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Let’s Talk About Maternal Mental Health.

Maternal Mental Health Awareness week is 4-10th May 2026. With 1 in 4 mothers and birthing people experiencing mental health challenges in or around their pregnancy, it’s vital we all learn how to support each other during this time.

At Lena, we believe there is nothing more important than the physical and mental health of women, particularly in this stage of life. In this article, you’ll find key information on perinatal conditions, vital resources for those in need and the progress being made in this space.

Woman and her son touching foreheads with their eyes closed

What Is Maternal Mental Health?

Perinatal or maternal mental health describes your mental health during pregnancy and the following two years after birth. The life-changing experience of giving birth, raising a human and becoming a mother challenges mental health because of the sheer load on the body, mind and spirit.

Perinatal conditions include: antenatal and postnatal depression and anxiety, postpartum psychosis, birth trauma or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), perinatal eating disorders and perinatal obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). For more information on each of these conditions, we recommend visiting The Maternal Mental Health Alliance website.

In my medical training, I spent just three days with a perinatal psychiatrist (who was absolutely brilliant) learning about postnatal depression and psychosis. Her insights were fascinating: from the impact of social media on expectations of motherhood, to the fading concept of community and the epidemic of loneliness for modern mothers. 

In this training, it was clear that perinatal mental health does not discriminate, it can affect anyone regardless of previous mental health status and it can be difficult to predict. It was also clear that one thing supported mothers more than anything - community.

The back of a woman as she breastfeeds her baby

The Baby Blues vs. Postnatal Depression

It’s normal to feel tearful, emotional or low after giving birth: your body has gone through a huge event, your hormones have dropped significantly and you are (likely) incredibly sleep deprived. This is known as the baby blues, which typically start within a few days of birth and can last around two weeks. 

Postnatal depression is not the baby blues. If you are still feeling low after two weeks, or are experiencing some of the symptoms listed below, it could be a sign of a perinatal mental health condition. Experiencing any of these symptoms is not your fault and you are not alone - many women go through the same journey and there is help available.

If you spot any of these symptoms or signs, it’s important to tell your GP, health visitor or midwife as soon as possible. The following list is taken from The Maternal Mental Health Alliance Website:

  • Sudden, big, or constant changes in your mood or emotions
  • Thoughts or images about harming yourself or harm coming to your baby 
  • Feeling overwhelmed by guilt, shame, or hopelessness
  • Struggling to bond with your baby or feeling detached from them
  • Finding it impossible to sleep or relax, even when your baby is sleeping
  • Thinking that you’re not a good parent or your baby is better off without you
  • Seeing, hearing, or believing things that others don’t
  • Frequent worry or fear about food or your body image
An image of a woman and her child from the back, the woman looking at her child, with the Lena logo in the bottom right corner

It Takes A Village: So Where Can We Find Ours?

The phrase is ubiquitous, but in modern times the village feels harder to find. As we become more globalised, many of us find ourselves in different cities and countries to our friends and family - a fundamental support system when having children. Having people around you that you know, love and can trust to leave your baby with - whilst you get some much needed rest - is a lifeline. 

So if you find yourself far from your home community: where do you find a new one? In my conversations with mothers, they found their tribe not always in antenatal classes or baby singing groups, but in spaces that they enjoyed.

They prioritised themselves - emphasising that they wanted to have connections with others that weren’t just based on the baby. From women’s circles, exercise classes, art therapy, book clubs, wider community gatherings, walking groups, and even online community groups, there are spaces where you can find your people.

The Science of Community

Studies show that maternal wellbeing is closely linked to maintaining a sense of identity beyond motherhood. A study published in the journal Sex Roles found that women who were able to integrate motherhood with other valued roles, such as hobbies, work, and friendships, reported higher wellbeing and lower levels of depressive symptoms.

Similarly, work from the Royal College of Psychiatrists highlights that social support and opportunities for personal time are protective factors for maternal mental health, helping reduce isolation and emotional distress in the postnatal period.

An image of a baby's hands on top of its mothers with the Lena logo in the bottom right corner

10 Years of Progress: What’s Changed In The Last Decade For Mothers?

This year marks the 10th annual Maternal Mental Health Week and at Lena we wanted to understand what’s different for mothers now versus when the initiative began 10 years ago. Here are just some of the key policy changes and shifts in the last decade:

  • The US introduced "Bringing Postpartum Depression Out of the Shadows" Act, alongside state-level expansions extending Medicaid postpartum coverage to 12 months in many states
  • Nationwide rollout of screening recommendations from bodies like American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has made routine perinatal mental health checks more standard in care
  • New Training Programmes and the Postpartum Support International (PSI) provider network expanded the workforce hugely
  • Major NHS investment since 2015 has created universal access to community perinatal mental health teams and significantly expanded mother-and-baby unit capacity
  • The NHS Long Term Plan in the UK committed dedicated funding to ensure tens of thousands more women receive specialist support each year
  • Charities like PANDAS Foundation and Maternal Mental Health Alliance have played a key role in awareness, peer support and campaigning for service expansion
  • COVID-19: the pandemic isolated mothers and birthing people at a key time, increasing rates of mental illness amongst mothers and disrupting maternal care across the globe.

Culturally, the silence has started to break. More women are speaking openly, partners are being brought into the conversation and awareness is growing year-on-year. 

A woman playing with her two children on the beach, lifting one of them in the air, with the Lena logo in the bottom right corner

It’s Okay Not To Feel Okay: Resources To Get Help

You know your body and mind better than anyone: if something doesn’t feel right - speak to your GP, midwife, doula, friends or family straight away. You are not alone and nothing is more important than protecting your mental health. 

If you’d like more information, we recommend the following websites and communities:

Perinatal mental health can be unpredictable, but having a constant support system around can help you navigate the storm. 

We hope you have found this article useful, whether you're pregnant, navigating the early days of motherhood or supporting someone who is. If you enjoyed this article and would like to read more on experiences of motherhood, check out our Moms In LA series, a selection of interviews with incredible mothers, each sharing the trials and tribulations of their motherhood. We think you’ll love it.

 

Written and edited by Dr Rachel Denham, a trained medic and Women's Health Practitioner, who has worked across the charity and humanitarian sector and now specialises in women's health. Rachel is the creator of Bloody Nora, a women's health and wellbeing zine that fuses storytelling, art and science. 

Sources:

https://www.aaogf.org/
https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/postnatal-depression-and-perinatal-mental-health/useful-contacts/
https://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/improving-care/campaigning-for-better-mental-health-policy/college-reports/2021-college-reports/perinatal-mental-health-services-CR232 
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9874036/
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275445627_Expanding_the_Self_Motherhood_and_Identity_Development_in_Faculty_Women

 

 

 

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