THE birth of her first son was "a breeze", but it didn't stop actress Jacelyn Tay from feeling a little down yesterday.

The former MediaCorp artiste and now owner of her own wellness centre Body Inc gave birth to baby boy Zavier on Wednesday afternoon at Gleneagles Hospital.

Were the blues she felt a sign of post-partum depression?

Tay, 36, said she didn't know, but she was prepared for it.

"I had read up about postnatal depression, and this sort of feeling is probably a sudden drop in hormones," she said.

She had also prepared her businessman husband, Mr Brian Wong, 43, on how to look for signs of postnatal blues and how to help her through it.

"We work as a team," she said.

Tay has had worse bouts of the blues.

Over a decade ago, the failure of her business and her busy work schedule led to a bout of chronic fatigue syndrome and depression, which she talks about in a new book, My Voice: Overcoming.

Launched on Thursday, the book is a collection of stories about depression shared by other Singaporeans. It will be out in stores later this month.

"I'd like more people to realise that awareness is the key to helping themselves through depression," she said.

"When all your thoughts go to the negative, you need to be able to be positive."

Which is how Tay pulled herself out of that dark period and turned her life around.

Breastfeeding

Now she's looking forward to days with her newborn, who has been keeping his parents busy with diaper changes and breastfeeding.

Little Zavier is quite strong - at just two days old, he's been resisting being swaddled in a blanket.

"He's been crying loudly too. We're hoping he'll grow up to be a sportsman," joked Tay.

He's also been eating "a lot" - some feeds have lasted up to 90 minutes.

In fact, Tay had fallen asleep while breastfeeding Zavier yesterday afternoon - then continued while on the phone with The New Paper.

But the long hours spent feeding Zavier, she said, will be a blessing.

"Breastfeeding should help me get back into shape faster," said Tay, who put on 18kg during her pregnancy.

She's also keen on starting on slimming wraps and anti-cellulite treatments at her wellness centre soon.

Tay, who checked out of the hospital yesterday morning, will not have a confinement nanny. Only her mum and her maid will be around the house to help with other chores.

On her decision to forego a nanny, Tay said: "I reckon I will fight with the confinement nanny. "I have my own ideas on what is healthy, nutritious food and what's best for me now after the birth," she added.

Tay said she is not afraid of some of the mess that comes with caring for a newborn.

"I have no problems with smelly poo," she said with a laugh.

"I'll even look at my baby's poo to see how it changes over the next few months."

Tay said her husband has been quite the snap-happy daddy, taking pictures incessantly when he was in the delivery suite with her.

"He's very proud of himself because he got to cut the baby's umbilical cord.

"He used one hand to cut the cord and the other hand to take the picture," she said, laughing. But there was an emotional moment.

Tay said she was close to tears when Zavier was placed on her tummy in the delivery suite. "It was such an amazing feeling. For nine months, this boy was in my tummy, then suddenly, it was 'Hey, hi!'" she said.

Barely two days after Zavier's birth, Tay said she is already thinking of having another baby. While she has no plans as to when that will happen, she said she "will not prevent it".

She said: "I don't care if it's a girl or a boy. I just miss the feeling of being pregnant!"

This article was first published in The New Paper.