Tell us about you- what was your adult life like prior to having a baby? Like Kristina I always knew I wanted to get married and have children. Pre baby I was extremely confident, I was really proud of what I had achieved with my life, and generally pretty happy chilled person. I met the man of my dreams and we married a few years after that, we had travelled a lot and both bought investment properties and very happy together. We decided after we got married that we would move to Australia, … [Read more...] about Another Mother’s Story
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Why Should We Care about Postnatal Depression?
Our Current Situation There is not currently a lot of awareness about post-natal depression. The risk-factors, the symptoms and where to get help is not widely known. Many women go without diagnosis, and even when they are diagnosed, they don't know where to go for help. At best, they might go to their GP and start on anti-depressants - but anti-depressants alone are not the cure for PND, and they are not for everyone. Presently, Maternal Mental Health will only get involved with a mother … [Read more...] about Why Should We Care about Postnatal Depression?
Suffering in Silence: Kristina’s Story
These questions are 'borrowed' from a fantastic blog I discovered called "Beyond Postpartum" and I would recommend it to anyone interested in reading further. In many ways this story is a long time coming. I work in such professional circles in my job and my charity - and even in the Maternal Mental Health world I'm often quiet about my personal experiences because I am unsure whether another 'Health Professional' working in the field will judge me for having had a mental health … [Read more...] about Suffering in Silence: Kristina’s Story
Newsletter from Mothers Helpers
Accomplishments and Thanks This is the time of year where it's good to look back and see all that has been accomplished. Mothers Helpers registered as a Charity in May of this year so that we were official! We also established three Board members: Kristina Paterson (Chair), Amanda Donald (Treasurer) and Asha Ines. We hope to nominate also Onur Yilmaz to our Board who has a GM position with a large corporation and has been volunteering his expertise and help with things like recruitment, … [Read more...] about Newsletter from Mothers Helpers
Expectations on Mothers
Research has shown that a mother with high expectations of her labour/birth experience, motherhood (and herself as a mother) is more likely to develop post-natal depression and that we can assist pregnant mothers by helping them to develop more realistic expectations and prepare for the adjustment that motherhood brings. In the article “The New Parent”, Dawn Gruen recognizes what is termed a “Postpartum Adjustment”. She writes: “With birth comes the transition to parenthood, often … [Read more...] about Expectations on Mothers
