"Women, since the beginning of time, have birthed and looked after children and I just couldn't be bothered. I thought I was lazy." Those are the words of Laura, 45, from Cheltenham, in Gloucestershire, who weeks after undergoing an emergency Caesarean section struggled so much with postnatal depression that she needed psychiatric care. The NHS says postnatal depression, external, also known as postpartum depression, is a "common" mental health condition that can happen after having a baby.
"Postnatal depression can happen to anyone and this is why the veil of shame needs to come down, through education or through listening to people," said Laura. If you are affected by any issues raised in this article, help is available at BBC Action Line Symptoms can include feeling fearful, anxious or irritable, alongside difficulty concentrating and sleeping. It can also be accompanied by suicidal thoughts and struggling to bond with your baby.
An NHS spokesperson advised seeking support from your GP, health visitor or midwife if these symptoms persist, in addition to charities such as Mind and PANDAS. According to the NHS, the condition affects about one in 1,000 new mothers and can include symptoms such as hallucinations, paranoia and depression. The NHS said it should be treated as a medical emergency.
Laura said her birthing experience with her son Arthur in June 2018 was "traumatic but incredibly quick" after he became "very stressed" in the final stages. About two months after his arrival, Laura said simple household chores triggered negative thoughts which eventually spiralled into suicidal thoughts. "I used to think anything I did wasn't good enough," Laura said.
"I thought, 'I'm a fraud, they all think I've got something wrong with me'." Laura and Arthur were admitted to the mother and baby unit at the Barberry - a national centre for mental health in Birmingham. There, Laura received 10 weeks of specialist inpatient care which she said had made all the difference. For Jade, 33, from Sherbourne in Dorset, it was a peri-mental health team and an admission to a mother and baby unit in Bournemouth that helped her to get better.
She experienced postpartum psychosis, external about two weeks after she gave birth to her daughter in December 2020. Jade said she had spent almost three days in labour before she was induced and she finally delivered her daughter with the help of forceps. "I didn't realise at the time but, after going through therapy, I realise it was quite a traumatic delivery," she said.
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