Canadian Perinatal Mental Health Collaborative

May 5th WORLD MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH DAY ANNOUNCEMENT Registration is now open for our virtual symposium! We are thrilled to announce our theme for World Maternal Mental Health Day 2021: #TimeForAction It’s also the title of our report which we will be making public during our live, virtual symposium on May 5th where we will also be revealing the results of our survey and recommendations to government for a national perinatal mental health strategy!... This year, we have partnered with the Ludmer Centre to bring you the virtual symposium: Strategic Approaches To Perinatal Mental Health Care in Canada featuring keynote speakers Alain Gregoire, Dr. Simone Vigod and more. REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/improving-perinatal-mental-hea PROGRAMMING & SCHEDULE Part 1: Advancing the issue of perinatal mental health (10:30am-12pm EST) The Canadian Perinatal Mental Health Collaborative will discuss the results of Canada’s first-ever study and survey for health care practitioners on perinatal mental health care. In Canada, an estimated 20% of women experience perinatal mental illness. Rates have been elevated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Services currently available to those experiencing perinatal mental illness in Canada are largely inadequate and issues are magnified during COVID-19. Hear why the survey findings underscore a critical need for a national perinatal mental health strategy to address gaps in screening and treatment. Part 2 - Advancing Standards of Care: From Global to Local (12:30-2:00pm EST) Speakers Alain Gregoire (Global Maternal Mental Health Alliance) and Simone Vigod (Women’s College Hospital) will start the conversation about best practices in perinatal mental health care and current gaps in care for underserved communities: fathers and nonmaternal caregivers, indigenous maternal & infant health and wellbeing, and whole-family care for marginalized communities. The symposium will take place on May 5th, 2021, World Maternal Mental Health Day and is open to clinicians, researchers, advocates, government, and members of the general public. Click here to register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/improving-perinatal-mental-hea

A new Canadian study looking at the mental health of mothers before and after the start of the pandemic has found that their levels of depression and anxiety almost doubled in 2020, shedding more light on the burden parents are carrying during this crisis. https://www.ctvnews.ca//mothers-anxiety-and-depression-nea

Fantastic new research from CPMHC National Committee member Dr. Nichole Fairbrother on OCD: New research out of the University of British Columbia has found obsessive-compulsive disorder among new mothers is more common than previously thought. According to the study, this can be attributed to mothers experiencing thoughts of harm related to their baby, which makes them more likely to act out of an abundance of caution.... https://bc.ctvnews.ca//postpartum-ocd-more-common-among-ne

Mathematica arrived at the $2.2 billion figure by looking at both income loss and the increased cost of care. Women with untreated mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression had income loss from absenteeism and a lower likelihood of being part of the workforce; increased suicide rates; and worse maternal health, including pre-eclampsia and an increased need for cesarean delivery. https://www.statesman.com//untreated-mental-he/4740751001/

Myth #1: Men’s health pre-pregnancy doesn’t really matter. Experts tend to focus pretty heavily on what women can do to prepare for conception and a healthy pregnancy, because it’s very easy to measure the effects of certain factors and behaviors. We know a lot more about what interventions will help for women, said Dr. Mary Jane Minkin, a clinical professor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive sciences at Yale School of Medicine.... But the relative lack of information about men’s health pre-pregnancy and its effect on conception and beyond does not mean it doesn’t matter, she argued. It does. https://www.huffingtonpost.ca//preconception-myths-men_l_6

ANNOUNCEMENT WE’RE WRITING A BOOK! WITH YOU!!!The CPMHC is creating an anthology of perinatal mental health stories and we want YOUR story to be part of it. Submissions are due DEC. 10th so get writing!The first thing you need to know is that you don’t have to be a literary genius to be published in our anthology. All you need is the willingness to tell your story knowing how much your experience and words will help others know they are not alone. Here are the details...: Calling all moms/dads/partners & health care providers with lived experience (past or present) of a perinatal mental illness (prenatal and/or postpartum depression, anxiety, OCD, bipolar, psychosis). Here’s your chance to have your perinatal mental health story published! The CPMHC is working with Wintertickle Press the publishing house that brought you this year’s bestseller, Not Cancelled: Canadian Kindness in the Face of COVID-19, as seen on national media and in Indigo stores across Canada. Together, we’re creating an anthology of perinatal mental health stories. We want you to write your story, in your own words. Please send your submissions to [email protected] by December 10th. Length: approx. 800-1500 words (3-4 pages double spaced). Here are some questions to help guide you in your writing: 1. When did you first experience symptoms of perinatal mental illness? 2. Describe in detail how you felt mentally, emotionally, and physically. 3. What was the most pivotal moment or turning point for you during your perinatal mental health journey? Take us through that moment/day/event. 4. Were you able to get help? What was that journey like? 5. Did your experience turn you into an advocate for perinatal mental health? We want to hear all about it! Questions? Email us! #URnotalone #perinatalmhmatters #thisismystory #everyvoicecounts #strongertogether See more

Still thinking about sending in your story for our anthology? There’s still time! We are amazed at everyone’s passion and willingness to honestly share their perinatal mental health stories that are going to help countless others going through a very difficult time. Be part of this special project. Submit your story to [email protected] by Dec. 10th. Read more about the requirements here: https://cpmhc.ca/get-your-perinatal-mental-health-story-pu/

Health care providers You have until Dec. 15th to participate in our survey: https://bit.ly/perinatalhcp If you’re a doula, midwife, GP, OB, social worker, therapist, nurse, or any other health care professional that sees and cares for pregnant and postpartum parents or birthing persons, this survey is for you. The survey takes 10 minutes to complete and you can remain anonymous. The survey is part of a study we’re conducting with the University of Calgary on screening and treatment practices across Canada. Please share widely. If you have any questions, contact us at [email protected]. Read more: https://www.ucalgary.ca//assessing-gaps-canadian-perinatal

This week, there have been many many headlines in the U.S. about the rise in pregnancy and postpartum suicidality. Despite limitations in Canadian data, we know suicide is the fourth leading cause of death, with one in 19 maternal deaths in Ontario attributed to suicide. When will our politicians understand that we need a national perinatal mental health strategy now more than ever? We continue to fight daily to make this happen and we won’t stop until it happens. https://www.usatoday.com//growth-suicidal-thou/6346945002/

Watch this powerful Canadian short film put together by a research team exploring women’s experiences of perinatal mental health problems: https://healthexperiences.ca/pe/mental-health-and-pregnancy This film is hosted on their public web site for their research program at: www.healthexperiences.ca or www.experiencessante.ca. The research was completed by members of the health experiences team based at St. Mary’s Research Centre, McGill University, and Trillium Health Part...ners Institute for Better Health. They conducted qualitative interviews with 21 women in Ontario and Quebec using video/audio recording as per their consent, and identified key themes important to this group, which includes advice for others. The study was funded by the Royal Bank of Canada Foundation. LA VERSION FRANÇAISE Chers collègues, Par la présente je désire partager le court métrage que nous venons de lancer et qui se base sur notre recherche pour explorer les expériences des femmes à propos des problèmes de santé mentale périnatale. Nous le diffusons à toutes les participantes, les collègues et tous les prestataires de services de santé mentale périnatale à travers le Canada que nous avons trouvé lors de notre recherche en ligne. N’hésitez pas à partager les liens suivants avec les personnes à qui ils pourraient être utiles, y compris les patientes et les femmes de vos réseaux, les organismes communautaires, les professionnels de la santé, ou les autres services et programmes de soutien. Voir : https://healthexperiences.ca//sante-mentale-perinatale/san Ce film est hébergé sur le site Web public de notre programme de recherche www.healthexperiences.ca ou www.experiencessante.ca. La recherche a été complétée par les membres de notre équipe sur les expériences en santé au Centre de recherche de St. Mary, à l’Université McGill et Trillium Health Partners Institute for Better Health. Nous avons mené des entrevues qualitatives auprès de 21 femmes en Ontario et au Québec en utilisant, avec leur consentement, des enregistrements vidéo/audio. Des thèmes clés ont été identifiés pour ce groupe, y compris des conseils s’adressant aux autres. Cette étude a été financée par la Fondation de la Banque royale du Canada. Nous travaillons présentement sur la publication d’un manuscrit veuillez nous informer si vous aimeriez en recevoir une copie lors de sa publication. N’hésitez pas à nous faire part de vos commentaires sur cette ressource, et veuillez nous informer si/comment elle a été utilisée et de quelle façon elle a pu être utile.

We are calling on everyone with a perinatal mental health story to come forward! That includes moms, moms-to-be, dads, partners, non binary, intersex, gender queer, GNC, and agender. Please submit your story to [email protected] by Dec.10th. Read more: https://cpmhc.ca/get-your-perinatal-mental-health-story-pu/

Earlier this month, CPMHC National Committee member Dr. Lianne Tomfohr presented to the Canadian Parliamentary Health Research Caucus on her research into pregnancy during the pandemic https://www.pregnancyduringthepandemic.com and her involvement with the Canadian Perinatal Mental Health Collaborative Way to go Lianne!! You can view the presentation here. Lianne begins at 9:00: https://youtu.be/ektvHh9oPEA Lianne and the team of researchers started studying pregnant women ...in April. She told the caucus that the rates of depression in pregnancy in Canada right now are 30-35%. That’s 3x higher than they were before the pandemic hit. Rates of anxiety are closer to 40%. This really matters because when a person has untreated mental illness in their pregnancy, there are impacts on their developing baby. Babies of parents with untreated perinatal mental illness have been shown to have structural changes in their brains. It’s important to intervene early. The key things women are saying they need for mental health wellness: 1. Access to reliable child care 2. Medical care needs to be consistent 3. Safe ways to socialize Women should be screened for mental health problems in pregnancy. I work with an organization called the Canadian Perinatal Mental Health Collaborative. We knew before this that women weren’t getting screened and weren’t getting access to timely care. This is much worse now and we need to build our systems back better. We have an opportunity to look at things like telehealth so that people are getting access to timely, culturally sensitive, and evidence-based mental health care.