Maternal mental health during a pandemic, Centre for Mental Health

The perinatal period is a time of significant risk to women ' s mental health, with up to two in ten women suffering some form of mental health difficulty. From early on in the Covid-19 pandemic, Centre for Mental Health and Maternal Mental Health Alliance were concerned about the likely increased mental health challenges that women in pregnancy and early motherhood were facing as a result of the pandemic and the restrictions introduced to tackle it. Maternal mental health during a pandemic is a rapid evidence review of the impact of Covid-19 on the mental health of women during pregnancy and after they ' ve given birth, and the support that ' s been available during the pandemic. The report finds that women and their families have faced extra pressures on their mental health, including anxiety about giving birth during lockdown or about becoming unwell, fears about losing employment, and increasing levels of domestic violence. It finds that some groups of women face a higher than average risk of poor mental health, including women of colour and women experiencing economic deprivation.
Source: Current Awareness Service for Health (CASH) - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news