Please help us continue changing lives affected by Postpartum Psychosis
- Donate
- Become a monthly donor
- Axe the Alcohol for APP in January!
- Philanthropic Friends
- Fundraise for us
- Leave APP a legacy in your Will
Funded by Big Lottery since 2012, Action on Postpartum Psychosis has made amazing progress in raising awareness of PP and supporting thousands of people affected by this devastating illness, with truly life-changing results.
We have developed a model of best practice for training, supporting and working with volunteers. This way, we use the charity’s funds very effectively to make a real difference to over 1,400 women and their families in the UK affected by PP every year.
We need to raise over £100,000 every year to continue this work, grow the support we provide, and be here for all women and families affected by Postpartum Psychosis (PP).
Our plans over the next three years (2016 to 2019) are to:
- Recruit Peer Support Coordinators and grow our team of Peer Support volunteers to help more women and families affected by PP;
- Raise awareness of PP further among the general public and health professionals. To do this, we are growing our team of Media Volunteers – women with lived experience of PP who will be supported to tell their story to the media;
- Train and support more volunteers to enable us to extend our programme of PP talks and training to the general public, health professionals and students;
- Extend our website information and multi-media content, with the help of volunteers and service user research consultants working with world-leading academic and health professional experts on Postpartum Psychosis;
- Support and enable fundraising volunteers to hold more local and national fundraising events.
We urgently need to secure further income to enable us to do this. Every £ raised helps APP continue our vital work. There are many ways you can help from making a one-off or monthly personal donation to APP to organising a fundraising event in your local area. Please get in touch if you have a great idea or a great contact who could help us raise funds.
Thank you for your support,
Dr Jessica Heron
Director, Action on Postpartum Psychosis
Email fundraising@app-network.org
A huge round of applause for Team APP who all bravely jumped out of a plane on Sunday 16 September, and raised much needed funds in aid of APP! A very big THANK YOU to Giles, Jess, Hannah, Tanya, Sally and Anna, who took on APP’s Big Skydive Challenge so brilliantly and for all their amazing fundraising - they completely smashed their fundraising target (twice!) to raise nearly £6,500 – wow! An amazing achievement, congratulations. APP thanks all of the brave team and also everyone who so generously sponsored them as well. You can still donate to Team APP via the JustGiving page(s) here. Dr Jess Heron, APP Director, said: “We made it. I’m alive, all limbs in tact! Thank you so much to all who sponsored us. Thrilled and amazed with the total. Thank you also to my fellow jumpers (I’m thinking something more sedate next time… sponsored tea-drinkathon, adult colouring…)“ Hannah Bissett, APP Peer Support Co-ordinator, said: “Thanks for all your likes, sponsorship & support / interest / gobsmacked-reactions after my skydive for APP – we did it!! It’s really scary, but absolutely amazingly awesome. Everyone should do it… and raise money for APP of course…I’ve been blown away by the team total reaching almost £6,500. And all going towards info, peer support and ensuring that no mum or family goes through the terrifying illness that is postpartum psychosis alone.“ Thank you again to everyone who took part and jumped for APP. Your support will help us to continue developing our information and operating our peer support services. We really couldn’t do this without you! Thank You all! If you’re interested in doing a skydive in aid of APP you can find out all about it here. A big thank-you to the ‘Band of Bro’s’ who put together a fabulous summer concert and collected £11 in loose change in aid of APP! We’re told “they made signs, tickets and did a little performance” all in aid of APP to the delight of their mothers, grandmothers and friends – what a lovely surprise. Perhaps they’ll repeat the performance for our Music 4 Mums event next May! Dominic has bravely decided to jump out of a plane in aid of APP! Dominic chose to fundraise for APP after his sister suffered with PP, he says: “I’m doing this to help break the stigma of perinatal mental health and support those who need it most, like my sister did. Talking to my sister, Kerry, I said I wanted to a charity skydive and that’s when she mentioned I should do it for the charities close to her, and I felt that APP would be an amazing charity to support. When Kerry’s illness was at its worse I couldn’t help as I didn’t know anything about it. She was too scared to talk and too frightened about what might happen if she did. Now that she is better I know she reached out to charities like PANDAS and APP. Knowing that I couldn’t help my sister at the time, as she was too scared to talk or reach out, was extremely heart breaking not only for me but for our family and friends as well. This is why I have chosen to do a sky dive for APP, to raise the much needed money to keep charities like this going, as they were invaluable to her. My sister wrote this guest blog for the PANDAS charity when her youngest was 9 weeks old, it will give you an idea of what she experienced. Anything you can donate would be amazing and could potentially touch so many lives.” Please support Dominic’s amazing challenge and donate what you can via his JustGiving page here. Thank you so much Dominic! A big Thank You to Sophie, who is running the Stafford 10K on 23rd September, in aid of APP! Sophie decided to take on the Stafford 10K after her sister suffered with Postpartum Psychosis and found help and support from APP. Sophie says: “Not many people who know me know that after the birth of my precious niece Beatrice my beautiful and strong big sister suffered from a rare yet serious mental health problem known as post-partum psychosis. PP occurs around the time of birth and can cause the sufferer to experience serious hallucinations, delusions and erratic behaviour. A week after birth my big sister was sectioned under the mental health act due to the severity of her illness. Luckily we managed to secure her a place in Brockington Mother and baby unit so that she could live with Bea and be supported 24 hours a day. Since their return home from the unit my sister has gone from strength to strength, I couldn’t be more proud of what she has achieved whilst raising Bea who is blossoming every single day. She has since benefited from the services APP offer, listening and reading about other people who have suffered from the same illness has helped her endlessly. I’ve decided to run the 10k for this cause as most of you who know me know I do NOT run…unless a Terry’s chocolate orange is on-sale. This is going to be a personal struggle that won’t even compare to what Melissa has gone through..but it’s a start! “ Please support Sophie’s challenge and donate what you can via her JustGiving page here – thank you! Three cheers for Anna who is taking on the Scottish 10K on Sunday 23rd September in aid of APP! The Scottish 10k (& half marathon) begins just outside Edinburgh and taks you along the magnificent East Lothian Golf Coast before finishing in the final furlong at Musselburgh Racecourse. Anna says: “I had Postpartum Psychosis after the birth of my son in April 2017. It I had never had a mental illness before. It is common that women who get PP have no previous history of mental illness. I had never had a panic attack before. I don’t think anyone who hasn’t experienced it can truly understand how terrifying the descent into Psychosis is. Action on Postpartum Psychosis was a lifeline for myself and my family, it connected us to other women who had experienced PP and recovered. APP has experienced volunteers who offer help and support to women and their families affected by PP. They raise money to fund research into the causes of this little understood illness. Postpartum Psychosis effects 1-2 in every 1000 women who give birth yet I had never heard of it. Many of the front line health professionals I saw had no knowledge of it. This lack of understanding really impacted my level of suffering and has led to poor outcomes for many women. Suicide is the leading cause of maternal death in the UK: the majority due to PP. APP helps raise awareness and addresses the stigma and isolation felt by many women. A large part of my recovery has been exercising. I have never been much of a jogger but since starting I feel stronger both physically and mentally. 10k is a big deal for me so please support me if you can to raise as much money as possible for Action on Postpartum Psychosis.” Please support Anna and her amazing challenge, and donate what you can via Anna’s JustGiving page here. Thank you so much Anna! We hope you have a brilliant 10K on 23rd September! On Sunday 9th September, Harriet will be taking part in the Great North Run in aid of APP! The Great North Run is the biggest half marathon in the UK and the World with over 57000 runners taking part in the famous 13.1 mile journey from Newcastle’s city centre to the coast in South Shields; all live on the BBC! Harriet says: “Postpartum Psychosis is a truly horrific and indiscriminate illness that can strike any new mum regardless of never having any mental health issues previously. It struck me like a bolt out of the blue and will forever be the worst experience of mine and my families lives. After a long recovery I made it out of the other side…slightly battered and bruised but intact thanks to my fantastic, compassionate and loving family and friends. The help APP offered was amazing, they were there with me every step of the way and I poured over their literature and was a frequent visitor the online forum. I was appointed a peer supporter and she was a real strength. We need to continue to educate and promote awareness of this truly terrible and life changing illness. Funds raised will go towards offering training to midwives and health visitors to make them aware of the risks and symptoms and it will also enable the crucial work of the peer supporters.” Harriet’s JustGiving page is here - please support her amazing challenge and donate what you can! Thank you SO MUCH Harriet for all your support, dedication and hard work in taking on the Great North Run challenge in aid of APP. We wish you the very best of luck for 9th September! On Sunday 16th September, members of APP’s Board and staff, together with some friends, will be taking part in a skydive to raise much needed funds for APP! They’ve joined together to raise money across their individual JustGiving pages for APP – you can visit their team fundraising page here – Please donate what you can to help them smash their goal! Dr Jess Heron says: “You might have seen Adele speaking out this week in support of her friend Laura who has written a moving and articulate blog about the illness. It is a frightening and devastating illness that affects new mums, often out of the blue, in the days following childbirth. It is as common as Downs Syndrome and is a leading cause of maternal death. These deaths are preventable – PP is eminently treatable – with the right information and support, women recover and have happy family lives. With young children myself who mean everything to me, I have to admit to having a few second thoughts about doing this (!) but I want to join our dedicated APP staff, trustees and volunteers taking on this challenge. So, please donate and help me make a difference.“ If you’d like to Jump for APP in our Big Skydive Challenge for 2018 please get in touch for all the information, or read about it here - Thank you! APP are delighted to announce we are taking part in the 2018 Big Give Christmas Challenge! The Big Give Christmas Challenge is the UK’s biggest on-line match funding campaign which helps UK-registered charities raise funds for their cause. For seven days, it offers supporters of participating charities the opportunity to have their donation doubled on theBigGive.org.uk. We need to identify individuals or companies willing to pledge amounts of £100 or more. If we can gain over £1000 in pledged donations by 31st August 2018, then it’s full steam ahead for The Christmas Challenge 2018 week, which will run from midday #GivingTuesday on 27th November until midday Tuesday 4th December. The money raised will help us develop a new resource – A Guide to Parenting following Postpartum Psychosis. The guide will bring together practical tips from mums, dads and families who have been there, as well as from academic and clinical experts. It will cover issues such as building confidence and supporting bonding in the early days, through to ways of talking about PP to older children. We will develop resources for use with different age children to help parents talk to their children in age appropriate ways about PP. If you know of individuals or companies willing to pledge amount of £100 or over, please get in touch. Meet our amazing sporty fundrasiers – there’s so much athletic activity going on! All links go to fundraising pages where available so please click through, read their stories and support their fantastic endeavours. Many thanks, and good luck to you all! Congratulations to Joe Kettle who completed (his first ever!) triathlon at Dorney Lake on 21st July in aid of APP and ReThink Mental Illness, and raised £1000. Congratulations to Megan Dodds, who successfully jumped out of a plane in a tandem skydive in aid of APP on 30th June, and raised over £1,600. And thanks also to Gillian Seale and her daughters, for hosting a brilliant cake and craft sale in the Wirral on 16th June. If you’re taking on a challenge for APP, or would like to, please let us know and get in touch – Email fundraising@app-network.org Huge congratulations to Joe, who successfully completed his first Triathlon last weekend, in aid of APP and ReThink Mental Illness! Joe battled the blazing heat last Saturday, 21st July, to cycle, run and swim the Triathlon course at Eton Dorney Lake in Windsor. Joe said: “Triathlon completed!!! £995 raised!! Two sore legs!!! Keep up the good work and thank every single one of your staff for the work they do, without them people would suffer and not get the help or support they need. So a massive thank you to you.“ Here’s some brilliant photos of Joe from last Saturday: APP says thank you so much for taking on this amazing challenge and for smashing your fundraising target too – such an inspiration to us all! Three Cheers for Megan who bravely completed her skydive in aid of APP on Saturday! Megan’s first jump scheduled for the beginning of June was postponed on the day due to poor weather conditions, but the sun shone brightly last Saturday, 30th June, for Megan’s jump to take place! After Megan’s jump she posted up on the APP Facebook page about her experience, and said: “I DID IT! Absolutely 100% the best thing I’ve ever done in my life…I enjoyed it so much, I’m booked in for a second turn at 3pm (at my own expense!) Thanks to everyone who has sponsored me, you’ve really made a difference!“ And for her second jump, she managed to persuade her sister and partner to join her! Megan said: “It was absolutely amazing! If you’ve never done one I recommend that you do. I simply can’t put it into words how much of an experience it was. I’m so pleased at how much awareness we have raised as well, there are so many people who have sponsored me that simply didn’t know about PP before. I feel so proud of myself and my family!“ Megan chose to jump in aid of APP after her sister suffered with Postpartum Psychosis in 2017, she said her sister ”was lucky enough to be given a place in a Mother and Baby Unit in Leeds where she could be looked after by a psychiatric team whilst remaining with Ethan. They were accompanied 24 hours a day to ensure their safety and it is charities like APP that help campaign for these wonderful services. Hayley has since benefited from other APP services such as the use of other women’s stories to help process what has happened to her. Without this support Hayley wouldn’t have made the progress she has made in such a short space of time. As a family also recovering from this traumatic time we have benefited from the resources APP provide.“ APP are also very proud of you Megan, and congratulations on completely smashing your fundraising target too, amazing! You can still donate to Megan’s JustGiving page here for the next couple of weeks. Thank you once again to Megan for her wonderful support and heroic jump in aid of APP! A big Thank You to Joe Kettle who is aiming to complete his first ever triathlon on Saturday 21st July in aid of APP and Rethink Mental Illness! Joe’s Triathlon takes place around the superb Dorney Lake in Windsor, and a former Olympic venue; it offers a fast, flat course with closed roads and ideal swimming conditions. The triathlon takes in a 400m swim, a 20k bike ride and a 5k run! Please support Joe’s amazing challenge and donate via his Virgin Money Giving page here. APP wishes Joe the very best of luck with this enormous challenge and hopes he has a fantastic day at Dorney Lake! Many thanks to Gillian and her daughter who successfully raised over £300 for APP and a local cancer hospice at their recent Craft and Cake sale in the Wirrall! Gillian said: “For a long time my daughters Ishbel (7), Eryn (5) and Carys (4) have been very keen to do a charity cake sale after seeing one of their friends do one outside their house last year. So after Easter I decided we should give it a try and do a joint one for APP with my friend Michelle and her daughter Niamh (6). As they had a friend in the local cancer hospice we decided to make it a joint event with the money being split between the two charities. We thought it would be good to do it at our local library who were very supportive and sat down with the children to discuss the details and set a date. After that the children made lots of cards and also handmade jewellery to sell and nearer the time baking cakes as well. We advertised with lots of posters and flyers. On the day we were quite overwhelmed with friends contributing and attending. My friend Michelle also received a phone call on the day of the sale from ASDA where she works to say they had seen her poster and would like to match the funding. We were delighted to raise £350 which as a result of the matched funding can go to both APP and St John’s Hospice. Everyone enjoyed the day very much and are delighted it went so well.“ It looks like everyone had a great day at the West Kirby Library last week! APP thanks Gillian and her daughter for their support and huge effort involved in putting on this event! Friends of Action on Postpartum Psychosis are holding a CHARITY GALA at Overseal Village Hall and Recreation Ground on Saturday 14th July. With over 80 stalls featuring new, nearly new clothes for all ages, shoes, bric a brac, toys, gifts and bargains galore! Plus a Dog Show and more… The Gala is taking place on Saturday 14th July at the Overseal Village Hall & Recreation Ground, Woodville Rd, Overseal, DE12 6LU, from 2.00 to 5.00pm, with entrance fee of £1. APP would like to thank all the Friends of APP for their consistent and solid support. We hope you have a fantastic (and sunny!) day on 14th July – thank you. APP’s Media Advisor, Vicky, is taking on the incredible challenge of trekking Cambodia, alongside her good friend Anya, in aid of APP! Vicky and Anya have chosen different charities but hope together to raise thousands, so have set a minimum target of £1500 each. Anya and Vicky are doing their ‘Centenary Challenge‘ with Trek Cambodia, who say ‘The amazing trekking challenge takes in the stunning jungles and traditional Cambodian villages, finishing at the spectacular ancient ruins of Angkor Wat. Along the way there will be the opportunity to visit a local school and they will spend one very special night with a local family for a home stay. The challenge will be tough but the friendship and camaraderie along the way will be very special.’ Vicky says ‘Please donate whatever you can, every penny makes a difference (and will help keep us motivated as we trek through jungles, cross rivers, battle mosquitos and aching limbs as we trek Cambodia).’ Visit Vicky’s Just Giving page here and please donate what you can. APP wish Vicky and Anya all the best with their training and trekking adventure, and say a very big Thank You! A big round of applause to the two Laura’s at Guys and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust for organising such a brilliant event on Monday 15th May to raise awareness about mental health with donations in aid of APP As part of Mental Health Awareness week, the staff in women’s services at Guys & St Thomas’ could take home an amazing ‘Self-Care Goodie Bag’ in return for a suggested donation to charity. The goodie bags included, amongst other gifts and APP leaflets, some gorgeous donated gifts from LUSH, alongside mouth-watering cakes from Print Cakes! Laura said: “I automatically thought of APP, especially after Ellie and Kat have kindly volunteered their time to assist with our training…Our communications team will be sharing photos from the day on social media and thought again we could share APP love this way.” And there were indeed some brilliant photos from the day (see below) with some very happy faces from the staff at Guys & St Thomas’! Laura Costello has since been nominated for an #NHS70 award for the Self Care bags – what a fantastic achievement – vote for Laura here! And you can still donate via the Go Fund Me page here - thank you. Thank you so much to everyone involved in organising the day, and for all the hard work involved pulling it all together, we know it takes a lot of time and energy, so a very big THANK YOU from us all at APP! Huge thanks to Gillian and her daughter, who are busy organising a Charity Cake and Craft Sale on Saturday 16th June, at the West Kirby Library the Concourse in Wirral! There will be plenty of delicious cakes on sale, as well as a host of craft stalls including calligraphy and watercolour artwork cards and jewellery making! The event will also feature Story Telling sessions with the local writers group, and lots of second hand books for sale as well. We think this sounds like a really brilliant event, and we hope it’s a great day out for everyone! Thanks to Gillian and everyone who is helping to support this fantastic event. Jolly Jingles #music4mums raising awareness of Postpartum Psychosis with my second boy today A big three cheers for Sarah who organised a brilliant cake sale and raffle at her local Jolly Jingles music session on 7th May, as part of our Music 4 Mums initiative in aid of APP! Sarah has also been extremely busy on the radio with two appearances this week as well! As one of our media volunteers, Sarah was interviewed by Zetland FM (listen again here) as well as on the BBC Tees (listen again here), talking so engagingly about maternal mental health and her own PP experience. APP say Thank You so much Sarah, what a star! A very big Thank You to Helen, our second runner in the 2018 Royal Parks Half Marathon! The stunning central London Half is taking place on Sunday 14th October and takes in some of the capital’s world–famous landmarks on closed roads, and four of London’s eight Royal Parks; Hyde Park, The Green Park, St James’s Park and Kensington Gardens. Helen is running in aid of APP after suffering with PP after the birth of her second son. She says: “I experienced PP 5 weeks after the birth of my second son, when I was severely sleep deprived from his terrible re-flux. I had no history of mental health issues and awoke one day from a nap into an uncontrollable panic that turned into me being removed from my home by the police and ambulance into a&e….It was a significant struggle to find any service that could support me and my family at a time when Bradford had no specialist perinatal mental health service. It left me bewildered, isolated, frustrated and feeling alone at a time when I had never before been so vulnerable and in need… My Sister in desperation googled and found APP and got the Guides produced by APP which were invaluable to me understanding my symptoms and knowing recovery was possible. As I began to improve I used the peer support forum to learn more and realise I was not alone in what I was experiencing. APP supported me and my family during a time of terrible upset and their patient information, training, research and awareness raising is invaluable. Perinatal mental health matters. It’s not easy to acknowledge that things can be awful at a time when they are supposed to be joyous. But the good news is, full recovery is entirely possible and in a weird kind of way, had it not happened, I might not have appreciated my beautiful boys as much as I do, and want to spend the majority of my time with them as I do now. Help is out there, in the form of APP and all that it is doing for awareness raising towards investment in this neglected and important area of care. Please give whatever you can in the hope that other new mums can be supported in a time of need.“ Visit Helen’s Just Giving page here and please donate what you can. Thanks so much to Helen for taking on this challenge in aid of APP, and we wish you all the very best with your training! Warm thanks go to the loyal team of ‘Helping Hands‘ who celebrated Maternal Mental Health Week by organising a charity stall for APP on Saturday 5th May in the Midlands village of Church Gresley. It wasn’t exactly a ‘Music4Mums’ event but there certainly was a buzzing atmosphere and much humming about what to buy and what delicious food choices to make ! The morning’s efforts raised a total of £410 for APP which was just amazing within the space of a few hours! Thank you all so much for continuing to promote APP. Thanks also to Corinne Spokes and her network of family and friends who over the past few months have been donating new and nearly new items which certainly helped to swell the coffers. It is no mean feat to load one’s car with bric-a-brac, clothes and toys week after week, but the community in Church Gresley benefited from Corinne’s (and others’) selfless hard work as did its very pretty church which is currently undergoing restoration. Once again, thank you all – it means so much to our charity and to all women who have suffered or are suffering from PP. Their customers gave generously and they managed to collect just under £500 in aid of APP. What a fantastic thing to do, and their coffee must be seriously good! You can find the Browns of Brockley coffee van selling coffee, and more, every Saturday from 10am to 2pm at Brockley Market, Lewisham College Car Park, Lewisham Way. Thank you to everyone who generously donated. Three cheers for Catherine who successfully ran the Brighton Marathon on Sunday 15th April, in aid of APP and managed to smashed her fundraising target of £1,000! Catherine said: APP say a very big Thank You to Catherine, what a fantastic and inspiring achievement! You can still donate to Catherine’s Just Giving page here. A big Thank You to Nicholas who successfully completed the Great Welsh Marathon on Sunday, 15th April, in aid of APP! Nicholas bravely battled the incessant wet and windy Welsh weather on the day, and amazingly achieved a PB! Nicholas said: You can still support Nicholas via his Just Giving page here. A very big and heartfelt Thank you to Nicholas from us all at APP! Rachel is running in aid of APP after suffering with PP in 2017, she says: “On Christmas Day 2016 we welcomed our little boy into the world. We were over the moon and brought him home on Boxing Day feeling daunted, scared but so so proud! We didn’t know that just two days later I would be readmitted to hospital with a condition none of us had ever heard of before, Postpartum Psychosis….After a short stay in a mother and baby unit 50 miles from home I was discharged and have received support from a brilliant charity Action on Postpartum Psychosis. I’m running the royal parks half marathon to raise much needed funds for APP so that no women or families have to face this misunderstood condition alone. The charity has supported my family and me hugely throughout my recovery. And quite honestly I wouldn’t be where I am without them.” Please visit Rachel’s Just Giving page here and donate what you can – thank you. Thanks so much to Rachel for taking on this challenge in aid of APP, and we wish you all the very best with your training! Three cheers for Megan who has bravely volunteered to jump out of a plane in aid of APP on Saturday 30th June! Megan says: The purpose of this skydive is not only to raise money for this important charity but to raise awareness of this serious illness. With more recognition of PP more women may be prevented from suffering and given the care they need earlier on. We appreciate any donation you can make and can’t thank you enough for your support. Surely it’s at least worth a donation just to see me throw myself out of a plane? Thank you! Please visit Megan’s Just Giving page here and donate what you can. A very BIG THANK YOU to Megan for jump-starting our Big APP Skydiving year – we’ll be busy cheering her on from the ground! Would you like to enjoy the exhilarating and unforgettable feeling of a skydive – flying through the clouds from over 10,000 ft at up to 120 mph? If you are looking for the experience of a lifetime, we would be delighted if you would like to take on a sponsored freefall parachute jump in aid of APP, and if you raise enough sponsorship, you can jump for free! We have teamed up with Skyline, a professional charity fundraising events organiser, to offer APP’s supporters this amazing experience of flying through the clouds! You will be strapped to your qualified British Parachute Association tandem instructor who does all the hard work for you, leaving you to enjoy the invigorating feeling of freefalling before gliding to the ground! (Or, if you’re more experienced you can try Static Line where you will complete a solo jump from 3,000ft, with your parachute pulled automatically as you leave the aircraft, or the Accelerated Free Fall, with the thrill of skydiving solo from up to 12,000 ft.) As a small charity, your energy is vital to ensure we can keep operating our information and peer support services. Your help and fundraising will make a big difference to our small charity. Don’t forget, if you raise the minimum amount of sponsorship you will get to jump for free! You can jump from any one of over twenty BPA approved airfields across the UK and no experience is necessary as you will be given training before your jump. This incredible challenge will give you the biggest adrenaline rush you could ever imagine and you soar through the air knowing that you have helped raise invaluable funds for APP. Watch Skyline’s exhilarating video of a Tandem Jump to get a feel for what it might be like for you, below: So what are you waiting for?! Book now to experience the challenge of a lifetime! Or, contact us to find out more! Warm thanks go to Robin Barber for organising such a well attended initiative and to all the key women in the club who baked and served teas: Sarah, Sylvia, Kathryn, Sam and Jenny. Thanks also to Amy-Jo and James who were the resident photographers and journalists…..as well as being very capable bakers! All in all such a lovely way to finish the year. Read more about the event here. Thank-you MVH for your consistent support of APP. Bethany Jones has decided to run every…single…day…in January in aid of APP! What a brilliant challenge to welcome in the New Year, thank you Bethany! Bethany suffered with Postpartum Psychosis in 2016 and found APP along the way, she says: You can read more of Bethany’s story on her Just Giving page here and also donate as well! A big thank you to Bethany for undertaking a tremendous challenge, we hope the weather holds up and wish you all the best for the second half of the month! The online Art Auction features 12 fantastic professional artists (with 18 artworks available to bid on) with 100% of money generated from sales being generously donated to APP. All pieces are featured in our Online Brochure and are listed on eBay for auction style bidding; the auction opens on Saturday 2nd December, and closes on Tuesday 12th December from 7.30pm onward – view the eBay listings here (some bargains to be had!) APP Director, Dr Jess Heron, says: A very big and important Thank You to the extremely generous artists who have donated their work to the APP Art Auction – we couldn’t do this without you. To view or download the full Art Auction 2017 PDF Brochure Click Here (or on the image below) for full information about the artists and all the artworks up for auction, including links to their listings on eBay. And, to view all the artworks on eBay click here. APP is gearing up for this year’s #givingtuesday taking place on Tuesday 28th November! Calling on all our amazing APP supporters to do something good next Tuesday to raise much needed funds for APP… #givingtuesday is the day to do good stuff for charity and is a growing global movement now spanning five continents. But the heart of #GivingTuesday is community action. The UK joined the movement in May 2014. Since then, the day has gone on to become one of Britain’s biggest days for charities, raising millions of pounds for good causes. There are lots of fun activities you can do, such as: Or…you can donate directly via the APP CAF #givingtuesday campaign via here or by clicking on the donate button below:
A donation of just £5 enables us to send a copy of each of our 3 Insider Guides to a woman experiencing Postpartum Psychosis, her partner or family, to provide vital information and signposting to support. Get involved and let us know what you are doing for #givingtuesday or email us for more information. Thanks! APP, supported by some of the women from “Helping Hands” of Swadlincote , manned 2 stalls at a charity Xmas fair on Saturday 11th November in Rosliston village hall. Piles of bargains were there to be grabbed including APP charity cards. Delicious lunches were served by Helping Hands’ friends with proceeds from these going to other charities. Warm thanks go to all the ladies from Helping Hands – especially to “Mrs Motivator”- Angela and to Janet for all the hard work. Also: to all of APP’s steadfast friends who managed, yet again, to donate enough items for further sales. A special thanks go to our little gofers on the day: Anna and Robert Tiffney who were great fun and endlessly helpful to all. (Blowing up APP ‘s purple balloons does get tedious after a while !) Sue Blamire, APP’s Treasurer, did a great job with Adrian on the day, and managed to bank just over £300 for APP’s funds. A wonderful sum in a very short time and for just 2 charity stalls! Thank you all. Heather Great news as Holly has completed her 9th (yes, ninth!) marathon in aid of APP! Holly is taking on the amazing challenge of running 12 marathons in just 12 months and now has only 3 marathons left to run… On Saturday 4th November Holly ran her 9th marathon, the Thames Meander, with a friend she met there last year. She said: The Royal College of Psychiatrists have organised a fantastic fundraising evening in aid of APP, taking place on Wednesday 15th November at the Royal College of Psychiatrists, 21 Prescot Street, London, E1 8BB. Everybody is welcome to attend the event but please book your tickets in advance! Click here for the ticket link. The event starts at 6.30pm and you can ’Enjoy a recital from Internationally renowned concert pianist Waka Hasegawa and a performance from dance movement psychotherapist, Gerry Harrison. The evening includes buffet supper and drinks with £10 of each ticket sale donated to APP. During the event there will be additional opportunities to support APP.’ APP were delighted to be asked to speak to club members at the Cannock & District division of Soroptimist International, after President, Val Jones, put forward APP as one of their charities to highlight for the year. Jocelyn Ellams attended their meeting on 24th October in Cannock and spoke about her lived experience of PP to the members. They said: Jocelyn…gave a most interesting, emotional and enlightening presentation to club members [as] she bravely told us her story, explaining thoughts that she had at the time which in one sense she knew could not be true though she could not control them. She made it possible for us all to have some understanding of the dreadful experiences she had at that time – and also proved she has completely recovered. Soroptimist Kate Young hosted Joss and thanked her for giving up her time and, more importantly, for her honesty in telling us about how she was affected. She gave Joss a donation towards the work of APP from SI Cannock and told her that at the end of President Val’s year there would be a further donation.’ Read their full press release here. Thanks very much to Kate Young and all at the Cannock & District Soroptimist International club! You can find out more information about Cannock Soroptimists at www.sigbi.org/cannock-and-district or on their Facebook page Congratulations to Holly who has just completed her 8th marathon in Bournemouth on 8th October with a PB (personal best)! Holly now only has 4 marathons left to run in her huge challenge of completing 12 marathons in 12 months, we are all very impressed! Holly says: The course itself was beautiful along the coastline and it was very well organised with lots of water and energy gel stops. Imogen, my 4 year old, even got to cross the line with me- which she loved! Only 4 to go now! The next one is a local area one with my work mates on 31st October. Followed by 2 marathons on the Thames path at the beginning of November.’ We wish Holly all the best for her 9th marathon on 31st October! Please support her amazing challenge and donate via her Just Giving page here. The University of Bradford Midwifery Society kick-started their busy fundraising year for APP in style with Freshers Week last month where they signed up lots of new members and donated % from each membership to APP – many thanks! Looks like they had lots of fun recruiting new members to the society too! They say: But we’ll also be sharing some of the most inspiring, insightful and clear ideas for improving midwifery culture as well as tools and techniques that you can use to support yourself in practice right now. We want you to feel supported in your work because you’ve learnt from the best at the conference.’ Read more on their Facebook event page here. Tickets are on sale now with discounted £5 tickets available for University of Bradford students and staff but these are strictly limited, with all the money being donated to APP! Please click here find out more about the event and to purchase tickets. There will be a number of stalls on the day including our own APP stall and we look forward to meeting everyone there on the day! In the run up to the conference, Ellie is also doing a series of blog posts entitled 30 days of Kindness in Midwifery’ which you can check out on her website here to understand more about some of the themes which will be covered at the conference. A lot of fun was had at The Barberry Centre Mother & Baby Unit’s annual FUN DAY event on Sunday 3rd September! Arts and crafts, bouncy castle, face-painting, tea parties and lots more took over the the Rowheath Pavillion in Birmingham for the afternoon. This year’s theme was Alice in Wonderland (spot the Cheshire cat!) and by the looks of it everyone had a great day! APP were delighted to have a stall at the Fun Day event and it was great to meet everyone and join in the fun – many thanks to our volunteer Katy as well! Three cheers for Jill who successfully completed the Royal Parks half marathon on Sunday 8th October! Jill lucked out on the weather with a fantastically sunny day on Sunday alongside the other 16,000 runners taking part, running through four of London’s eight Royal Parks including Hyde Park, The Green Park, St James’s Park and finishing at Kensington Gardens. Jill said: ‘Legs are a bit sore today but not as bad as I expected! Thanks for all the support and for all the work you’re doing with APP – I’m very privileged to have been able to play a small part!’ You can still donate via Jill’s Virgin Money Giving page here - and a very big thank you to Jill! Congratulations to Rik & Hannah who successfully completed the Barns Green Half Marathon on 24th September! They said: ‘Thanks to all of you who have supported us and donated to this fabulous charity. We did it! It was a hot, hilly, lovely day with lots of other great charity runners we met along the way. Our official chip finish times were 2.11 and 1.59 – so very happy with that! So stiff I am struggling to get down stairs or walk in a straight line today!’ The donations are still coming in on their Just Giving site, please do donate what you can. Hannah got in touch after the event and said: ‘It’s by far the furthest I have run since having children and I still ache today! We did it in a very respectable 2.11 and 1.59 ( Rik went ahead for the second half and I got chatting to some wonderful fundraisers for another great mental health charity ‘ young minds’ ) Fundraising for App and Running in the App vest and talking to people about my experience was a really big thing for me and the whole event was very emotional. Having PP really tested Rik’s and mine relationship and ultimately made it stronger – also I experienced PTSD after my PP hospital admission and it took a long time for me to really own the experience of having had Postpartum Psychosis and understand that it was not my fault. So running in a vest and talking to people about it was a real achievement in itself ( perhaps more so than the distance! )’ What a great achievement for Hannah & Rik. Thank you both so much for supporting APP! A very BIG THANK YOU to Gill Wood for successfully completing the Great North Run on 10th September, in aid of APP! Gill says: We are so grateful to Gill and to everyone who donated and supported her along the way – and you can still donate via her Just Giving page here. …and if you’re interested running the Great North Run next year (9 Sept 2018) then why not sign up to their reminder service and they’ll send you an email as soon as the ballot opens! Warm thanks go to all those who donated items for a recent quiz & pop-up shop at The Leopard in Tutbury, also to the ladies at Helping Hands from Swadlincote who utilised all the remaining pop-up shop items at another table top sale for APP and finally to Alex and Heather Heron who hosted an annual barbeque (with blow up assault course!) for MVH Triathlon club at “Hoon Ridge” at the end of August. Heather said: “Great evening at Hoon Ridge even though the weather forced folks inside for some of the time. That said, it did not daunt those competitive types who wanted to win the massive, blue blow-up assault course race.” The combined total raised for APP was £720. Wonderful support from all of our APP friends! Thank you so much. Catherine Labourn will be running the Brighton Marathon, she says: ‘Having supported the charity by providing administrative assistance a few hours a week during my final year at University, I have observed first hand the incredible work of the charity Action on Postpartum Psychosis (APP.) Since then, I have known that my first marathon will be in aid of this important cause…My aim is to raise £1000 to help APP continue their fantastic and vital work, whilst improving awareness for the charity at the same time.’ Please support Catherine’s fundraising and visit her Just Giving page here. Meanwhile, Nicholas Grindlay is taking on the Great Welsh Marathon, which is also (coincidentally!) taking place on the exact same day, Sunday 15th April! He says: ‘I have chosen to run my first Marathon. It was only in the last 12 months I started running with any intent and have managed to complete my first half marathon back in June 2017. So I hope I now have plenty of time to make the step up to a full Marathon….This will be a massive challenge for me to complete a Marathon as a lot of you know I do like my food and it is already proven to be a tough mental challenge for me!’ Please donate what you can, and support Nicholas on his Just Giving page here. A very BIG Thank-You to both Nicholas and Catherine for undertaking their marathon challenges in aid of APP, we are very grateful for your support! A big CONGRATULATIONS to Holly Haywood who has reached the half way point in her challenge of completing 12 marathons in 12 months in aid of APP! Holly bravely battled the heat and sunshine in August to complete her fifth and sixth marathons, and was joined by some of her colleagues to help her and keep her spirits up along the way. Holly says: ‘The fifth marathon was on 1st August with my work mates. The route was much better, completing an out and back route. Really enjoying being closer to the half way challenge point!! The weather was hot, which is bad in the running world, feeling more drained and takes more of your energy to keep going. Have to thank my amazing friends Dave and Charlotte for again running with me step for step and keeping the ‘good chat’ along the way, despite my moments when I completely ignore them because I need every cell in my body to just focus on keeping going!!’ Holly then took on her sixth marathon on 27th August in Woldingham, she said: ‘It was a really tough run on Sunday though. 28 degrees the high and the route was not very shady. I managed to complete the half marathon as started feeling the effects of the sun. The route started from Woldingham school in Caterham and did a lap of the North Downs way. It was a trail run with lots of steep inclines. Not for the faint hearted!! 4 hours later I completed the half and was pleased to have some water and shade to recover!’ We can’t thank Holly enough for taking on this enormous challenge in aid of APP, especially battling through the heat in order to reach her half-way point, what an achievement already! Please donate what you can to support Holly’s amazing challenge via her Just Giving page here. Gill says : Before Megan I knew nothing about postpartum psychosis, I had never been in a psychiatric unit before, or even really heard about psychosis. I was already a mum to Amy, I was working, my life was very quiet. The psychosis started when Megan was 8 days old, it is one of the most terrifying things I’d ever experienced and I ended up on a mixed psychiatric ward. I was 23, poorly with something the ward staff knew very little about. This is why APP (Action on Postpartum Psychosis) is so important. They work tirelessly to support mums like me and raise awareness of an illness that can happen to anyone. They provided me with information on pregnancy, medications etc as well as producing leaflets for partners, who can sometimes feel completely alone watching the mother of their child become so poorly. Whilst pregnant with Jack I was also given a peer support worker who became a rock. I could always email and knew she’d be there. I was quite poorly during my pregnancy as I’d lowered my bipolar medication (there’s a strong link between psychosis after birth and bipolar) but my peer worker supported me all the way. Especially after Jack was born, when unfortunately I became poorly again. As you probably know I love running, the freedom of running has helped my mental health and I don’t know where I’d be without it. I started again 3 weeks after Jack was born and never looked back. I want to give something back to APP as they are a small charity but their work is vital. One thing I have learnt is post natal illness does not discriminate and charities such as APP are essential in supporting families at what should be the happiest time of their lives. I appreciate it’s the summer holidays so if you’re anything like us we are are waiting for payday! But any amount you can give would be much appreciated! Thank you so much. Love Gill xxxxx’ Please support Gill in her Great North Run, you can donate via her Just Giving page here. A big thank you to Gill, and wishing you the very best of luck for 10th September! APP are delighted to announce that we have been chosen to be University of Bradford Midwifery Society’s Charity of the Year for 2017-18! The University of Bradford Midwifery Society was established to support and unite midwifery students and professionals, and create a dynamic and energetic forum for shared learning and development. They say: ‘The impact of the society continues to grow momentum, creating a global village that empowers its individuals. This strength and passion leads to greater advocacy for women; best practice and informed choice; and committed and compassionate care for all. ‘The charity we have chosen is Action on Postpartum Psychosis, an amazing charity who support women and their families who are affected by postpartum psychosis. Our committee would like to raise awareness and focus on perinatal mental health and for it to be the theme of many of our events that we have planned for this year.’ We are told the first event in the diary will be Freshers Week, where they recruit their newest cohort to the midwifery society – you can find out more via their website here, or on their Facebook and Twitter pages. APP are really thrilled to have been chosen as their Charity of the Year and we can’t wait to get involved with all their events and activities throughout the next twelve months…watch this space! A big Thank You to Rik & Hannah who are preparing to run the Barns Green Half marathon on 24th September, in Horsham, West Sussex in aid of APP! The Barns Green Half is run on closed roads through the beautiful West Sussex countryside, passing through the historic Christ’s Hospital school, where the School’s famous marching band will be playing. They say ‘we also have a jazz band at the start/finish and four other bands along the route, where there are water stations, distance markers, marshals and of course the support of all the locals and spectators.’ It sounds like quite a fun, music filled half marathon event! Rik and Hannah are already busy fundraising and would be grateful for extra support, so, please dig deep if you can, and donate via their Just Giving page – wishing you both the best of luck for 24th September, let’s hope it stays sunny! A very big congratulations and thank you to Sally and Ruth who completed the 3k Big Welsh Swim last Saturday, 22nd July! They lucked out with the weather, with a beautifully sunny day at Lake Padarn, North Wales. They said: Some very happy smiley faces, after completing their 3k swim! They have already raised over £2,500 and their Just Giving page is still accepting donations – please support them and give what you can. Congratulations to you both, a great achievement! Thank you from us all at APP. APP quiz winners win Comic Relief t-shirts Wednesday 5th July saw some of APP’s volunteers suffer the indignity of coming last in yet another pub quiz! Whatever: the night went with a swing for APP in other ways. We are greatly indebted to The Leopard’s landlady, Karen (Kaz) Maclean and her big-hearted family for all the hard work which they put into such a successful and fun event – raising APP’s profile in the Midlands and £400 for our funds. Kaz provided all the food for free, she set up a nearly-new pop up shop, contributed quiz and raffle prizes and hosted the entire night with aplomb. It was an unusual quiz. Picture each team trying to build a house with Bourbon biscuits and a large bar of chocolate or wandering around the pub looking for things beginning with “p”…. Hmmm, yes – rude in parts! Trying to make chocolate houses I should like to thank all those who provided items for the pop-up shop, quiz and raffle and all those who supported us, especially Elaine Williams who promoted us in Tutbury and did so much more besides. If you are ever in Tutbury, visit “The Leopard”; a small but warm community pub, with a lovely family at its helm and a charitable core at its heart. Heather x APP volunteers at The Leopard At the start- Dave, Vicky, Me and Charlotte Nov 5th, 2017 is little Leo’s birthday. His aunt, Holly Haywood, has set herself a massive challenge: to run 12 marathons in 12 months. Holly reasons that if her sister can pull through the shock and heartache of PP then surely she, too, can climb this marathon “mountain” in aid of APP but also in celebration of her brave sister and little Leo. Holly has already completed The Thames Marathon, The Brighton and The Exeter Marathon and has just completed her fourth marathon where she was joined along the way by some of her colleagues. She said: ‘3 of us set off at 09:00 and the first half marathon was completed in 2 hours 30mins. We mainly ran on rural roads and along the beautiful Basingstoke canal. The weather was perfect, overcast and cool. The second half we were joined by two more colleagues, this half was more hilly and the legs were not enjoying it as much! We finished the marathon in 5:39, equalling my PB from the Exeter marathon.’ At the half way point joined by Vicky and Tara. Fortunately colleagues have offered to run with Holly for varying distances, on her next two local marathons (the next one taking place on 1st August), in order to support this valiant effort. Then she will be halfway there! No pressure! It is truly tough to keep going at such a huge challenge – as well as tout for sponsors – so we at APP are putting a big shout-out to all of you out there. Please take a look at Holly’s fundraising page and dig deep if you possibly can – www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Hollys-Marathon-challenge Holly is hoping to complete all 12 marathons in time for Leo’s birthday on 5th November, and here’s hoping Holly’s page receives the sponsorship it deserves by little Leo’s next birthday! A very big Thank You to Holly and all her supporters! The weather over the weekend was challenging, but all the swimmer and supporters were all fantastic and kept smiling all day. Deborah said: ‘We did it – Sunday event was cancelled due to adverse weather conditions. This resulted in an emergency child care cover Saturday morning, 2 hr drive up to Low Fell, quick jog t the event, quick change, swim the lake, out and change back, jog back to the car and 2 hrs drive back to Leeds. Today has been mainly PJ’s. Thank you all for your donations and support. It kept me going through training and the swim. In memory of those women and babies who sadly lost their lives to the cruel illness that is postnatal mental illness. x’ A big congratulations and thank you to Deborah from all of us at APP! (and you can still donate via her Just Giving page here) They said ’We all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and am glad to report that we are still fundraising!’ They certainly look very happy on completing their run, a big congratulations and thank you from everyone at APP! Please do continue to support their fundraising efforts; you can still donate via their Virgin Money Giving page here. It wasn’t the first time. She enjoyed it so much last year she went back for more! It does look like a LOT of fun. Who wants to sign up for next year? The race takes in the capital’s world-famous landmarks on closed roads, and four of London’s eight Royal Parks – Hyde Park, The Green Park, St James’s Park and Kensington Gardens. As it takes place on 8th October the runners should enjoy glorious shades of autumn through the beautifully kept parks. Jill may be the one in training but wonderfully, the whole Section of Women’s Mental Health at Kings College London are getting behind her. Expect a cake sale, rattling of collection boxes and general drumming up of support for Jill’s athletic effort. Make a donation to Jill’s fundraising page here. We are very grateful to Jill and her colleagues for recognising the value of APP’s essential work with mums and families affected by Postpartum Psychosis and all their efforts to fundraise for us. It was a very hot day, but the course was picturesque which helped. I got a personal best of 5 hours 39 mins. All recovered now and looking into booking my next one. Running one marathon is a huge endeavour but Holly is running 12! Here’s why: My sister suffered with this after my nephew Leo was born and it changed our family. We had never heard of the condition before and not realised that Beth was unwell until she was not able to cope with everyday life. We spent the first few days looking after Leo and supporting Beth, before she was admitted to the Mother and baby unit in Bornemouth where her condition gradually improved and she was allowed home. It’s only now, nearly 3 years down the line that I don’t constantly worry about Beth. She is a tough cookie and will survive anything. Please donate to help APP do their amazing work supporting families like mine. So, that’s three down, nine marathons to go! Holly would definitely appreciate your support and donations to get here there. We are very grateful to all who staged an event, including Benedicte Waaler (top left), Tutbury Community Choir (bottom right), York Light Orchestra (top right), Ripon Community Orchestra (bottom left), Bradford Midwives, Fishergate Primary School and Burgess Hill School. You can find out more about the events on our Fundraising News page. We are also very grateful to our team and volunteers who worked so hard to promote and support the initiative, shout out to Hannah, Ellie, Kat, Emma, Heather and many others. Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week, promoted by the PMH Partnership and featuring the hashtag #MaternalMHMatters, created a lot of interest on social media during the first week of May, closely followed by Mental Health Awareness Week after this. #MHAW2017 featured heavily on Twitter and it was great to see more conversations about mental health and PP. Media activity in this time was also high, including a Radio 4 interview with Hannah B about her PP experience and a Daily Mail feature on Hannah F; go to our media page for the latest news, including International Day of the Midwife which also fell in early May and was supported by midwives in Bradford. Peer Support & Regional Reps Co-ordinator Hannah also attended an IDM2017 event in Darlington, hosted by the Co Durham & Darlington Trust. Amongst speakers including Baroness Cumberlege, who mentioned the need for improved perinatal mental health care as part of the Better Births review, and national and regional figures from Royal College of Midwives and others, Hannah shared her experience of PP and the changes in the PMH landscape in recent years. She also managed to give APP Guides to the Baroness! All runners in the 10k will get the chance to have their very own Olympic moment as they finish inside the Stadium and cross the famous finish line and running track! They say: “We are a community perinatal mental health service and our running team is composed of doctors, therapists, nurses, social workers, admin, sons and daughters… We have seen and experienced closely how damaging postpartum psychosis can be for mothers and families and what it means to have timely help and intervention. The support that charities like Action on Postpartum Psychosis (APP) provide, in addition to professional intervention from services like ours, to families goes a long way in helping families manage this very difficult time and experience. We are running in support of Action on Postpartum Psychosis – a charity that’s close to our hearts and that has been working tirelessly with professionals and families to improve lives of families affected by postnatal psychosis. This is our way of saying thank you to the tireless work that APP does and has been doing with mums and families.” A very big THANK YOU to all fourteen team members running this event! Please support them and donate via their Virgin Money Giving page here . A big well done and thank you to Helen Jackson and team for successfully completing the Tougher Mudder event on 13th May and raising over £400 for APP! Helen says: ’It was difficult, cold and filthy but a real testament to the strength of teamwork. Not just from my friends but all the other runners helped us out at every challenge. An amazing supportive atmosphere.” A special thank you from us all at APP to all the team members who took part and to everyone who donated as well – and it’s still possible to donate via Helen’s JustGiving page here. Video: Waka Hasegawa playing Mia & Sebastian’s theme from La La Land, a deeply moving and special performance in aid of Action on Postpartum Psychosis at St John’s Waterloo (video by Kat Grant). We are extremely grateful to APP volunteer Benedicte Waaler who organised a wonderful piano recital by renowned pianist, Waka Hasegawa, in London last week as part of our Music4Mums awareness and fundraising initiative. The concert, refreshment collection, auction and Just Giving page has raised a tremendous amount, over £3,000 to date. Benedicte wishes to thank: - Waka Hasagawa who is an incredibly talented and hardworking pianist (and single mum!) APP wishes to add its thanks to all above and especially Benedicte for organising such a high profile event so swiftly and effectively. Benedicte introduces the recital “Is it Abba week? We’ve written out ‘Thank You for the Music’ in ‘money money money’! All for a good cause #m4mums“ We’re are in awe of the amazing Music4Mums coin art from York Light Orchestra! Thanks so much to everyone who contributed and got so creative in aid of APP. Many thanks to Harmonics Community Choir and Tutbury Village for their support of Music4Mums. Here’s a report from their musical evening. Wow! Tutbury has its very own Gareth Malone. What a tremendous village event this was in support of APP’s Music4Mums: a choir full of life and harmony and some amazing solo performances by young and not so young singers. You just had to be there to feel the joy and the coming together in support of APP. Steve Mitchell, Tutbury’s charismatic Choirmaster and his wife, Jenny, led not only the choir but also such rousing community singing that the rafters lifted off Tutbury’s Old School Hall. Warm thanks go to Elaine Williams – the ever bubbly organiser of the event who, once she heard of APP’s Music4Mums, seized the initiative and managed to gather together a team of willing bakers, tea servers, clearers, raffle prize givers and all manner of helpers to make it a truly memorable event. To give a flavour, the local landlady, Kaz McLean of The Leopard, Tutbury socking “Goodness Gracious : Great Balls of Fire!” to the assembled; a nervous young George (Williamson) beautifully singing “Candle in the Wind” and an absolute star in the making called Eleanor Cawser giving the most poignant, unaccompanied rendition of an Etta James number, “All I could do was cry” and so much more talent besides. The audience, including babe in arms, Olivia were delighted by the amazing voice of 15-year-old Lilly Prince (whose grandmas both recently joined Harmonics Community Choir) when she sang, “Part of that world” from The Little Mermaid. More than one audience member, including some burly-looking chaps, were seen to wipe a tear from their eye when Caroline Potterton (whose grandma, Veronica is also a Harmonics soprano) sang, “On My Own” from Les Misérables and all the guest performers and audience joined in when the choir sang, “I Dreamed a Dream”. Throughout the tea break Adrian Blamire (APP’s Treasurers husband) serenaded us in such rich tones that it was clear he was being talent- scouted by the choir committee and would not be let out alive without signing – up ! At the end of the evening, APP volunteer, Heather Heron, spoke about the charity’s work and thanked all for their kindness and support in affording her the opportunity to raise awareness of PP and funds for APP. The orchestra ‘invites players from all walks of life to come and enjoy an afternoon tackling Beethoven’s 1st Symphony.’ The afternoon concludes with a play-through performance of the piece at 5pm and spectators/listeners are welcome! There will be a collection for APP. The Play Along takes place on Sunday 7th May 2017 at Bishop Monkton Village Hall, 2.30-5.30pm and we are very grateful to the Orchestra for supporting Music 4 Mums! Contact us for more info. Thanks and good luck to you all. Congratulations also to KT who completed the London Marathon at the weekend, raising £4,000 for APP. We’re waiting to hear more about her experience. —- If you’re taking on a challenge for APP please let us know. Email fundraising@app-network.org Programme: There will be an interval with refreshments and a silent auction too. Waka is a friend of APP member, Benedicte Waaler, who has done a fantastic job organising this high profile event so swiftly and now we all need to help her promote it. Tickets are £15 +bkg with all proceeds to APP. The concert will be followed by an auction. BOOK TICKETS HERE and please spread the word. Find out more about our Music 4 Mums fundraising initiative in May here. APP Director Jess proudly wearing a red nose alongside Ruth from Bluebell Care and Alison and Shabira from Best Beginnings, who have also received Comic Relief support. On Red Nose Day 2017, we’re thrilled to announce that Comic Relief have awarded APP a grant of £120,000 to part-fund our peer support service from 1 March for 30 months. This will fund paid time for our Peer Support Coordinators and workshops to train new Peer Support Volunteers. We are delighted with this news but it’s only one part of the funding jigsaw. We are working on a new application to the Big Lottery, alongside other Trusts & Foundations. Our new health professional training, with lived experience speakers, will help raise extra cash and we have events planned throughout the year starting with Music 4 Mums around World Maternal Mental Health day. Your support continues to be vital, allowing us to help women & families, whilst we secure further funding. It has been a powerful way to demonstrate to funders the need for our charity and the commitment of our supporters. Thank you and a big THANK YOU to Comic Relief. Please enjoy Red Nose Day and don’t forget to donate! Sally suffered with postpartum psychosis following the birth of her daughter in 2015. It was a terrifying experience that Sally has fought hard and shown immense determination to overcome. Two years on, Sally and friend Ruth will plunge into a freezing cold Welsh lake this summer in celebration of her recovery and to raise money for APP. They say: “We are setting ourselves this challenge in solidarity with the incredible bravery of every single woman who has experienced this frightening illness. We also want to honour the partners, families and friends who are affected. Our aim is to raise oodles of cash to fund further research, better information and support for sufferers of PP. So please, please dig deep and support a charity that helps women and their families recover from this devastating illness, thank-you!” Please support their Big Welsh Swim. You can read about and listen to Sally and husband Jamie’s story in this powerful episode of BBC Radio Wales Eye on Wales programme. For the first time, APP has been awarded TWO places in the Royal Parks Half Marathon. Race day is Sunday 8th October, so more than 6 months to get in training. They say, “This stunning central London half marathon, takes in the capital’s world-famous landmarks on closed roads, and four of London’s eight Royal Parks – Hyde Park, The Green Park, St James’s Park and Kensington Gardens.” We need two keen runners and fundraisers to get involved. Could it be you? Email app@app-network.org to express interest and let us know why you want to run for APP. Deborah Page, Clinical Team Leader of Perinatal Mental Health at Leeds MBU, will find out in June as she braves the Great North Swim to raise money for APP! Please support Deborah by sponsoring her via this JustGiving page. She says ‘Women with lived experience of this cruel illness, give their time to support other mothers and we professionals hand out leaflets provided by APP offering advice and support to supplement the work we do. APP have supported and advised on policy and service development to improve access to services for families. They continue to support us in trying to increase awareness and reduce the stigma of post natal mental illness. Stigma and guilt are the biggest barriers to women accessing support. Please give what little you can. It all helps. Thank you so much. Deborah’ APP’s Regional Rep Coordinator, Hannah, has worked with Deborah at Leeds MBU and says: “My visit to the unit was the first meeting I had as a Regional Rep and I got a really warm welcome. I saw the APP Insider Guides and posters I had taken along were put out and displayed as one of the Doctors showed me around. It was great to hear that they felt they’d soon be taken by patients and families, as some other copies had long since gone! Chatting about my experiences, especially around my 2nd pregnancy, it really struck me that general and maternity professionals weren’t as aware of the service as they might be. I didn’t know at the time, but they would have seen me if only my care team had known to refer me! It was such an honour to be asked by Deborah to speak at the launch of the new Yorkshire and Humber Perinatal Mental Health Outreach service in March 2016 and to share my story with over 100 attendees.“ What a fantastic achievement from everyone involved in helping to raise funds for APP, which also included a cake sale back in December last year. They say: “We survived the run! Still keeping our JustGiving page open for this week for a final push for donations. We have raised over £2000!!!” A special thanks to the runners of Team MBU and also to everyone who helped to raise awareness and achieve such a brilliant result! Please visit their JustGiving page where you can still donate for this week. Please support and sponsor her here. Katie is running in memory of her dear friend Alice Gibson-Watt who passed away following complications connected with Postpartum Psychosis. Her daughter, Chiara, was five weeks old. Here’s her story, in her own words: “I am a 37 year old Mother of a little boy and until 2012 I had no knowledge or awareness of Postpartum Psychosis. Despite being given information on Post Natal Depression during my pregnancy no one seemed to mention or discuss the possibility of this sudden and severe condition. Alice and I had been friends since we were little. She was in fact my oldest friend, an unwavering constant in my life as we grew up together, and it was with much excitement that we awaited the birth of her daughter, Chiara in October 2012. I had given birth a year earlier and couldn’t wait to share the experience of Motherhood with her, as I had all the other important moments in our lives from travelling around the world to planning our weddings. Whilst I tentatively warned her about the need to rest and the impact of sleep deprivation, I never dreamt to mention post natal depression nor did I even know about the possibility of postnatal psychosis. Four weeks after her daughter was born, Alice suffered a psychotic episode and further complications led to her passing away a week later leaving behind her devastated family, friends and a daughter who will never truly know just how wonderful her Mother was. You can support Katie’s training and fundraising at her Virgin Money Giving page and save the date! The London Marathon is on 23rd April 2017 and we want as many APP supporters to be there to cheer her on as possible. Warm thanks go to Robin Barber (pictured in his arresting Xmas jumper!) and a wonderful group of Tri Club members who made cakes and mince pies and helped to serve out teas during an extremely successful morning. Robin managed to whip up some amazing support from neighbouring Tri clubs and Heather Heron organised an APP information desk. Warm thanks from us all at APP go to a truly charitable club who have already supported APP in a number of events this past year – including their Annual Xmas Dinner Raffle which raised another £150! – and especially to Robin who has initiated such a willing charity drive for APP within the club. Iain with baby Alex We are so grateful to Iain and Sue McKendrick who set up a fundraising page for APP on the occasion of their 50th birthdays. Iain told us, “We were delighted when we discovered what APP was doing, because 16 years ago, when Sue was ill, there was so little advice and information available. We were incredibly lucky that various friends rallied round to help me, that my mum was able to come and stay for a month or so, and that the local Social Work department was willing to assign some help once Sue was home and I needed to go back to work… but it could all have been so different.” Iain’s birthday was in July and Sue’s is in December so they threw a big party in between and included the link to the fundraising page on the invitations asking for donations rather than presents. They managed to raise over £700 for APP, so a very big thank you to Sue and Iain! Sue, as a 50th birthday objective, has collated a collection of her poetry and is having it published. There is a section in the book where she talks about PP, and some of the poems are about that period in our lives, and in reference to her experience, she has called the book ‘Method in my Madness’. Read more about Sue’s story including some of her powerful poems here. “Working on a Mother and Baby unit, we are all very aware of the illness postpartum psychosis, as well as many other illnesses relating to women during pregnancy and after giving birth. We want to raise money for the amazing charity APP and support their work as well as raise awareness around mental health during pregnancy and after having a baby.” They have recently had a very successful cake sale to help towards reaching their fundraising target and have emailed us an update on their endeavours: “Just wanted to share some photos with you from our cake sale. The fundraising is going well, so far we have raised nearly £500! We are planning to do a raffle for Christmas and of course sharing our JustGiving page for people to sponsor us for the half marathon.” You can support this wonderful team of people at their JustGiving fundraising page here. Her sister, Beth, experienced PP after the birth of her son, Leo and this is just the first in a series of 12 marathons she intends to run over the next year to raise money for APP. You can read more about her story and donate to encourage this incredible effort over at her JustGiving page. In the meantime, Holly emailed us with a pre-race update: “I have attached a photo of my first training run with my fabulous running partner Alaska. She is my cheerleader on my long distance training runs, and even at crawling pace when I’m on mile 17 of 18 she will give me that little helpful pull up the final hill! Alaska is 3 and I’ve been running with her since she was a year old. She’s helped me train for 10K and half marathon races in the past, and knowing that she needs to stretch her legs encourages me to put my kit on and go! On Saturday I embark on Marathon 1 of 12. 5th of November, a poignant date for me as it is my nephew Leo’s 3rd birthday. My sister has now fully recovered from her PPP after Leo’s birth and they are celebrating his birthday in Disneyland Paris. I will be thinking of her every step of my marathon journey and be thankful that she had the amazing support she did. Without that support I know things would have been different.” Please support Holly’s amazing endeavour. Donate to sponsor her at JustGiving now. A huge congratulations to Kayley Easterbook for taking on the huge challenge of the Spartan Race last week. “The event was brilliant, I really enjoyed myself.” said Kayley who is raising money after her experience of PP. Kayley endured the mud and obstacles after her hard work and training for the event: “The white APP shirt got totally covered in mud but I wore it around nonetheless”. Thank you so much for doing this Kayley. Please support her amazing effort by clicking here. Kayley at the finish line, an amazing triumph! The Spartan Sprint Shirt and Medal, what an achievement! Kayley in training We’re delighted that two supporters are taking part in two different races to raise money for APP this October. On 1st October, Kayley is taking part in the Spartan Sprint in Windsor Great Park. Spartan races are full on, featuring over 15 obstacles such as a rope climb, fire jump, tyre drag, wall climb and more over 5-6k. Kayley has been in serious training, lifting weights and getting Sprint fit. Please wish her well and increase her motivation by sponsoring her amazing effort. All funds raised will go towards raising awareness of Postpartum Psychosis. We’re hugely grateful to Kayley not only for signing up to this physical challenge but also for distributing our patient information guides in her local health services and sharing her personal story. A few weeks later, Debbie takes on the Great South Run in memory of her cousin Rosy. It’s a fast and flat 10 mile course through Southsea and Portsmouth. She’s also been in training, running rain or shine and just got her APP vest and flyers in the post. Please support Debbie’s amazing efforts to raise vital funds to help keep our peer support and information services available to everyone who needs them. Find out more about APP’s work and read personal experience stories on our website. We provide the only PP peer support network in the UK. Could you support APP with a regular, monthly donation? Monthly gifts give us a predictable income so we can commit to helping more women and families affected by PP. For example, by training more much-needed Peer Support Volunteers or sending our vital PP patient information out to more Mother and Baby Units across the UK. Monthly gifts are really valuable as they give us a predictable income so we can commit to helping more women and families affected by PP. It’s quick and easy to sign up and Gift Aid will be dealt with online. Just click on “make a monthly donation” from our charity page. You can also set this up through JustGiving but their fees are higher so we receive a bit less of your generous donation. If you prefer to set up a standing order with your bank these are the details you need to give them: Our bank: HSBC Please complete a Gift Aid form and return it to us and make your monthly donation worth even more. Thank you. There are many different ways that you can help APP. Take a look at our fundraising page and browse latest fundraising news for more inspiration. Thank you very much. Congratulations to Jocelyn who completed the Manchester Color Run on Saturday raising more than £250 for APP, despite it hailing during the event! Jocelyn did her research and sought out the “funniest 5k” she could find. The Color Run encourages its runners to wear face paint, glitter and the most colourful accessories you can find. A white t-shirt or vest is essential though as participants are showered in colour at every kilometre! There are Color Runs coming up in Glasgow, Birmingham, London and Brighton between now and September so who else is up for running the funniest, happiest and most colourful 5k for APP? Visit thecolorrun.co.uk for more information and to enter the fun run. Here are a few suggestions of ways you can raise funds & have a great time too! We’re sure you can think of other ideas for events that work well, so use your imaginations & let us know so we can add them to this list. Do let us know if you’re planning anything fun or exciting & we’d really like photos & reports of your event! We can supply party packs with advertising & raising awareness literature if needed. The money you raise will make a difference to the lives of people affected by Postpartum Psychosis. Email: fundraising@www.app-network.org Winning Team ‘Unit 4 Plus 2′ We would like to thank everyone who took part in our ‘Worlds Biggest Pub Quiz’ fundraiser on Sunday 7th Feb. With the standard of teams being very high and plenty of challenging questions, our well deserved congratulations go to the winning team ‘Unit 4 Plus 2′. Our thanks go to The Warwickshire Golf & Country Club for hosting the evening, to our Volunteer Hayley for organising the event & to Charles for giving a heartfelt talk about personal experiences of PP from a partner’s perspective. An amazing amount raised & a fabulous evening all round! Join us on 27th November at The Pavillion, Derby, DE24 9HY for this wonderful charity fundraiser. For tickets Tel: 0844 477 0601 or email heather@app-network.org I injured my neck and shoulder in a race crash in Geneva and had made it worse by going into the ditch avoiding a tractor a week before Dublin. If this report doesn’t sound like I enjoyed most of the race then it’s accurate – I’d been to a sports physio and an osteopath the week before but the level of pain I was getting from my neck and shoulder meant that at every stage of the race I was telling myself, “I’ll just do this next bit and then drop out”. Congratulations and heartfelt thanks to Tracey for completing the walk and raising funds too! I feel I really have to push myself this year, I’m not getting any younger, I want the physical challenge but the ultimate goal is to represent my heroic wife and the support APP have provided to both of us. Giving something back is of paramount importance to me. My wife encountered PP in summer 2013 after the birth of our daughter and then suffered a particularly nasty relapse in summer 2014. I encountered the comforting arms of APP during and after the relapse. You were there when I needed you and when my wife was well enough, when she needed you. The chance to speak to volunteers and other families going through the same experiences was and still is invaluable as we try to make sense of it all; To learn that you are not alone, despite the apparent destruction of your ‘world’. APP has been incredibly supportive of me as a husband, the carer in the bad times. A mentor, a chat on the forum and a chance to shape future care with discussions and taking part in research with Cardiff Uni. If I could grade your support, A*, every time. Thank you, Ollie. “I hope that mothers, partners & families everywhere will sponsor me in order to enable APP to address the ignorance, stigma & lack of provision which it has already done so much to address.” Running 10k will not be easy for Jo (is it ever?) so please spur her on by sponsoring her if you can. Let us try together to exceed her target! We would like to thank Dale and his supporters for this incredible chance to raise money to support, campaign, research, publish, inform and connect to build a better future for all those effected by Postpartum Psychosis. I’d like to add my own personal thanks for creating a remarkable body of work that transcends words and moved me so deeply. The eye catching result with its London dreamscape and pop- art style is already selling well in the societies’ branches- especially in London. We feel sure that APP Members and Friends or supporters of APP throughout the UK would enjoy sending the cards – either in a “corporate” capacity or as personal cards to friends – not only to support fundraising but also to raise awareness of our charity (whose details are writ large on the back of each card!) By seizing the initiative & supporting APP in this way, the Chelsea & Yorkshire team have shown just how flexible, caring, and energetically charitable such companies can be in support of those with serious perinatal mental illness . So if you are near the following branches in London, Chelsea, Ealing, Fulham, Kensington, City, West End or Westminster, why not pop in as our ambassadors , say “hello”, and buy some of the societies’ cards ? Branch finder> Warm thanks & a Happy Xmas to Alexis Stevens and all those at the Chelsea & Yorkshire Building Societies , who are supporting APP this Xmas season. From the APP fundraising team Our huge thanks go to Anna Jones who celebrated her 40th birthday by thinking of others. Anna persuaded her friends to join her in a recent charity London to Brighton bike-ride for APP. This really was no mean feat given that she managed to build a team of 34 women who trained for months to complete the ride. They all arrived in Brighton in a purple t-shirted haze of glory and raised the most magnificent sum of £11,598.82 to help us with our work. Again, we cannot thank team Anna Jones enough for what has proved to be a real highlight for APP. We cannot thank the Bothams’ team enough for their months of arduous training and for the selfless giving of their time at the saddest of times for all concerned. Their efforts raised a huge sum for app of £4,325 which will be used to support and raise much needed awareness of PP so that other women might escape the tragedy which has faced Rosy’s family and friends. Close friends of tragic young mum Rosy Hinchliffe have launched a ‘life-long’ fund and awareness raising mission in her memory. Kerstin and her husband Stephen Botham are to put on a host of events for APP and the couple’s first major event will be an all-day ‘purple party’ charity auction and raffle. They will also compete in the Northwest Triathlon in September as part of their bid to prevent similar incidents occurring among new mothers in the future. If you are nearby, please do go along and support this event if you can – you’ll be sure to receive a warm welcome! Or if you can support in any way, by donating, supplying auction items or providing live music etc. please get in touch. Huddersfield Daily Examiner article: Charity event in memory of Rosy>> To donate please visit: http://www.justgiving.com/TriActionPP or text TAPP84 £5, £10, £15 to 70070 Please support them here if you can> Last year, APP trustees from the Derby area hosted a ‘Purple Party’ at Hoon Ridge. Picture: table tennis; bean-bag tossing; field skittles; badminton; ‘How many APP balloons in a mini?’; children’s art tent; a cake stall heaped with donations; tombola; an impressive auction of artwork, fine wines, holiday accommodation, business tuition and much more ….; toddlers’ play garden; sports massages; pamper sessions; cream teas and champagne; beer and curries etc …all rounded off with a game of rounders: men v women! (the ladies won hands-down…almost). We cannot thank enough all those who helped or came along to support, trustees, members, regional representatives, entire families – press-ganged into cooking, clearing, serving, erecting. The afternoon raised almost £2,200 for APP which is just an amazing amount to have achieved. Redenti handmade vintage-inspired jewellery is now available. Each Redenti piece is uniquely handmade using semi-precious stones, pearls, swarovski crystals and a vintage brooch or two. Gold and silver plate and sterling silver are also used to create unique & stunning pieces. “This first collection has been made in memory of my cousin Alice. A third of Redenti profits go to APP which supports mums suffering from Postpartum Psychosis as Alice did, & their families.” Treat yourself or someone special in your life & raise funds at the same time! Free UK postage & packaging. “Thank you for having a browse & for joining me in adding a drop of love into the ocean for those affected by postpartum psychosis, a deeply challenging illness.” What a heartening start to 2014 for the fundraising team of APP! Between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve the company Willis Group nominates 3 charities who each share the donations from associates who are in the office over that period. They operate a “dress down” policy on each of those days and associates donate each day they come in to work. What a brilliant way of giving associates a voice and in the process : giving support to charities like ours who are doing such hard work on behalf of women and families affected by Postpartum Psychosis. Warm thanks are due to all at Willis Associates for their very generous cheque and especially to their colleague who nominated APP – as being eminently worthy of their company’s support. Thanks are due to Penny Speight and her artistic team for mounting a Staff Summer Exhibition and a highly successful Preview Evening complete with a delicious buffet, fantastic wine, a high standard of artwork, and the most moving of speeches from trustee Nicola Muckelroy. Thanks are also due to Lord Dalmeny and our chair, Professor Ian Jones who both spoke in warm support of our important work and of those women and families who find themselves affected by Postpartum Psychosis. On 25th July, Sotheby’s organised a Staff Summer Exhibition in London. APP was the chosen charity and a great preview evening was enjoyed by a huge throng of invited guests, including APP trustees. We are greatly indebted to the team at Sotheby’s including all of the artists and those who produced the impressive catalogue. It was humbling to see Sotheby’s staff working so hard on our behalf, both on the special preview night and prior to it. Informative and moving speeches were delivered by Nic Muckelroy and Prof. Ian Jones and the feedback from all involved was really positive. We will report soon on the final amount raised at this event. These are the two pages providing information on Postpartum Psychosis & APP charity printed in the Sotheby’s London, 22nd July – 9th August catalogue. Many thanks & heartfelt gratitude to Sotheby’s staff for your considerable efforts & hosting a wonderful event! It would be wonderful if you could support us by taking a trip to the exhibition or by buying a catalogue? Or even buy some artwork? Or perhaps you or your company would enclose a donation in our envelopes – available from the APP stall? Catalogues are available at the exhibition or we are selling them at £3.50 each +postage, please contact heather@www.app-network.org Thank you in advance for your support. I was then made aware of the charity fund-matching scheme of my employer, Jardine Lloyd Thompson (JLT), so with JLT and many friends backing me to finish the pressure was on. We are delighted to announce that APP has been nominated as its 2013 charity. This wonderful support for APP is undertaken in memory of a well – loved colleague: Alice Montagu Douglas Scott (Alice Gibson-Watt) who, sadly, died recently. May we encourage you all to visit this wonderful exhibition during the 2 weeks it is showing this summer? …. perhaps buy reasonably priced artwork ? … or, if this is not possible, perhaps buy a beautifully produced 2013 Staff Exhibition sale catalogue from Sotheby’s, in which you will also find brief details of APP’s work? (We have so many sporty partners and Friends of APP that we’ll soon be able to produce running and triathlon teams!) “I am running a hot and hilly marathon in Madrid on Sunday 28th April this year. Just before Christmas a family friend of mine tragically died following a brief illness I had not previously heard of, Postpartum Psychosis (PP). She had had her first child, a beautiful girl, just 5 weeks beforehand.” “I have since learned that Postpartum Psychosis is a mental illness characterised by the sudden onset of psychotic symptoms following childbirth. As you will see on the charity website, APP is a charity set up with the following aims: To provide up to date information to women who have experienced PP & their families, to facilitate research into all aspects of PP, to facilitate a peer support network for women & their families, to increase awareness of PP, its symptoms, management & impact among health professionals & the general public, and to advocate for improved services for women & their families.” “With many people I know starting families, and with the sad loss of my friend, I feel that it is a very real and worthy cause which will help raise awareness of Postpartum Psychosis, and what can be done to prevent tragedy. Thank you so much for all your support, and thank you for any donations – I will be thinking of all of you who have supported the charity as I race around Madrid at the end of this month.” When asked why they climbed Everest, some mountaineers reply, “Because it’s there”. Alex Heron and his jolly bunch of paramotoring mates, John Casson, Henry Glasse and Brian Pushman, couldn’t be accused of a similar approach to LEJOG (Land’s End to John O’ Groats) since they’d already completed the reverse journey (JOGLE) by paramotor in 2009.Though blessed with good weather and favourable winds on that flight, they made the mistake of not using the epic adventure as a fund-raising opportunity. So …3 years later they embarked on the crazy notion of cycling the route in the opposite direction to raise money for various charities, not “Because it’s there”, but because, “We missed a great opportunity last time and we want to make amends”, and, secretly, “It’ll be a jolly good wheeze for a bunch of old codgers anyway”.Team APP skydive smash their fundraising target (twice!)
Jess parachuting down and coming safely into land!
Dr Giles Berrisford ‘ready to jump’!
Hannah Bissett having an ‘absolutely amazingly awesome’ experience!
The Band of Bro's' concert!
Dominic's skydive for APP!
Sophie runs Stafford!
Anna's Scottish 10K!
occurred approximately 3-4 weeks after giving birth. Straight after the birth prior to the psychosis I developed extreme anxiety and was having regular panic attacks, difficulty sleeping, inability to perform simple tasks and memory loss. At the climax of my illness I couldn’t walk, kept collapsing and was convinced I was dying. PP is a psychiatric emergency, it is NOT the same as postnatal depression. Due to a lack of Mother and Baby Units, 50% of women are admitted to general psychiatric wards and separated from their babies. I was lucky that I was admitted to one of only 2 units in Scotland. Harriet takes on the Great North Run!
Team APP & friends' group skydive!
So far, confirmed for the skydive are: Dr Giles Berrisford, Chair of Trustees; Dr Jess Heron, APP Director; Hannah Bissett, Peer Support & Regional Reps Co-ordinator; Tanya Knight, Mental Health Nurse, Birmingham & Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust; Anna Sebine, Quality Improvement Lead – Perinatal Mental Health, Maternity Clinical Network, (Yorkshire & Humber); Sally Hogg, Strategic Lead, Mums & Babies in Mind (MABIM)
The Big Give Christmas Challenge 2018
APP's amazing sporty fundraisers!
Joe completes his first Triathlon!
Megan jumps for APP!
Joe's Triathlon challenge!
Joe says: “Most of you know I am very unfit, I haven’t ran for years and it’s been 3 years since my last fund raiser. On the 21st of July I am going to complete my very first Triathlon. I’ve not swam since a teenager and never really been a cyclist, so I’ve got to learn fast! But under pressure reveals true character and I believe with a strong mind anything is possible.“Thank you to Gillian and her daughters!
Charity Gala supporting APP!
Anya & Vicky are trekking Cambodia!
The Self Care Unicorn at Guys & St Thomas'!
Gillian's Charity Cake & Craft Sale in the Wirral!
Sarah's Jolly Jingles for APP!
Helen is running the Royal Parks Half for APP!
Church Gresley's charity stall for APP!
Browns of Brockley's free coffee collection!
A very big thank you to wonderful owners of Browns of Brockley coffee van who gave away free coffees in their first week’s trading at Brockley Market in South East London, in return for donations to APP! 
Catherine ran the Brighton Marathon!
“I am happy to say that I managed to recover reasonably quickly. Luckily the weather was much more manageable than had I run London today, so I am very thankful for that! I completed the race in 4:28, which I was happy with since I was aiming for below 4:30.“Nicholas completed the Great Welsh Marathon!
“I really pushed it on the day to try and beat certain time…and got a PB! (although didn’t get under 4 hours). The weather was not good on the day – windy and rainy – wind was hard running in to! Otherwise all went well and really enjoyed it in a crazy way….nice course and people involved were great – marshals and runners. So far total for APP raised is around £230. I hope this may go up with donations post run 
“Rachel to run the Royal Parks Half!
APP say a BIG Thank You to Rachel who will be running in this year’s Royal Parks Half Marathon, taking place on Sunday 14th October, in aid of APP! This stunning central London Half Marathon, takes in some of the capital’s world – famous landmarks on closed roads, and four of London’s eight Royal Parks – Hyde Park, The Green Park, St James’s Park and Kensington Gardens.Megan is jumping out of a plane for APP!
“I will be skydiving in Bridlington for Action on Postpartum Psychosis (APP) on Saturday the 2nd of June. I have chosen this date to mark my nephew, Ethan’s, 1st birthday and a year since my sister suffered with Postpartum Psychosis (PP). PP occurs around the time of birth and involves the sufferer experiencing serious hallucinations and/or delusions. Hayley was sectioned under the mental health act following the birth of Ethan due to the severity of this illness. She was lucky enough to be given a place in a Mother and Baby Unit in Leeds where she could be looked after by a psychiatric team whilst remaining with Ethan. They were accompanied 24 hours a day to ensure their safety and it is charities like APP that help campaign for these wonderful services. Hayley has since benefited from other APP services such as the use of other women’s stories to help process what has happened to her. Without this support Hayley wouldn’t have made the progress she has made in such a short space of time. As a family also recovering from this traumatic time we have benefited from the resources APP provide.
Megan, Hayley and Family x“
The BIG APP SKYDIVE 2018!
Fantastic Xmas Mince Pie Ride!
Warm thanks to Meynell Valley Hunters Triathlon Club for, once again, organising a very successful event in Rosliston village hall in aid of APP and Air Ambulance on Sunday 17 December 2017.
Sunday morning cyclists were invited -throughout the local areas – to tuck into homemade mince pies, cakes and coffee and were asked to donate for our charities. A total of £350 was raised in the space of less than 2 hours!Bethany Jones is running every day in January!
‘Please give a few pounds to this very worthy cause. Action for Postpartum Psychosis have done so much for me and given me peer support, they rely on donations and are invaluable for the 1 in 1000 who are unlucky to suffer. Thanks for reading everyone onwards and upwards x Beth‘
APP Art Auction 2017
APP presents the inaugural online Christmas Art Auction 2017 to help raise funds for APP!
“Thank you for supporting APP’s first Art Auction and helping us raise funds for APP. We’d love you to share the brochure far and wide with your friends and colleagues to generate some interest in the donating artists. APP supports women and families who have been affected by Postpartum Psychosis, which is a devastating and traumatic illness that affects 1-2 in every 1000 new mums. With the right care women do recover: our amazing and committed volunteers are evidence of this. Buy some art for a loved one this Christmas, and help our volunteers support someone else’s loved one.”
Happy bidding everyone! #APPArtAuctionGetting ready for #GivingTuesday!
Helping Hands for APP at Christmas charity fair!
Volunteer Team
Holly runs the Thames Meander!
Fundraising evening at Royal College of Psychiatrists!
Jocelyn visits Soroptimist International
‘Action on Postpartum Psychosis [APP] is one of the charities being highlighted this year by President Val Jones, Cannock Soroptimists. It is a small and little known charity; in fact, prior to President Val naming it only 3 members of the club had ever heard of it! Holly completes her 8th marathon!
‘I ran the Bournemouth marathon on the 8th of October, it was a special one for me as it’s where my sister Beth went for her inpatient stay at the mother and baby unit. There were good memories from her time there that really spurred me on and I managed to finish with a personal best of 5hrs 27mins.
Fundraising at Freshers Week & Kindness in Midwifery conference
They are now very busy organising a conference with midwife, Ellie Durant called ‘The kindness conference: Getting positive midwifery cultures to flourish‘ which is taking place on 11th November 2017. The Kindness Conference is being jointly planned and hosted by UoB Midwifery Society and any current or aspiring midwives should definitely get this in the diary!
‘This conference is likely to be different from others you’ve attended. We’re not afraid of digging into the hard issues and talking about the realities of midwifery culture right now.Fun Day event at The Barberry MBU!
Jill runs the Royal Parks!
We did it!
Gill completes the Great North Run!
‘I have just about recovered now, I’ve been on a couple of short runs to get my legs moving again! I’m amazed at how generous everyone has been and I hope that the sponsorship really helps APP.’
Thank you to the fundraisers of Derby!
Two marathon runners on the same day!
APP have two fantastic supporters who are running two rather different marathon events in aid of APP, which are both taking place on the very same day – Sunday 15th April 2018! 
6 down, 6 to go - Holly reaches half-way!
Gill Wood to run the Great North Run!
A big thank you to Gill Wood who is taking on the challenge of the Great North Run, the largest half marathon in the world, on 10th September in aid of APP!
‘Nearly a year ago to the day I was discharged from a mum and baby unit in Morpeth with baby Jack. I’d been there since he was 2 weeks old. We always knew there was a chance I’d get poorly as I unexpectedly became very poorly with postpartum (after birth) psychosis after we had Megan 12 years ago, hence us waiting so long for Jack! APP Charity of the Year for Bradford Midwifery Society 2017-18!
Each year the Society support a different charity and for 2017-18 they have decided to support APP, they said:Rik & Hannah running the Barns Green Half on 24 September!
Sally & Ruth's £3k for 3K at Big Welsh Swim!
‘Thank-you so so much for all your support. We made it! What a great day, with gorgeous weather and amazing people! #£3kfor3k xxx’
APP Quiz and Pop-Up Shop in 'The Leopard' Tutbury!
12 marathons in 12 months to celebrate Leo and his mum!
Deborah braves Lake Windermere for the Great North Swim!
Congratulations to Deborah Page, Clinical Team Leader of Perinatal Mental Health at Leeds MBU, who braved the cold of Lake Windermere and successfully completed the Great North Swim on 9th June!PPIMHS Team Complete the Great Newham Run!
A very big thank you to Dr Neha Rawat and colleagues and family of PPIMHS (Perinatal Parent Infant Mental Health Service) at NELFT (North East London NHS Foundation Trust) who completed the 10k Great Newham London run which took place on Sunday 2nd July.
Is this the most fun way to raise money?
Even though she hates running, Jocelyn took part in the Manchester Color Run on 1 July to raise money for APP: donate hereSection of Women's Mental Health, KCL, Support APP
Three cheers for Jill Domoney, one of APP’s two runners in the Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon. Holly's Amazing Marathon Challenge
Congratulations to Holly Haywood who ran the Exeter marathon on 21st May to raise money for APP. She says:
Music 4 Mums Round up
Our very first Music 4 Mums fundraising initiative on World Maternal Mental Health Day has raised over £5,000 so far.
PPIMHS Team Tackle 10k Great Newham Run!
Dr Neha Rawat. colleagues and family of PPIMHS (Perinatal Parent Infant Mental Health Service) at NELFT (North East London NHS Foundation Trust) are running the 10k Great Newham London run on Sunday 2 July in aid of APP.Helen & Team Complete Tougher Mudder!
Music 4 Mums: Waka Hasegawa Piano Recital
– actor Katie Underwood who auctioneered off all the art and experiences (she was so witty and really made it fun!)
– the artists who donated art: Nadia Attura, Lene Bladbjerg, Daniel Mackie, James Tarry, Yo Okada & Kel Rae
– chef Yuki Gomi who donated a sushi cooking class
– the manager at Metropolis Studios who donated a tour of the studios
– APP volunteer, Kathryn Grant de Vecchi, who was absolutely brilliant, bringing lots of cupcakes donated by Butterscotch bakery, helping set up and clear out and giving a speech about APP and all along promoting and sharing on social media!
– and of course friends who volunteered on the night and donated beer and wine!
Music 4 Mums: York Light Orchestra
Music 4 Mums: Harmonics Community Choir
Music 4 Mums: Ripon Community Orchestra Play Along!
Dust off your instruments, Ripon Community Orchestra are holding a ‘Come & Play Session’ in Bishop Monkton Village Hall, near Harrogate. Meet Our Amazing Sporty Fundraisers
There’s so much athletic activity going on! All links go to fundraising pages where available so please click through, read their stories and support their fantastic endeavours.
Congratulations to Holly Haywood who ran the Brighton Marathon on 9th April in 5h 46m in blazing heat! Only 10 more marathons to go. Music 4 Mums: London Piano Recital
We are delighted to announce that award-winning pianist Waka Hasegawa has agreed to give a recital at St John’s Church, London Waterloo on 3rd May.
Handel, The Harmonious Blacksmith
Beethoven, Sonata No. 14 Op.27-2 “Moonlight Sonata”
Chopin, Nocturnes Op.9 No.2 & Op.27 No.2 & Waltzes Op.64 No.1 & Op. 69 No.1
Liszt, Liebesträume No.2 (Dreams of Love)
Piazzolla, Adios Nonino “Tango Rhapsody”Comic Relief Fund PP Peer Support
Ruth & Sally's Big Welsh Swim
Who's up for the Royal Parks Half Marathon?
London Marathon Training Update!
6 weeks and counting!!! An update from Katie. Deborah to Plunge into Great North Swim
What lurks in Lake Windemere?Team MBU Complete Half-Marathon for APP
A big congratulations and thank you to the team at Bethlem Royal Hospital Mother and Baby Unit who successfully completed the Hampton Court Half Marathon on 19 February 2017 and have raised over £2000 for APP!
Meet Our Amazing London Marathon Runner
For the first time, APP has been awarded a charity place in the London Marathon and we are thrilled to introduce you to our runner, Katie Dyer.
There is nothing positive about this situation or this mental illness. It is vicious, cruel and deeply unjust. On the morning I was told that Alice, my bright, beautiful, determined friend who had fought so hard to become a Mother, was in hospital with a bleak prognosis I felt an overwhelming urge to run. Running has a meditative quality that I discovered in my late 20s and I think has been essential to my own mental stability in times of stress. And so I ran that day trying to tell myself if would be OK. Unfortunately for Alice and those close to her; it was not.
However, in the spirit of Alice’s unquestionable strength and positivity, it is so important to remember that there is much to be done to ensure other families do not suffer in the same way. To this end, I am hugely honoured to be running the London Marathon for APP. The work they do to publicise, support and educate is vital to prevent further devastating losses and to provide essential life lines to sufferers and their families.
I will run in Alice’s name and all those who have suffered from this unjust and frightening condition.”Triathletes Take On Xmas Mincepie Cycle
On Sunday 18th December Meynell Valley Hunters Triathlon Club (MVH) organised a Xmas Mincepie Cycle for charity and APP was the lucky recipient of a share of the proceeds, £160.00 in total. 
Sue & Iain's 50th Birthday Fundraising
Bethlem Royal Hospital Mother and Baby Unit Fundraising For APP
A big thank you to the staff from the Mother and Baby unit at the Bethlem Royal Hospital who are in training for the Hampton Court half marathon in February 2017 and raising money for APP. They say:
A Marathon A Month For APP
Holly Hawood is running the Thames Meander Marathon on Saturday 5th November.Kayley's Story - The Spartan Race for APP!
Kayley and Debbie are in Training for APP
Huge Thanks To Helping Hands
Helping Hands Grand Sale for APP
Donate Monthly - Help Us Help More People
Account name: APP Network Ltd
Sort code: 40-15-20
Account number: 91839705
Jocelyn runs a colourful 5k for APP
APP Purple Events
Throughout the year we ask people across the UK to hold a Purple Party or event where donations on the day are made to APP. We need YOU to get together with friends, family & colleagues & hold a Purple Event!Zumbathon fundraiser
On the 21st March, APP’s Mia and Val joined Karen for her fantastic Irish themed ‘Shake Your Shamrocks Zumbathon’ to raise funds for APP. The night was a great success with Zumba dances ranging from Irish themed to a modern dance lead by 10 year Paige. Easter team games followed by a fantastic raffle and refreshments. Karen’s limitless energy enthused everyone to get active, get dancing and have fun. A huge thank you to Karen for organising such a fantastic fundraiser, and a big thank you to all those who came to support on the night, who generously donated and who took away APP’s leaflets and information to share. Karen has raised over £300 so far from the event which is a brilliant amount, and a fun filled, enjoyable night was had by all!
'Worlds Biggest Pub Quiz' fundraiser
Roll-Royce Male Voice Choir Musical Evening
2nd place in Dublin 70.3 Ironman for Alex (age 66!)
Back in September 2014 it felt like a good idea to try a 70.3 Ironman and take the opportunity to raise some more money for APP.Tracey completes 10 mile walk for APP
In June 2015 my sister-in-law joined me in a 10 mile charity walk through the Kent countryside. It was an exhausting but rewarding day, with the added bonus of plenty of sunshine and beautiful views. I selected APP as my chosen charity as the work they do for women and their families is so important. When I suffered postpartum psychosis myself 11 years ago there was very little user-friendly reliable information, and no access to peer support. It was a lonely and terrifying place to be, and the stigma surrounding mental illness really hindered me in properly engaging in the treatment and support that I was offered. I count myself very lucky to have achieved a good recovery. The information produced by APP, their anti-stigma work and online peer support forum provides amazing support for women who experience this distressing and dangerous illness. I hope that the £180 I raised will be a really worthwhile contribution to their work.
Ollie's half marathon 'thank you' for APP support
This year I will be running the Leicester Half Marathon on Sunday 25th October. A complete turnaround for someone who hated running six months ago and couldn’t run a mile. A 10k assault course for charity in April whetted my appetite and the next step beckoned.<Click here to sponsor Ollie>
Worthing 10K run for APP
Jo, who is an enthusiastic supporter of APP, is running the Worthing 10K in June and raising funds for APP.
Golden wedding couple donate to APP
On Friday, 3rd April Sandra and Bob Chapman of Rosliston celebrated their golden wedding at Hoon Ridge in Derbyshire by kind invitation of Alex & Heather Heron. An afternoon tea party was enjoyed by a very lively group. Sandra is a member of the local “Breakaways” choir who, in between scones and strawberries sang well into the evening . Adrian Blamire entertained the party during the afternoon and Heather spoke about the valuable work of APP. Instead of presents Sandra & Bob asked for a donation to be sent to APP. We thank the happy couple for thinking of APP as they tripped down memory lane with their friends and family. A great sum of £192 was raised. Well done everyone! …And what a great team of caterers!Artwork raises funds for APP
A unique and evocative piece donated by the exciting artist Dale vN Marshall was auctioned in December. After much anticipation and some fierce bidding, we were very pleased the final figure reached £594.The Chelsea and Yorkshire Building Societies Supporting APP!
In November a talented artist, Alexis Stevens, designed and produced Christmas cards for the Chelsea & Yorkshire Building Societies with the aim of donating all of the sale proceeds to APP.
We should like to offer the warmest of thanks to Alexis & to the Westminster branch of the Society and also to the production team behind the project including: Alan Bale who has been so very helpful in getting cards out to branches and also to Donna Dunston who has sorted out production.
Congratulations London to Brighton Riders!
North-West Triathlon Relay Triumph!
Our huge thanks go to Stephen and Kerstin Botham and to their friend Jen who successfully completed the recent North-West Triathlon Relay in aid of APP. The triathlon was the culmination of very many months of fundraising by team Botham on behalf of APP, in memory of their friend rosy who died after an episode of PP.
Purple Party in Memory of Rosy
'Laps for Alice' at the Brooklands Half
Edward and Tilly are taking on the massive challenge of running the Brooklands Half Marathon, Surrey in March. We wish them good luck with their training and hope they run like the wind on the day! We are very grateful to them and everyone who has helped them raise an amazing amount so far. THANK YOU.
Purple party at Hoon Ridge
Gorgeous handmade jewellery to raise funds
Willis Associates Support APP at Christmas & New Year
Thank You to Sotheby's!
We are greatly indebted to Sotheby’s, London for throwing itself into fundraising and awareness – raising for APP. In a number of ways the Sotheby’s staff worked so very hard to promote and support us this Summer and Autumn.Birmingham Family Fun Event
On 18th Aug , APP ‘s Heather Heron and Nic Muckelroy journeyed to Martineau Gardens in Birmingham to attend a special family fun event organised by staff of Birmingham’s Mother & Baby Unit (MBU). We are grateful to Giles Berrisford and Clare Hooper for affording us the opportunity to man an APP stall in order to raise awareness of PP. It was a hugely enjoyable day for those families who have benefited from such a great facility as the Birminham MBU and for those friends who continue to support it. If you have not been to Martineau gardens : go ! It is a wonderfully quirky little place for children and families.Sotheby's Staff Summer Exhibition
APP / PP Catalogue Advert
Support Us at Sotheby’s Annual Staff Exhibition
Voices of the Valley Charity Concert
On Friday 14th June, 2013 some members of the APP Board, along with their friends, journeyed to Llay nr Wrexham in Wales for a charity concert performed by the internationally renowned, Welsh ”Fron Male Voice Choir“. APP will benefit financially by the Fron’s generosity and we should like to thank all of the choir, their conductor and their management for: the warmth of their welcome; for their flexibility in allowing us to invade their hall with our advertising banner and literature – thereby raising vital awareness ; and of course – for the soaring beauty of their singing! It was a truly magnificent gesture from a very busy choir and we look forward to maintaining contact with them in the future as we at APP also soar!Robin's Madrid Marathon Challenge
When I signed up to run the Madrid Marathon, I was aware that Madrid was likely to be pretty hot in April, and the course was far from flat. Most marathon websites have a map of the course – this one had a map, but also an altimeter! This fear of a gruelling few hours in the Spanish capital spurred me on to undergo some very wintry runs in the early months of the year. The training became easier and more determined as more and more kind friends and family donated to APP.APP Nominated as Sotheby's 2013 Charity
From Friday 26th July, 2013 Sotheby’s staff are to hold their Annual Staff Exhibition where the public can view and buy artwork created by members of Sotheby’s staff. The exhibition will continue, thereafter for 2 weeks, Monday to Friday, 9am till 5pm, at Sotheby’s London address: New Bond St Galleries, 34 -35 New Bond St, London, W1A 2AAFriends of APP - Marathon Fundraising
Robin to run Madrid Marathon 28th April
APP's First Purple Wedding!
APP’s first purple wedding took place on 2nd January 2013, when Jo Thorpe married Will Grace at Holdsworth House in Halifax, West Yorkshire. After recovering from PP in 2010, Jo married her partner Will, whom she met whilst they played music together in a band, with their beautiful daughter, Marya, as a bridesmaid. With purple ties, purple flowers, purple jewellery, purple bridesmaids and a purple wedding cake it made a spectacular purple party! Even some guests showed support by dressing in purple too. It was a very special day, with many friends and family who travelled from far and wide.Land's End to John O'Groats (LEJOG) Fundraiser
Derby Fundraising & Awareness Event
Derby Cattle Market was the venue for an APP awareness raising & fundraising “Purple Party” in Sept. It was a very successful event… leaflets were distributed and APP magazines were handed out to those who requested information. We were pleased to engage with midwives and with those who had stories to tell of their postnatal mental illnesses. Huge thanks are due to Adrian Blamire and Steph and Geoff Brackpool (who have always been good friends of APP) who helped Sue Blamire and Heather Heron (APP trustees) throughout the day. It is no mean feat getting up at 5.30 in the morning to brave the Derby crowds. Thanks also are due to Mary Heron for her donation and also to all of those who donated items for sale. The total raised was an impressive £440! Excellent work everybody!Brentwood 10K Run
A BIG thank you to Darren Maeer for running the Brentwood 10K & raising £370 for APP. We hope you really enjoyed it! Let us know your running time & if you’ve now got the bug for it & are planning any more runs. Well done Darren!