Let’s talk about Mental wealth…

Mental health is gradually gaining the knowledge and awareness it so drastically needs.

The taboo and stigma surrounding mental health issues are beginning to finally fade.

Relaxation Videos and Sounds

Here I will be adding more content to bring you nature at it’s best and some relaxation techniques I like to use to help me unwind.

This page will help you gain insight into your mental health and wealth.

The fast-paced lifestyles we are living are due to the advances of technology but yet, for many they come with a price.

Comparisonitis, destruction of our self-esteem and self-worth, being glued to our screens, mindlessly scrolling, missing out on life happening in front of us and ignorant to important environmental disasters unfolding.

Our mental wealth is suffering more than ever.

We have a lot to cope with.

Throw a family into the mix and well, it’s quite easy to see how people are toppling into negative mind states, depressive periods and why we are getting more and more anxious about life.

Learn how to:

Recognise if you have signs and symptoms of post natal depression

Use the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale

Advocate for yourself – be heard!

Learn why having baby boys can be an increased risk indicator of post natal depression

Many beneficial, free resources (see below)

Here’s to getting the right care, at the right time, from the right person.

What are the signs and symptoms of post-natal depression?

The charity 4Children, in 2011, produced a survey that they ran with the parenting club Bounty to look into postnatal depression further. From it, they gathered information to explain what are the common signs and symptoms of post natal depression.

It revealed “that a toxic combination of lack of awareness of the symptoms of postnatal depression and fear of the stigma attached to it are preventing thousands of new mothers from seeking help at the early stages of this illness. This, despite the fact that an estimated one in ten new mothers will suffer from it – approximately 70,000 women a year in England and Wales – from across the social spectrum”.

To read their report and the rest of the signs and symptoms use the READ More… button to read my full blog.

How to self advocate with difficult thoughts and feeling in pregnancy and/ post birth

I hear many people saying they pluck up the courage to go and speak with their GP or named health care professional only to be told “this is normal”, “it will get better with time” and no help or acknowledgment is given to their difficult thoughts and feelings.

When you are in a difficult headspace mentally it is very hard to then self advocate, or be heard.

So let’s talk about how we can help you to get your voice heard and get the necessary help you so rightly need and deserve.

⁣Why does having boys increase our likelihood of post natal depression?

⁣A recent research paper from 2018 titled “Male infants and birth complications are associated with increased incidence of postnatal depression” is an extremely interesting read. It is written by Sarah Myers & Sarah E. Johns published in Social Science and Medicine Vol 220, Jan 2019, p.56-64.

This is a fascinating read that highlights that there is an increased inflammatory immune response post birth of male foetuses compared to female foetuses which is associated with post natal depression (PND).

In addition to this, if you suffer from birth complications during the birth of yoru baby boy, there is a further increased risk of PND.

The research suggests you are 71 -79% more likely to have symptoms of PND if you give birth to a male foetus compared to a female one. That incidence increases to 174% if there are added birth complications.

These are super sad statistics but if more post natal people know about the signs, the symptoms and the why, would that empower them to seek help and not be as worried by the stigma?

I really hope it does help take away some of the blame game we play in our heads when we are struggling.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0277953618305744

Resources

Mental Wealth Support – Social Media

@pands_uk, @birthrightsorg, @mindcharity, @birthbetter, @birth_trauma_association_uk, @mmhalliance, @tommys, @eviecanavan, @perinatalmhpartnership, @annamathur @realdepressionproject

Beyond Birth Living Library (BBLL) is a free peer support program for parents who have encountered difficult experiences around birth.
BBLL was created to address an unmet need. It aims to support the emotional wellbeing of parents by tapping into the insights and reflections of those who have lived through similar experiences.
A Living Library uses the concept of ‘living books’ – people with lived experience, working with ‘readers’ – people currently going through similar experiences, to help make sense of what they are going through. It fills a gap that the medical model of postnatal care cannot provide for.