself inside her house for months, crying.

In the new book, she writes that the daily habit of creating recipes in her kitchen alongside Adeena and her mom, was a “stabilizing force” for her. “One of the ways I knew I was healing was that I found my way back into the kitchen,” she writes. “Starting to cook again really helped me get back on my feet and get back into normal life.”

"I got really, really sick," she continues. "Postpartum depression really kicked me in the ass, and it took me a while to get strong again, to feel good, to get off the couch, and, quite frankly, to have an appetite for anything besides a pillow and blanket...Cooking has always been my safe haven, even when things around me are changing at warp speed."

While pregnant with her son Miles, she continued to work on the book. Along with therapy and antidepressants, she is now in a good place.

According to Postpartum Progress, keeping up with a hobby while suffering from PPD, can really help improve mood and get a mom through times of deep stress. It's called "meaningful occupation," "things you enjoy that keep you occupied and help you through times of stress." Doing something you love also brings you back to yourself, and gives you purpose and meaning. 

They offer up some comments of what small hobbies moms found helped during PPD: volunteering, perusing Etsy, reading, walking dogs, baking, dance class, lighting a candle, and petting an animal are just a few things you can do to try to take your mind off the dark thoughts. 

Sonia Murdock, Executive Director for the Postpartum Resource Center of New York, tells Personal Space that having a hobby you love is an essential step to healing. 

"For some moms-to-be and moms, having a hobby or an activity such as coloring, crafting, or cooking, or what they have identified as helpful to them with destressing and focusing in the moment, can be an important part of their steps to wellness from a perinatal mood and anxiety disorder," she says.