External Seminar: Walking the walk: Adapting psychological interventions for the perinatal period in the UK and internationally

Abstract:

Pregnancy and the postnatal year following birth are a time of significant change and adjustment for parents. The potential for this period to be positive is significant, and the media and general culture are rife with examples of the joys of having a new baby. But for a considerable minority of parents, the perinatal period is a time filled with doubt, anxiety, and suffering. These experiences can be confusing and isolating. Parents do not know if their fatigue, tension, appetite, mood and sleep difficulties symptoms are “normal,” and it can be difficult for parents to seek out and find appropriate guidance and support. Until recently, only 15-30% of perinatal parents with mental health problems received any type of formal support for the problems they experienced.

How do we improve the appropriate uptake of treatments? What are the best ways to implement good perinatal mental health care? In this talk, I will discuss the work my colleagues and I have done in collaboration with parents to adapt and test the content and delivery of treatments for perinatal depression and anxiety. I will also discuss how these treatments are being implemented across the UK as part of the recent investment in Perinatal Mental Health, and how they are being used in international settings, including Japan, Sweden and Africa – with a focus on best models of practice.