Tag Archives: postpartum psychosis

29 April 2025

Iqra's story - I kept pushing myself like I had a superpower

When a mental health professional told me that I was really poorly - but that I could be treated - I stopped running away from it. I finally knew that there was something wrong with me, that it wasn’t my fault and, with the right help I could get better. It was the most reassuring thing anyone had said to me since I gave birth to my twins.

It was 2023 when I became unwell with postpartum psychosis (PP). I didn’t actually realise I was unwell at the time, but now I can reflect on it, I can pinpoint when it all started. And I believe I started to become unwell almost straight after giving birth.

I already had three children when I was pregnant with twins. My husband and I were both really excited. We’d recently moved house and had it renovated, and I was due a c-section, so everything felt a bit more planned. But we certainly didn’t plan for me becoming so unwell. In fact, neither me nor my husband had ever heard of PP before it affected us.

After giving birth, I didn’t really feel a connection to my new babies. My husband was obviously busy trying to look after our other three children, one of who has special needs, and I just felt a bit overwhelmed. I was struggling to feed the twins and I was really low on iron, which meant I found it hard to stay awake and I kept losing consciousness.

I just couldn’t admit that I needed help and I needed to slow down.

After having a blood transfusion I was able to go home to be with my family. I was excited to be back at home but I found it really difficult. I’d be up in the night with my newborns, and my husband would be up in the night with our son who is autistic. The workload of running a home and looking after five children just became too much – but every day I kept telling myself that I was fine – I could handle it. I just couldn’t admit that I needed help and I needed to slow down.

As exhaustion started to get the better of me, I started to believe some strange and supernatural ideas. The house we live in is my husband’s late grandad’s, and I started to believe that his spirit was around me and that I could hear his voice. I didn’t feel scared at first – in fact I felt quite positive about the experience. But as time went on, I started becoming agitated as well, snapping at everyone and yet I still refused to admit that I was struggling and needed help.

I set myself really high standards, trying to breastfeed both my twins and trying not to give them dummies which was really tough. Then, when they were eight weeks old, I broke down, feeling defeated. I gave them dummies and felt really disappointed in myself.

I was losing control of my own mind.

From that point on I wasn’t sleeping at night, even when the twins were asleep and I had that time and space to myself. I remember that I would look at their faces and feel scared. My mind was playing tricks on me and, when I looked at them, their faces looked disfigured. I was losing control of my own mind.

I definitely still had some kind of grasp on reality, however, because I knew that if I said out loud what I believed and what I was thinking people would assume I was crazy. So I kept everything to myself.

My delusions and hallucinations started becoming more intense at this point. I created some kind of male figure in my mind who was telling me that I wasn’t attractive and that my hands and my hair were awful. I became obsessed with these thoughts, spending all night brushing my hair and washing my hands over and over. Then the delusion started to spiral out of control, telling me to take my own life, and that my family would be better off without me.

As a Muslim woman in the Asian community, I’d heard people talking about black magic and I started wondering if somebody had performed black magic on me. I had no understanding of maternal mental health problems, and I’d certainly never heard of PP. I was so burnt out and exhausted by this point that I did eventually take an overdose to try to end it all.

My husband found me after I fainted and called an ambulance. The paramedics took me to hospital, but I was so out of it I kept trying to run away, to run back home. Eventually, someone from the mental health team came to speak to me and that was the big turning point for me.

That’s when they told me I was unwell, that I needed help, and that I could get better. Because I had tried to take my own life, I was admitted to an MBU (Mother and Baby Unit) but at this point nobody knew about my hallucinations and delusions as I kept it all to myself – so nobody knew I had PP.

After admitting to the hallucinations and delusions and getting the antipsychotic medication the psychosis started to recede really quickly.

As soon as I was admitted I was given sleeping pills and they worked wonders. However, they certainly didn’t cure me and it wasn’t until I finally admitted to the staff about my psychotic symptoms that I was given the right medication to get me on the road to recovery.

Still, it took a while to get fully better. I took so many medications, at one point I was taking 14 pills every day! My anxiety was sky high and I felt really overwhelmed and panicky and was unable to control the amount of oxygen I needed so I kept passing out.

But after admitting to the hallucinations and delusions and getting the antipsychotic medication the psychosis started to recede really quickly.

You hold back because you think your children will be taken away or you’ll be locked up forever, but for me, being honest was the turning point. Letting the health professionals in on what was really going on was the only way to get me well.

Now I’m recovered I want to share my story because I know how reassuring it is to meet others who have been through what you have. Motherhood is really hard anyway, but adding maternal mental illness into the mix makes things incredibly difficult. One thing I have learnt, however, is that your mind is really important and, if it needs rest, you need to let it rest. Plus, if you are becoming mentally unwell, the only real way out is by being honest about it and asking for help.

Before I was able to open up, I didn’t really socialise in the MBU, where I would stay for three months in total. But when I started speaking to the other mums in there and realising I wasn’t alone and I certainly wasn’t crazy, I started to feel so much better – speaking to others definitely helped me in my recovery. Now, I hope I can play a part in helping other women and families too.

27 April 2025

Run for APP in the 2026 London Marathon!

We're delighted to announce that APP has secured 12 places in the 2026 TCS London Marathon.

The TCS London Marathon is the world's most popular marathon, and the single biggest fundraising event on the planet. Taking place next year on 26th April, we're so excited APP is able to give you the chance to be part of it.

In the public ballot, more than 800,000 people apply each year for just 50,000 available places. We get many requests to run for APP, so we know interest will be high. Because of this, we're implementing an application procedure to ensure our limited places are allocated fairly, and that we have a team made up of people who are passionate about APP.

If you're interested, you can access the application form here.

Applications are open until 25th May and we'll let you know by 13th June if you have been successful.

There is a £100 registration fee to pay to secure your place, then we're asking our London Marathon runners to raise a minimum of £2,000 each. As with all our events, our team will be here to support you with your training and fundraising.

All APP runners will receive an APP running top, a marathon training guide produced by fitness experts Make Bold Choices, fundraising inspiration and supplies, and of course the all important APP medal and finishers goody bag! We'll also be there on the big day to cheer you on and celebrate with you at the finish line.

Whether you're a seasoned marathon runner, or you want a truly memorable experience for your first ever major event - if the London Marathon has always been on your wish list, now's your chance to give it a go.

We have places secured in the London Marathon each year until 2029, so even if you aren’t successful this time, or if maybe you need a bit longer to prepare - there will be a chance to apply for an APP place again the following year.

24 April 2025

Our biggest fundraising weekend!

This Sunday sees a huge number of amazing APP fundraisers in action all over the country, and beyond!

Not only do we have five APP runners taking part in the world famous London Marathon, we also have one runner in the Manchester Marathon, a team of 8 in the Antwerp 10 Mile, and a walker taking on the 23 mile Glasgow Kiltwalk!

All of them have been training hard for months and months in preparation for this weekend, as well as fundraising. We're so grateful to all of them and are looking forward to cheering them on on Sunday.

Read on to find out more about each of our amazing supporters.

London Marathon

Holly was lucky enough to secure a ballot place in this year's London Marathon, and fortunately for us, she's chosen to represent APP. Holly has fundraised for us before, running a marathon a month back in 2016/17! She's passionate about supporting APP because her sister had PP in 2013 after the birth of her son, Holly's nephew, Leo.

Holly explains: 'As Leo and my daughter, Imogen, were only born six weeks apart, it was a very challenging time in our lives. APP gave us support at the time and since then I have raised money for them through lots of running events.

The London Marathon is on my bucket list. I watch it on the news every year and feel inspired by all the people lacing up their trainers to raise money for such awesome causes.'

Thank you for running for us Holly! Good luck. Add your support for Holly here.

Satpal also secured her place in this year's marathon via the ballot, and has chosen to run for APP.

Satpal has run several marathons before and but says she decided to support APP this year because: 'The cause is close to my heart as two lovely ladies and their families had to deal with this condition and that because of that I wish to raise awareness'.

Satpal will be running alongside her husband Parv on the big day. Thank you and good luck to you both!

Add your support for Satpal here.

Sarah is a very keen runner, having run eight marathons before! She got her spot in the marathon this year as a deferred Good For Age place from pre pregnancy.

Sarah suffered with mental health problems, including suspected PP after the birth of her baby Flynn, in 2023. She has chosen to share her story here to help other new mums who might be feeling like she did.

She is passionate about raising awareness of PP and wants to give something back by taking part in the London Marathon this year. Sarah is running to raise funds for both APP and the Beadnell Mother and Baby Unit in Morpeth where she was looked after so well when she was ill.

Good luck Sarah! Support Sarah here.

Chay is another keen runner who managed to get a place in the London Marathon via the ballot this year.

Chay is dedicating his run to his good friend and survivor of PP, Jade Lloyd, who was diagnosed with PP four months after having her daughter back in 2021. Jade has inspired Chay to learn more about PP through her dedication to spreading awareness, educating health professionals and helping mothers struggling with PP.

Good luck Chay! You can follow updates from Chay on Instagram here and add your support for him here.

Kate is probably our most experienced marathon runner, this year managing to secure her 4th 'Good For Age' place for the London Marathon, and so decided this year to run for APP.

She tells us why she chose to represent APP this year: 'My close family friend Sally Wilson, (APP's National Training Co-ordinator) suffered from this crippling condition and raising awareness of the condition is very important as spotting early signs can save lives.

I hope to raise some money for this very important charity to help in the wonderful work that they do.

When the going gets tough around the 19 mile mark Sally will be in my heart to spur me on to the finish!'

Kate is fundraising through organising events including a coffee morning next month. Thank you Kate - you're an inspiration! Good luck!

Manchester Marathon

Ellie

We're so proud to have Ellie representing us in the Manchester Marathon this Sunday. It will be her first full marathon and somehow she has managed to fit in the training for it around her busy job as a perinatal psychiatrist.

Ellie says she chose to run for APP because: 'Perinatal mental illness is an area that I feel really passionately about. It was only recently that it was something people didn't really talk about but we now know that improving perinatal mental health can have a huge impact on the whole family for years to come.
When I was a foundation doctor, it was seeing a woman who had postpartum psychosis on the maternity ward that first triggered my interest in Psychiatry. I hadn't even heard of the condition and couldn't believe that somebody who was previously well could become so unwell so quickly after birth to the point that they were unable to look after themselves or their baby. It stayed with me as one of the most shocking and saddening illnesses I had ever come across.
Charities like APP can have a really big impact in this rapidly developing area to provide support to affected families and to improve awareness of this condition.'

Thank you Ellie - have a great run! Do look out for Ellie if you're in Manchester this weekend and add your support for her amazing marathon efforts here.

Antwerp 10 Mile

On Sunday, Elke, Kwame and several members of their family will be taking on the Antwerp 10 Mile run - part of Belgium's biggest running event.

A fab team made up of Elke, Kwame, Tom, Adèle, Ruud, Lau, Vincent and Anne will be running a total of 80miles between them - while Opa and Oma will be looking after baby Nana and cheering the team on from the sidelines!

APP is a cause close to all their hearts, and we're so proud to have them representing us in Belgium for the first time!

Find out more about their challenge, and add your support here.

Glasgow Kiltwalk

Kirsten is taking on the biggest walk available as part of the Glasgow Kiltwalk - 23 miles from the centre of Glasgow all the way to Balloch on the banks of Loch Lomond. Kirsten has chosen to support APP with her walk because her sister Jodie (also a past APP fundraiser!) suffered from PP after the birth of her baby.

Kirsten says: 'APP helped my sister feel a sense of normality and comfort during a confusing and traumatic time. By providing Christmas presents to all of the mums in the Mother and Baby Unit that my sister was staying in, that small gesture helped spread some joy during a dark time - while giving the mums a reminder that people care about them. Postpartum Psychosis is a condition my family and myself were unaware of until we experienced it with Jodie, so having a charity like APP to spread awareness to the condition is so important as it is a lot more common than you realise.

The charity helped my sister to realise how many other women experience this illness, which made her feel much less alone and alienated and was a lot less scared knowing that other woman have survived it…so she could too!'

Thank you - we hope you have a great day Kirsten! You can add your support for Kirsten's Kiltwalk here.

2 April 2025

Brighton Marathon Weekend!

This weekend sees the 15th anniversary of the Brighton Marathon weekend - a huge festival of running across the vibrant community of Brighton & Hove, and APP has its biggest ever team taking part!

There will be plenty of purple clad runners to look out for, with 16 people running for APP in the Brighton 10k, and six in the full marathon.

APP supporter Juliette (pictured above with some of her team) will be taking part, and has rallied her friends and family, assembling a huge team for the 10k event, including her husband Ross, plus Rose, Savannah, Spencer, Theo, Tori, Didi, Grainne, Lia, Sarah and more.

Juliette's friends Bethan, pictured here, and Nick have chosen to go the extra mile (literally!) and will be taking on the full marathon. The team have already raised an incredible £2,500.

Juliette says: 'I'm so grateful to my wonderful friends for taking on this challenge for such an amazing cause. Brighton is an important city to me and has been my home for 15 years. It's great to be taking on a run in my home city, with so many fantastic people by my side. This team has supported me thoroughly each step of my recovery and I can't wait to celebrate with them at the finish line.'

Our other amazing APP Brighton marathon runners include Becky, Alex, James and Rob.

Mum of three Becky has taken on this massive challenge to help raise awareness of PP. She experienced PP after the birth of her twins in 2021.

Back in 2023, Becky raised more than £3200 as part of an APP Miles for Mums and Babies challenge, walking an amazing 43 miles in a single day.

She says her three girls are her motivation for getting out and training through the coldest months of the year, and her family will be there to cheer her on on Sunday. Support Becky here.

Alex has chosen to run for APP as his wife Michelle suffered with PP after the birth of their daughter. Michelle is also taking part in the 10k in Brighton this year.
Support Alex and Michelle here.

We also have two runners who loved representing APP so much before they're back for more! James completed the Paris Marathon for us last year, and Rob ran Brighton for us in 2023.

We'll also have plenty of APP cheerleaders along the route, and our new purple APP flag will be getting its first outing so look out for fluttering in the sea breeze!

Blue skies are forecast so it should be a wonderful event - keep an eye on our socials for updates throughout the day.

Wishing all of our runners lots of luck! Have a great day.

12 February 2025

BBC's Casualty explores importance of friends, family and colleagues spotting the signs of PP

Fans of BBC's Casualty will have no doubt been following Nicole's dramatic postpartum psychosis storyline, the peak of which aired earlier this month.

The storyline is something that we've all been following at APP too - for several months in fact - as we were delighted to be approached by the Casualty team to work with them as they developed the scripts in 2024.

Nicole's story is a little bit different, as she gave birth as a surrogate, so returned to work very quickly, and it was while she was working in the Casualty department that she first developed symptoms of PP. To watch the build up scenes where Nicole's partner and colleague, Ngozi, starts to notice that something is wrong, you can check out the episode that aired on 25th January by clicking here.

The story progressed as Nicole became acutely unwell, making mistakes, becoming confused and suffering from hallucinations and delusions. Eventually, her colleagues spotted the signs of PP and knew immediately that Nicole needed urgent help.

The story is so well done and we're really pleased with how the team handled everything so sensitively. There's a link to watch Nicole's main episode below, but please take care when watching as it is such a strong and powerful portrayal.

Watch Nicole's episode here

Our wonderful fundraiser and storyteller, Juliette Mackenzie, also wrote a fabulous response piece to the story which was published in metro. Juliette is herself a midwife who experienced PP and, much in the same vein as Nicole's storyline, found herself being supported and diagnosed by colleagues.

Read Juliette's response piece here.

We're always keen to hear from producers and programme teams who are working on postpartum psychosis storylines. Should you wish to discuss this with us, please contact our media team by emailing media@app-network.org

30 January 2025

Juliette’s story: I’m a midwife, but I wasn’t prepared for postpartum psychosis

It’s so odd to go completely mad. It’s such a weird experience. I remember quite a lot of it and how vivid and visceral those feelings were and, even though I’d experienced mental health problems in the past, nothing quite prepared me for postpartum psychosis.

I’m a midwife, and I’ve supported other women with perinatal mental illness. I’ve even suspected PP in others so I have some awareness of it. But even with that knowledge and experience, I never considered it was something that might happen to me.

My pregnancy went smoothly and I really enjoyed it. I didn’t feel particularly worried or anxious about anything. I was hoping for a home birth but I was open minded so when I ended up in hospital it wasn’t an issue for me. Being a midwife, there were some things that played on my mind, like the risk of stillbirth, for example, because these are things we have to deal with, and I had some concerns about postnatal depression because I’d suffered with depression before. But I felt so well in pregnancy that I didn’t feel the need for any additional support or referrals

I went into labour and had a beautiful few days at home but after the second day of labour I wasn’t progressing well so I was transferred into hospital. I had quite a lot of gas and air which I felt messed with my head a bit and, because my waters had broken three days earlier and I wasn’t progressing, they suggested I have a C Section.

I agreed but remember having a panic attack in theatre. I couldn’t cope with the feel of it and I think it also triggered some past trauma as well. However, not long after I was holding my baby boy and feeling delighted.

We went home and I remember being quite happy but crying a lot. I struggled with sleep because I kept having nightmares, so I tried not to sleep and just watched my baby. Obviously the midwives that visited knew something wasn’t quite right because they suggested I speak to the mental health midwife. She suggested sleeping pills but they just weren’t touching the sides – I remained wide awake.

I started to notice strange things, too. I’d believe that the films we were watching were about me. Even films like The Aristocats!

I also became completely obsessed with snooker. My partner, Ross, taught me the rules and we watched it on TV and I thought I was really clever learning such complicated rules after giving birth. I’d even tell the midwives all about it.

Then, one morning, I was retching and needing to throw up but I couldn’t. In my mind I thought I was maybe like a baby that needed burping so I lay down on the floor and was crawling around. Then I crawled to see Ross and told him that I’d unlocked one of the biggest secrets of the universe – that when you give birth you have an experience where you become like the baby which helps you learn how to look after a baby. I phoned my mum and told her this as well.

Both Ross and my mum agreed I needed to go back to hospital at this point!

I was stressed and anxious as we climbed into the Uber to go to the hospital. I was rambling and became more and more frustrated that nobody seemed to be listening to me. At the hospital I asked for a laptop and ended up frantically writing a 5,000 word essay to explain my feelings. I stayed there for five days, crying, screaming, thinking I was dying and believing all sorts of strange things – including that my colleagues were forcing me to reenact my caesarean and that my baby had died. They tried giving me different meds to help me sleep but nothing was working. It was hard and confusing being on the ward where I worked with my colleagues looking after me.. My beliefs about different films being about me worsened during this time and I also became obsessed with my phone, sending hundreds of messages to lots of different people, including colleagues and big group chats. It feels embarrassing looking back but everyone’s been so understanding. At that point I was sectioned and taken to the Mother and Baby Unit (MBU) in Bournemouth – quite a trek from my home town of Brighton.

It was a traumatic journey because I didn’t want to go – I just wanted to go home so I was rambling and shouting. I believed the faster I spoke the faster the ambulance would go. I was absolutely petrified because I didn’t really understand what an MBU was at that point – I thought it was something to do with social services.

When I arrived at the MBU, I thought I was dying of an opioid overdose. I think my breathing was slowing, and I felt I was a bit catatonic. After a day or so Ross and my baby came in and we settled into this pattern of Ross coming in all day, me having my baby, and the baby going to the nursery at night

A lady in a patterned short sleeved shirt with short hair and sunglasses on her head, sitting on a bead next to her daughter, who is lying down with her small baby next to her. — Juliette's mum visiting her in the MBU

I was on the MBU for about four weeks, but for the last week I was allowed home on leave to Brighton.

Once my psychosis had passed I was discharged to go home properly, but I fell into a very deep depression. I had so much grief about everything that happened, what I’d missed out on, how embarrassing it all was. Luckily Ross was off work for four months – something we’d planned because I was worried about having depression before I gave birth – but when he eventually went back to work I just had no confidence with how to look after our baby.

Unfortunately, I became suicidal and had to go back to a different MBU to treat the depression a few months later. I started on lithium at this point. I was quite scared of that drug because of the blood tests you have to have to monitor things and it sounds quite intense and scary but it did seem to work and I’ve started to feel much better – although the whole experience still feels incredibly sad and unfair.

My baby is so much more interactive now so that’s really nice, but I was always so excited for that tiny newborn phase and I’m heartbroken that I missed out on so much of it. But we are having nicer times as a family now which I’m enjoying.

I honestly can’t thank my friends and family enough for all their support during my illness and recovery, and I’ve had great help from APP’s peer supporters too.

That’s why a group of us are fundraising for APP by taking part in a 10k run in April.

A woman with her hair tied back, glasses and a smile on her face, holding a tray with half eaten cinnamon buns and a purple t-shirt that says APP on the front — Enjoying cinnamon buns after a run

I’d honestly say to anyone experiencing PP that people are generally more understanding than you might think they’ll be. It’s invaluable for you and your partner to have that extra support so do reach out for help and remember, there’s no shame in having PP. It’s not your fault.

To find out more about Juliette’s fundraiser and donate click here

23 January 2025

New Theatre Production Shines Light on Postpartum Psychosis and Challenges Stigma

We're thrilled to announce that the theatre production we have been supporting Company Four with to shine a light on Postpartum Psychosis will be opening at the end of this month at Waterside Arts, Sale.

Who Is Your Mummy and Where Did She Go? is a powerful and thought-provoking theatre production aimed at raising awareness of postpartum psychosis and reducing the stigma surrounding maternal mental health.

Opening on Friday, January 31^st , the production explores historical narratives of women diagnosed with postpartum psychosis, using their stories to reflect on contemporary care and societal attitudes. This unique blend of theatre and advocacy brings together compelling storytelling, live performance, and projected poetry to create an emotionally resonant and inspiring experience.

A Vital Message for Today

Postpartum psychosis (PP) is a severe but treatable mental health condition that affects around 1-2 in every 1000 births. Core symptoms may include not needing to or being unable to sleep, hallucinations, delusions, confusions and mania. While support and treatment have improved over the years, stigma and a lack of understanding still prevent many women from seeking help. This production aims to foster compassion and understanding by using the past as a guide to inform and improve today’s care.

A Call for Change

This production is not just a performance—it’s a call to action. By raising awareness, challenging stigma, and advocating for better care, Who Is Your Mummy and Where Did She Go? invites audiences to be part of a conversation that has the potential to save lives.

Director Gemma Whitley explains,

“This show is not just about history—it’s about the present. By exploring the untold stories of women from the past, we’re inviting audiences to rethink how we view and support maternal mental health today. Theatre has the power to open up these conversations in a deeply human and accessible way.”

A Collaborative Effort

The production has been supported by APP. Jenny Stevenson, our National Peer Support Co-ordinator (Online Services), said:

'Members of the APP team and our lived experience community have been delighted to support this production through the research and development process and through creative workshops. Giving a voice to postpartum psychosis and maternal mental health through art is extremely powerful - we are looking forward to seeing the performances and how sharing our experiences of postpartum psychosis has helped to inform the production.'

Waterside Arts, a vibrant cultural hub in Sale, is proud to host the production. Darren Adams, Venue Manager at Waterside says ‘Waterside is delighted to support theatre artists in developing meaningful discussions around contemporary issues, fostering creativity and dialogue within our community’

Event Details:

Dates: Friday, January 31^st 2025 & Saturday, February 1^st2025

Location: Waterside Arts, Sale

For further information or to buy tickets, click here.

To find out more about the exhibition, click here.

Join the Conversation

As part of the production, there will also be a curated exhibition featuring poetry and artwork by women who have experienced postpartum psychosis, offering a deeply personal and moving insight into their journeys. Post-show discussions with the creative team and mental health professionals will further explore how we can collectively work to break the silence around maternal mental health.

7 January 2025

Join us for an APP Adventure!

Join us for our first ever APP Adventure!

Imagine taking part in an invigorating hike through beautiful Derbyshire countryside, alongside other women and families who have been affected by postpartum psychosis. Talking, sharing stories and coming together to raise awareness and funds to help make a difference for others.

Be part of our first APP Adventure.

Saturday 21st June - Mam Tor Challenge, Peak District, Derbyshire

Mam Tor means 'Mother Hill' 💜
An 8 mile/13km circular walk, including Mam Tor and passing through the village of Hope.
Total ascent: 514m
Time: Approx 4 hours

Registration Fee: £25
Minimum fundraising target: £200

What's included:

Event run by experienced charity challenge organisers Sky Blue Adventures
APP fundraising pack and support with your fundraising activities
APP branded t-shirt
Goody bag
APP medal
Highly experienced mountain leaders (fully qualified and first aid trained)
Insurance
Snacks to keep your energy up on the day
Lots of laughs, smiles and the chance to make new friends and memories!

Places are limited so register soon to secure your place in our first APP Adventure Team!

If you have any questions or need more info before you register, contact Fliss - fundraising@app-network.org

We can't wait for you to join us on our first APP Adventure!

17 December 2024

City Bridge Foundation provides significant funding for peer support

We are delighted to announce that Action on Postpartum Psychosis (APP) has received 5 years of funding from City Bridge Foundation – London’s biggest independent charity funder – for a project to provide peer support for London-based women and families affected by postpartum psychosis (PP).

The new funding will help APP build a PP peer support community and is for anyone living in London affected by PP - whether newly recovering or with experience of PP many years ago. The project will reduce isolation, break through stigma, and provide empathy and hope. APP groups are social, supportive, warm and fun, with a wellbeing focus. Members of the community can train as volunteers as they recover and develop new skills.

Tragically, suicide is the leading cause of maternal death in the 12 months after having a baby. PP is the most severe form of postnatal mental illness affecting 1 to 2 in every 1000 new mums. With the right help, people recover, but the journey to full recovery can be hard. There is much work to do to raise awareness, ensure swift diagnosis, enable families to access specialist treatment and tailored peer support to help women and families feel less alone.

The City Bridge Foundation funding will provide several opportunities for us to improve support to families.

We will be recruiting an additional peer support worker to cover the London area, ensuring that more women and families have access to this powerful form of support. This will include a regular London PP community café group and one-to-one peer support.

We will also be given additional funds to focus on targeted awareness raising in the London area, connect with London Mother and Baby Units (MBUs), and to run creative workshops.

Ellie Ware, APP National Peer Support Coordinator said:

“We are so thrilled to receive this grant. This will help us to reach more families in London affected by postpartum psychosis (PP), and to offer more peer support than we currently offer. This will include running a monthly in person peer support café group. We know our peer support is life changing for women and families, and that it massively helps with the isolation, grief, and stigma people experience when they have had PP”.

To find out more about the London Peer Support Worker role, please click here.

If you have been affected by postpartum psychosis and you live in the London area, please join the APP network for updates here.

If you have been affected by suicide relating to postpartum psychosis, you can find out about our new bereavement support group here.

If you are from an MBU or Perinatal Team in the London area, please sign up for our MBU newsletter here.

About City Bridge Foundation

City Bridge Foundation is a world-class bridge owner responsible for five Thames crossings – including the iconic Tower Bridge – and London’s biggest independent charity funder.

It awards over £30 million a year in grants to charitable organisations across London and has made a further £200 million available over the five years to 2026 to support the capital’s charity sector.

City Bridge Foundation has been bridging London and connecting communities for over 900 years. Its sole trustee is the City of London Corporation – the governing body for the Square Mile.

www.citybridgefoundation.org.uk

7 November 2024

Jenni’s story: Having my baby by my side is something I’ll always be grateful for

Being able to wake up every morning with my baby daughter by my side was amazing. As sick as I was, I really held onto that and it definitely helped me in my recovery. Mother and Baby Units (MBUs) are so important for that reason. We were a long way from home, and it was devastating being sectioned, but having Isla with me throughout is something I’ll always be grateful for.

Jenni Semple at family at Disneyland, standing in front of the magical castle

Being a first time mum who was lucky enough to have an uncomplicated, happy pregnancy, I really wasn’t prepared for what followed.

The birth itself was really traumatic, resulting in a forceps delivery. But after that, I was strangely elated. I knew I would probably feel really happy because I’d just given birth to our beautiful baby girl. But, in hindsight, this was a whole different level of happiness. I couldn’t switch off. And I couldn’t sleep either.

I went home from hospital within a couple of days of giving birth and one of the first things I remember is that taking my pain relief was problematic. I couldn’t remember how to do it, and I kept writing down different dates, times and doses, but I still had no idea if I was taking too much or too little and it really scared me. On top of that, I was hit with a fear that they were going to take Isla away from me. My midwife would visit and spend several hours trying to reassure me, but no matter what she said, she couldn’t put my mind at rest.

Then I started worrying about more things and no matter what anyone said, I couldn’t stop obsessing. For example, I was convinced I was feeding Isla incorrectly and went as far as to hire a private lactation consultant. But even when she reassured me that I was doing OK, I just didn’t believe her.

I had a sense that something wasn’t right, and, because I also hadn’t slept, I wondered if I had some kind of baby blues or something. But when my mother in law came to visit and voiced her concerns, I got really angry and told her to leave. Still, I went to see the doctor with my husband genuinely believing they’d be able to give me a tablet, send me home and all would be well.

When I got there, however, I was completely unable to communicate with my GP. I couldn’t understand what she was saying, it all sounded muddled and scary. She immediately diagnosed me with PP and contacted the perinatal mental health team.

We waited in a separate consultation room but the perinatal team didn’t call back so we were sent home. It was a Tuesday, and that night was the worst. That night was when the hallucinations, the voices, started. And it felt like it went on for hours.

By Wednesday morning my husband chased the GP who chased the mental health team and a psychiatrist came to the house with a nurse and another doctor. I was immediately sectioned.

Just before they came, my behaviour became really scary for my husband. I was trying to kill myself. I remember my husband trying to hold me back from going out of the door. And when I look back on this I just feel overwhelmed with guilt that while all of this was happening, I simply wasn’t looking after Isla.

So that night I was taken by ambulance to Bournemouth MBU where I spent three weeks as an inpatient. It was an equally harrowing and scary experience because my illness convinced me that I was in prison and that I was never getting out.

At the same time, as it was early in 2020, the pandemic was just happening. So that all added to my paranoia – particularly around the belief that I wasn’t really in a hospital and it was all a set up.

Looking back though, during my three weeks in the MBU, the staff really were amazing. Not only did it mean I could recover with Isla by my side, but there were lots of activities to take part in – cooking, gardening, etc. And I bonded quite well with the other patients. It was a tough time, however, because the MBU was so far from home. We lived in Oxford at the time and our nearest MBU would have been Winchester but they didn’t have any beds so I ended up in Bournemouth. My husband literally drove 4,000 miles in three weeks in order to visit us!

After three weeks they decided I could go home, but the day I got released was the day we went into full lockdown - which did my paranoia no good! I was still very peculiar for a few weeks - I couldn’t listen to the radio or focus on the telly for a while. And I had to stay on medication.

Everything was kind of OK for a few weeks, and then depression hit. It took a really long time to come out the other end of the depression but I got there eventually.

Now, we’ve moved back to Norfolk to be near my family. I’ve changed jobs too and we’ve just got a puppy – so family life is really good.

I also have really good peer support through APP.

Jocelyn has been amazing – if ever I have a dip, she’s right there. She helped me through the acute phase but it’s so nice to know that there’s somebody else who has been through what I have who is always available to chat. Being able to share what you’ve been through with someone who just gets it is so important. I would encourage anyone going through PP to reach out for peer support.

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