The importance of routine screening checks for emotional wellbeing

Perinatal mental health expert Professor Marie-Paule Austin recently led the charge to have a mental health screening tool added to the national guidelines for caring for pregnant women and new mums. As a part of Perinatal Anxiety and Depression Awareness Week, she explains why this is so important. As most mothers will attest – you […]
‘Someone told me I was a control freak around my baby’
Nothing prepared me for the unrelenting demands of motherhood: the realities of a 24/7 responsibility that left no time for myself, that lonely time after the front door closed behind my husband each morning while I felt like I just had to cope. I had wildly unrealistic expectations of myself as a perfect mother and […]
Postnatal depression – what we all need to know

There are approximately 100,000 Aussie parents currently struggling with perinatal depression and anxiety – and it is often close friends and family who will be first to notice. It is important that we all are aware of the signs and symptoms of postnatal depression so that we might be able to identify it in ourselves […]
PND puts love to the test for new parents

Valentine’s Day is great for those in love but is also a time to support couples struggling with perinatal anxiety and depression. All over Australia, couples are looking forward to Valentine’s Day as an opportunity to celebrate their love for one another. Once the day arrives all the romantic clichés will come into play: candlelit […]
Postnatal depression and anxiety—treatment and recovery

Being pregnant or becoming a new parent can be both exciting and challenging. Having a degree of trouble adjusting to the changes that come with impending parenthood or the arrival of a new baby is natural. It’s when general ups and downs develop into something more serious that it’s time to take steps. If a […]
Perinatal depression and anxiety in men – when and how to seek help

Most people are surprised to know that around 1 in 20 men experience anxiety or depression during their partner’s pregnancy [1] and up to 1 in 10 new dads struggle with anxiety or depression following the birth of their baby [2]. Men from all walks of life and all cultures, even those who generally feel […]
‘I was in complete denial’ – my PND story

I was so excited to be pregnant, but at eight weeks I was struck down by hyperemesis gravidarum (extreme nausea and vomiting) and I spent a lot of the first trimester getting intravenous hydration in hospital. Eleni was born by caesarean section at 40 weeks. She was very unsettled on day three and my milk […]
‘Antenatal depression is not a myth, it’s real. It’s debilitating and horrible’

“Depression, it creeps up on you and puts its claws into you when you least expect it. I for one never thought it would happen to me. Was there such a thing as antenatal depression? I had never heard of it before. I knew others that had suffered varying types of depression but I didn’t […]
Hey Mamma, Breathe, You’re doing an amazing job

STOP what you are doing right now new mama (except for anyone about to sip a hot beverage at the right temperature) – early childhood consultant, author and mum Stella Stead wants you to know something. It is a message she believes all parents should be told the day they come home from the hospital […]
‘I was angry and crying and swearing every day’
Did you know that perinatal depression and anxiety can occur even if it isn’t your first child? It doesn’t just happen to new mums. It happened to Kelley. This is her story … “[With my first child] I had a good pregnancy and indulged my hot chips craving as much as possible. That moment, that […]