I would really like to chat with you about your experience of Postpartum Psychosis. What was it like for you and your family following your diagnosis? And what types of services/support were made available to you? This should take no more than an hour and I am happy to meet wherever is most convenient for you.

If you are willing to take part in the study or would like more information, please email me, Catherine on u1037626@uel.ac.uk or phone Claire Wickham on 0208 223 4174 to leave a message.

National Conference 2012, Saturday 23rd June

Following the airing of ‘Unravelling Eve’ program on BBC Radio 4, the feedback we have received has been tremendous. The program was extremely well received by people from all backgrounds and interests and many have been in touch expressing their gratitude to everyone involved for their time and efforts in making it happen.

The women who took part in the workshops also received a great deal of positive and supportive feedback from friends and family. Having listened to the program, they now have a greater understanding of the challenges the women went through, and some friends were surprised by how little they already knew. We are very grateful to everyone who took part and appreciate how difficult and emotional it can be to speak about things they have probably never spoken about before. There was an instant rapport amongst the women and very quickly strong friendships formed. They all reported that taking part was a fabulous opportunity to finally meet and chat freely with others who instantly understood. They described the workshops as an extremely positive experience, emotional yet healing and cathartic.  The program is available to listen to by Clicking here.

Between one in 500 and one in a thousand women suffer from postpartum psychosis after childbirth. It's an illness which often appears rapidly and without warning and leaves women in the grip of psychotic delusions or of mania. They talk of losing touch with reality and feeling split and fragmented. However, because it's comparatively rare and can happen to women with no history of mental illness, postpartum psychosis may go undiagnosed or be confused with post natal depression. In fact if it's treated properly, recovery from this very severe disorder can be very swift.

Now Radio 4 has been offered unique access to a group of women who have experienced the illness. They're taking part in an art project, funded by the Wellcome Trust, whose aim is to raise awareness of the condition.

As they meet at a workshop and in the artist Joan Molloy's studio they talk openly about what they went through, the hallucinations they suffered in the depths of the psychosis and their journey back to health. They also tackle the difficult topics of whether they wanted to harm themselves or their baby, the decision about whether to have a second child, and their perception of themselves as mothers.

The art project is supported by leading perinatal psychiatrist, Dr Ian Jones, who is working with teams in Cardiff and Birmingham universities to try to discover what it is about the physical experience of childbirth that triggers the illness. He tells us if they were able to establish whether some women had a genetic pre-disposition to the condition, it would be possible to predict which women were at high risk and to take the right steps before rather than after the illness has struck.

Presented by former journalist - Clare Dolman, who suffered an episode of postpartum psychosis herself after the birth of her first child twenty two years ago. She is a trustee of Action on Postpartum Psychosis and now works to raise awareness of the disorder.

Producer: Philippa Goodrich
A White Pebble Media production for BBC Radio 4.

Congratulations to Steph Brackpool and Mark Cox (Ward Manager of the MBU at Birmingham) for completing the Cardiff Half Marathon on behalf of APP. Steph hit 60 years old in January this year and has not done a competitive run before. This was Mark's first run too. Steph's and Mark's fundraising sites at Virginmoneygiving will remain open for another month. So far they have raised over £1200 for APP. Steph writes about her experience here. If you would like to join the APP running team and help to raise money for APP get in touch with Heather, Sue or Nicola at fundraising@www.app-network.org

The BSMHFT Perinatal Mental Health Research Conference in collaboration with Action on Postpartum Psychosis and the Marce Society will take place on July 8th 2011 at the Birmingham Medical Institute. All are welcome! Speakers include: Professor John Cox (identifying postnatal depression), Dr Margaret Oates (the most recent Confidential Enquiry into Maternal Deaths); Dr Ian Jones (postpartum psychosis); Dr Carol Henshaw (normal emotional changes following pregnancy); Dr Dawn Edge (considering BME issues); Dr Jess Heron (Mother and Baby Units), Dr Amanda Daley (exercise and PND); Dr Jo McCleery (infant health), Sukhi Sembi (peer support), and many more. Places are limited, so book asap to reserve a place. For further information and a booking form, contact: Shazia.hussain@bsmhft.nhs.uk

Early in 2010 we set about applying for formal charitable status to help us raise money for research into PP and APP projects. We are nearly at the finish post, and will have a charity number in early 2011. We thank Heather and Sue for their dogged determination with the process and paperwork. We now have a formal structure with a steering committee, chair, vice chair, secretary, and treasurer.

Until now, Ian and I have answered emails from members in an ad hoc way. Over the next year, Nicola Muckelroy will be setting up a Peer Support Network using trained volunteers who have recovered from PP themselves. Initially they will offer support to women and their families via email. People should telephone the Cardiff office to join APP, for information about peer support, or for signposting to resources and sources of advice.

In terms of research, we have had an exciting year. Our molecular genetic work is producing interesting findings, including overlaps with another pregnancy related condition, pre- eclampsia. Ian explains more about these exciting findings on the research page. We have produced the first piece of formal evidence from our postnatal care survey that Mother and Baby Units are more appropriate than general psychiatric units for women with illness following childbirth. We are also leading the way in terms of 'service-user' research, with a publication due out next year and presented at UK and international conferences.

Plans for 2011 include a postal survey and telephone interview study of the experiences and support needs of partners during an episode of PP. A media training workshop is planned offering women who wish to raise awareness of PP the chance to practise with real equipment and experienced trainers. Rachel’s study on changes in identity after PP will be complete next year. A study of second pregnancies is recruiting women who are pregnant or planning pregnancy, and, of course, our large scale studies of the causes and genetics of PP will continue to produce exciting results.