Pregnant or having a baby under a year - do you want to talk about how you are feeling?

Having a baby can be joyful, exciting and rewarding.  However, it is also common for pregnant women, birthing partners and new parents to experience anxiety, depression or emotional distress.  As many as one in five women experience emotional difficulties during pregnancy and in the first year after their baby’s birth. Either parent or caregiver can be affected.

 Health in Mind is an NHS Talking Therapies Service and covers the whole of East Sussex offering free, confidential talking therapy for people who have symptoms of anxiety or depression.  We will offer you an assessment appointment within two weeks of your referral to discuss how we can help. 
 

It is common for pregnant women, dads & new parents to experience:

• Low mood, sadness and tearfulness
• Anxiety, worry and tension
• Irritability and anger
• Difficult or unexpected feelings towards your pregnancy or baby
• Poor sleep even when your baby sleeps well
• Feeling unable to cope or enjoy anything
• Thoughts that you are not a good enough parent
• Worrying thoughts about your baby
• Anxiety about or difficulties associated with the birthing experience
• Worries about feeding and caring for your baby 

Want to talk to someone about how you are feeling?

It can be difficult to talk about how you are feeling and ask for help. Common reasons for this are:

• You may not know what is wrong
• You may feel ashamed that you are not enjoying your baby or coping as you believe you should.

Struggling emotionally at this time can happen to anyone. It is understandable given the enormity of the experience and change that you have been through. Your body experiences a whole host of physical demands through Pregnancy and giving birth, including hormone changes and physical demands.  Both you and your partner may find your sleep disturbed which can also contribute to some of the experiences described above.

 Asking for help doesn’t mean you can’t cope or are not able to care for your child.  It’s the start of getting the right help and support to ensure you can be the parent you want to be. Please read on for more information about the service and the help we can offer you if you need it.

 
How Health in Mind can help you

Health in Mind offers short-term talking therapy to give you space to talk. The types of therapy offered will vary depending on your particular difficulties.  

Partners can be affected by mental health problems too around pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period and are also able to access Health in Mind support.

Your first step to feeling better

You can access support with Health in Mind via our website following the link called self-referral.   If you are finding it hard to contact us yourself please ask your midwife, health visitor, friend or a family member to help you fill in the form. Your GP can also make the referral.  We know that pregnancy and the first year of your baby’s birth is a very important time. We will offer you an assessment and treatment as soon as possible.

What to expect when you have completed your referral

Our admin staff will contact you to arrange a time for you to speak to one of the therapists. We want to make it as easy as possible for you to get the help you need.  You may be able to bring your baby to sessions which can be offered via video platform or alternatively via the phone.  We can also offer you a choice of locations for your appointment which are accessible if you prefer.

The first appointment is to find out about your current difficulties. This helps us decide how we can best help you.

At the end of the appointment, we will discuss the support options available and agree a plan going forward.

Pregnant or having a baby under a year - do you want to talk about how you are feeling?

 Having a baby can be joyful, exciting and rewarding.  However, it is also common for pregnant women, birthing partners and new parents to experience anxiety, depression or emotional distress.  As many as one in five women experience emotional difficulties during pregnancy and in the first year after their baby’s birth. Either parent or caregiver can be affected.

 Health in Mind is an NHS Talking Therapies Service and covers the whole of East Sussex offering free, confidential talking therapy for people who have symptoms of anxiety or depression. We will offer you an assessment appointment within two weeks of your referral to discuss how we can help. 

It is common for pregnant women, dads & new parents to experience:

• Low mood, sadness and tearfulness
• Anxiety, worry and tension
• Irritability and anger
• Difficult or unexpected feelings towards your pregnancy or baby
• Poor sleep even when your baby sleeps well
• Feeling unable to cope or enjoy anything
• Thoughts that you are not a good enough parent
• Worrying thoughts about your baby
• Anxiety about or difficulties associated with the birthing experience.
• Worries about feeding and caring for your baby

Want to talk to someone about how you are feeling?

It can be difficult to talk about how you are feeling and ask for help. Common reasons for this are:

• You may not know what is wrong
• You may feel ashamed that you are not enjoying your baby or coping as you believe you should.

 Struggling emotionally at this time can happen to anyone. It is understandable given the enormity of the experience and change that you have been through. Your body experiences a whole host of physical demands through Pregnancy and giving birth, including hormone changes and physical demands.  Both you and your partner may find your sleep disturbed which can also contribute to some of the experiences described above.

Asking for help doesn’t mean you can’t cope or are not able to care for your child.  It’s the start of getting the right help and support to ensure you can be the parent you want to be. Please read on for more information about the service and the help we can offer you if you need it.

 
How Health in Mind can help you

Health in Mind offers short-term talking therapy to give you space to talk. The types of therapy offered will vary depending on your particular difficulties.  

Partners can be affected by mental health problems too around pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period and are also able to access Health in Mind support.

Your first step to feeling better

You can access support with Health in Mind via our website following the link called self-referral.   If you are finding it hard to contact us yourself please ask your midwife, health visitor, friend or a family member to help you fill in the form. Your GP can also make the referral.  We know that pregnancy and the first year of your baby’s birth is a very important time. We will offer you an assessment and treatment as soon as possible.

What to expect when you have completed your referral

Our admin staff will contact you to arrange a time for you to speak to one of the therapists. We want to make it as easy as possible for you to get the help you need.  You may be able to bring your baby to sessions which can be offered via video platform or alternatively via the phone.  We can also offer you a choice of locations for your appointment which are accessible if you prefer.

The first appointment is to find out about your current difficulties. This helps us decide how we can best help you.

At the end of the appointment, we will discuss the support options available and agree a plan going forward.