Bid to highlight pregnancy depression

MORE needs to be done to spot and support women suffering with antenatal depression, according to British midwives.

The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) said more attention needed to be paid to the condition, which is less known and talked about than post-partum depression.

The RCM made the comments on Sunday after a new survey found that more than one-third of women who suffer depression during pregnancy have suicidal thoughts.

And four in five mothers surveyed who suffered with depression in pregnancy went on to struggle with post-partum depression.

Half of the 260 women surveyed said that their illness affected their relationship with their baby, according to the research conducted by the RCM and Netmums.

The chief executive of the RCM, Cathy Warwick, said the survey showed that there was an urgent need to identify and help women with depression in pregnancy and after the birth of their baby.

"If we can identify women as early as possible then we could prevent them declining into much more serious mental health problems," Ms Warwick said.

"The (UK) government has made a promise to women that they will be offered better support postnatally and that more will be done to spot and support postnatal depression.

"However, we know that antenatal and postnatal services are suffering as a result of budget cuts and a shortage of midwives. This is in addition to the postcode lottery of service provision for women with postnatal depression.

"If this situation is not rectified, the NHS (National Health Service) will continue to fail women with mental health problems during pregnancy or birth and the government's pledge would be judged to be an empty promise."

* Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14.

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