Perinatal mental health

Becoming a parent is a big life event.

It's natural to experience a range of emotions and reactions during and after your pregnancy. But it's important to ask for help or support if you need it. You're likely to find that many new mothers are feeling the same way.

It can be really difficult to feel able to talk openly about how you're feeling when you become a new parent. You might feel:

Pressure to be happy and excited
Like you have to be on top of everything
Worried you're a bad parent if you're struggling with your mental health
Worried that your baby will be taken away from you if you admit how you're feeling.

Around one in 10 women will experience a mental health problem during pregnancy or in the year after giving birth. It can and does affect anyone.

Many people will have the baby blues after giving birth, but this should not be confused with a perinatal mental health problem. Baby blues are extremely common – you might feel tearful, anxious and emotional, this usually last just a few days.

This might be a new mental health problem or another episode of a mental health problem you've experienced before - these are known as perinatal mental health problems.

This could be:

Anxiety
Depression
OCD
PTSD
Low mood
Panic disorders
Psychosis

These can make you feel sad and withdrawn from your baby or your partner or make you feel extra pressure to be the perfect parent.

Women who are living with a perinatal condition need care and support. We are all individuals and need to embrace this. Find out what support is available by talking to your midwife, GP or health visitor.

Alongside women, we’re also here to support new fathers. We know it can be a challenging time having a baby, so we will prioritise your care in the 24 months from the birth of your baby. We also have access to DadPad, a really handy guide on caring for your child – giving you hints and tips so you can take control of what is happening.

Peer support

We have three brilliant and amazing peer support workers who can help you on your journey. You can watch Charlynne's story below.

Our peer support workers run a number of support groups across the county.

We run a support group called Calms which meets weekly in Lincoln and twice a month in Bourne, Mablethorpe and Sutterton, building connections. We also run a Walk and Talk group twice a month in Lincoln. Both the Calms groups and Walk and Talk group are for mums who are receiving support from the Perinatal team and their babies. Please contact us for more information.

The team has started an online Steps to Recovery group, where our peer support workers plus our OTs can cover coping mechanisms, wellbeing, which explores understanding anxiety and depression during the perinatal period. It also covers distress tolerance, coping strategies, which include, challenging unhelpful thoughts, mindfulness, relaxation, occupational wellbeing and satisfaction and value based living and compassionate self-help.

Feedback

Here’s the latest feedback for our service.

"I felt heard and was given the time and space I needed to grow. I was given the tools I needed to be a better person and a better mum. The help I was given will be useful to my son in the future and I am so grateful."

"Emma has been amazing, so kind and supportive, really loved the baby massage and would highly recommend to anyone struggling."

"Mel and Jess have been so supportive, they have listened, not judged, and was polite and respectful at every appointment. I did not expect the service to be like this, if I ever had to use the service again, it would be a lot less daunting, thank you."

"I had an amazing Mental Health Midwife. She made me feel listened to, supported, and understood in a really difficult time in my life. I can't even begin to thank her for helping me to believe I was a good mum. It's been a life changer for me, thank you for all you do and who you are."

"I suffer with postnatal depression and my Peer Support worker Rebecca was amazing!"

"Everyone in the service have been kind and compassionate. I felt really listened to and Calms group was a lifeline for me."

"Outstanding support from the start to the end of my journey, thank you."

"Excellent service all round. Really helpful, kind a caring staff."