The ‘Action on Puerperal Psychosis Corresponding Panel’ was set up by Professor Ian Brockington and Jackie Benjamin in 1996. From an original core of 50 members we have grown to a membership of over 500 women living throughout the UK, with affiliate members in New Zealand and the United States. Today, the group is run jointly between Cardiff and Birmingham Universities. In 2009 we set up our steering committee and became ‘Action on Postpartum Psychosis’

Dr Ian Jones

Dr Ian Jones has overseen the running of the APP network since Professor Brockington’s retirement in 2004. Ian is a Perinatal Psychiatrist and Senior Lecturer in Perinatal Psychiatry. He leads the perinatal research group in the department of Psychological Medicine at Cardiff University and works closely with Professor Nick Craddock investigating genes involves in perinatal mood disorders and bipolar disorder. Ian has published over 100 academic papers. Find out more about Ian’s publications and upcoming talks.Ian’s link click here

Dr Jessica Heron

Dr Jessica Heron runs APP network activities at the Birmingham site. Jess leads the Perinatal Research Programme at Birmingham & Solihull Mental Health Trust and is a Research Fellow in the Department of Psychiatry at Birmingham University.  Jess’s research interests include: postnatal hypomania and bipolar spectrum symptoms triggered by childbirth; recovery from PP; partner’s experiences; and facilitating service user involvement in research, teaching, workshops and events.

Dr Arianna Di Florio

Dr Arianna Di Florio is an Italian psychiatrist who has been a member of the BDRN team in Cardiff since January 2009. She is now doing a PhD on postpartum psychosis in bipolar disorder supervised by Dr Ian Jones and Professor Nick Craddock. The main aim of her research project is to identify risk factors that make some bipolar women vulnerable to severe episodes of illness following childbirth.

Jackie Benjamin

Jackie is a lawyer who experienced episodes of PP after the birth of both of her sons. Jackie helped to set up APP and worked as the project’s co-ordinator when her sons were small.  Jackie returned to full time work with the Law Society in December 2001, but continues to be actively involved in the running of APP and campaigning for improvements in perinatal care. Jackie is a research champion for the BDRN and co-facilitates the Birmingham branch of MDF: The Bipolar Organisation.

Helen Davies

Helen is a Research Co-ordinator in Cardiff and has agreed to take over managing the APP database and contacts list. Helen will field emails and phone calls to members of the team and provide administrative support for APP. We have struggled over the past few years to keep on top of the volume of admin and emails we get and we welcome Helen to the team.

Naomi Gilbert

Naomi experienced an episode of PP after the birth of her daughter in 2004. Naomi has a number of years experience as a psychological therapies researcher and now works as an education & service user research consultant with APP, Rethink, The University of Exeter and more.

Nic Muckelroy

Nicola experienced PP after the birth of her daughter. Nicola is an active campaigner for improvements in perinatal care, has talked about PP on the radio, has provided support to women experiencing perinatal illness and is a lay member of the Quality Network for Perinatal Mental Health Services.

Clare Dolman

Clare is a journalist who has had bipolar disorder since her early 20s. She experienced an episode of PP after birth of first daughter. She is on the board of trustees of the national mental health charity MDF: The Bipolar Organisation, is research editor of ‘Pendulum’ and is a Research champion for the BDRN. Clare is researching a book on Pregnancy & Bipolar Disorder. Link here to her articles about bipolar disorder and childbirth.

Lucy Vernall

Lucy’s background is in factual television production. She runs a project called ‘IdeasLab’ which aims to help academic research reach wider audiences. Lucy has produced factual programmes for the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Discovery. Lucy became involved in APP when IdeasLab helped some of our members produce a short film about recovery. Lucy provides advice on opportunities to raise awareness of PP.

Dr Emma Robertson Blackmore

Dr Emma Robertson Blackmore worked with APP for a number of years interviewing women about PP. She is now Assistant Professor in the Dept of Psychiatry at the University of Rochester in New York, studying mood disorders triggered by pregnancy. She is still closely involved with the work of the APP and hopes to set up similar studies in the States.

Professor Nick Craddock

Professor Nick Craddock leads the Mood Disorders Research Team and Bipolar Disorder Research Network which is based across the Department of Psychological Medicine at Cardiff University and Department of Psychiatry, University of Birmingham. Nick’s research focus is the molecular genetic investigation of bipolar spectrum mood disorders and psychosis. Nick maintains an interest in the APP network and works with Ian on the molecular genetic basis of postpartum psychosis. Nick’s link click here

Professor Ian Brockington

Professor Brockington is a world renowned expert in women’s mental health. He treated women in his clinic at the Queen Elizabeth Psychiatric Hospital Mother & Baby Unit in Birmingham for over 20 years until his retirement from perinatal psychiatry in 2001. Professor Brockington set up APP as a corresponding panel in the 1990s. He also was a founding member of the Marce Society for Maternal Mental Health and was instrumental in developing our regional Mother & Baby Mental Health Services. Professor Brockington officially retired on 30 September 2001 but has continued to publish and speak at international conferences. Since ‘retirement’ he has published a number of papers and books (see publications and books).

Neil “Twink” Tinning

Neil “Twink” Tinning  is patron of MDF The Bipolar Organisation and patron of Bipolar Disorder Research Network. He was diagnosed Bi-Polar mid 1990’s.  In 2002 he was asked to succeed Spike Milligan as patron of Manic Depression Fellowship, now called MDF The Bi-Polar Organisation. Twink, as he’s known, was MDF’s BBC consultant for The Bipolar Season featuring two one hour documentaries, The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive, in 2006. Currently he’s a Bi-Polar Story-line Consultant and Script Consultant to BBC’s EastEnders. In November 2008 the Sports Relief  BBC-TV “Surviving Suicide” documentary he appeared in won a Mental Health Media award for Raising Public Awareness at BAFTA.