It's Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week: 6–10th May 2026

This is a topic that sits close to my heart for personal and professional reasons, so I thought I would write a blog post to share a bit about my own experiences, my training, and how I try to help the mums I work with.

1 in 5 women (probably more) experience Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMADs). Anger, rage, depression, anxiety, OCD, intrusive thoughts, and bipolar can all fall within the perinatal phase. This is different to "baby blues," which affects around 50–85% of women but passes after hormones settle around 2–3 weeks post birth. If low mood continues beyond this time, it's an indication that PMADs could be part of the picture. Perinatal mental health conditions can also affect partners, including men, and people experiencing pregnancy loss, abortion, and adoption.

One of the difficulties with perinatal mental health conditions is that women and parents often keep how they are feeling secret. This could be to do with the cultural images we hold of what parenthood should look and feel like, or a belief that we want to be a "good" parent and that our child deserves the best — which can lead to feelings of guilt when our internal hopes and reality don't always meet. It's a complex picture, and silence and secrecy remain a huge challenge for parents getting the support they need.

Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week is organised by the Maternal Mental Health Alliance. Their survey this year overwhelmingly showed how women do not feel listened to with regards to their mental health, and they want to highlight the power of women knowing it is okay to express their needs, feelings, and experiences.

This is why the classes and groups I facilitate are always intended to be spaces of safety and connection, where parents can come and explore their experiences and feelings, listen to other people's journeys, and seek support and guidance.

This winter I completed Yoga Therapy for Perinatal Mental and Physical Health with The Minded Institute, and I am in the final months of my Yoga Therapy Training with Orange Yoga in Cheltenham. I am careful to remain within my scope of practice and regularly refer people to their GP for referrals to the Perinatal Team in Worcestershire (who do such incredible work). I also refer people to two amazing organisations within our community: Koala Tree and Nurture Families, both of whom I am proud to work with through community yoga projects and weekly funded mindful movement sessions. We also have the incredible Becoming Families, who offer education, groups, and support for local families. These organisations are such wonderful resources and worth having on your radar.

There is support available — but I see a real challenge in parents quietly struggling on, not speaking up about how they feel. So I wanted to share a little about my own postnatal mental health journey, in case it resonates and helps you know you are not the only one feeling this way.

After having my first baby, I experienced postnatal intrusive thoughts and postnatal anxiety. I didn't tell a soul. I didn't even know what intrusive thoughts were — I just thought there must be something seriously wrong with me to have such horrific images come into my mind. I kept it all bottled up, not wanting people to think less of me, wondering why my mind kept showing me images of harm coming to my baby. I didn't understand what was happening, but I thought I just needed to work extra hard to keep her safe — and so the anxiety crept in too. It wasn't until years later that I realised what I had been going through, silently, alone.

I later learned that intrusive thoughts often come from a place of wanting to keep our babies safe — so safe that our minds imagine worst-case scenarios so we can be prepared and alert to danger. They come from a good place. They are just very unpleasant in the moment. My symptoms were actually fairly mild and didnt stop me living my life but for some intrusive thoughts can be completely devastating.

My baby grew, I started to sleep more, and the images drifted away. I largely forgot about them until I encountered them in my training, and felt total compassion for the brand-new parent version of myself who had gone through all of that, afraid to tell anyone what she was experiencing.

I now understand how important the nervous system is, how vital self-compassion and kindness are, how much peer support can help, and how useful therapy can be. My intention in my classes is to create spaces where parents feel safe, supported, listened to, and free to talk about their feelings. This is why Yoga Therapy is something I feel so passionately about — working one-to-one and in small groups with mums who need support in those early months and years.

If you or anyone you know is experiencing any of the feelings, thoughts, or behaviours below, please know that help is available and you are absolutely worth reaching out for it.

PMADs can include (from Awake at 3am: Yoga Therapy for Anxiety and Depression in Early Motherhood by Suzannah Neufeld, pp. 27–28):

Feelings: Sadness · Guilt or shame · Overwhelm or dread · Irritability or rage · Anxiety, fear, panic · Numbness · Loss of joy or pleasure · Lack of interest, connection, or love.

Thoughts: I'm not a good enough mum. All the other mums are better. My child/partner deserves better than me. Maybe this was a mistake. · Thoughts about something bad happening to self or baby · Constant worry · Preoccupation with personal or baby's health, or fear of harm coming to baby · Preoccupation with fear or worry about birth and pain · Thoughts of suicide, harming the baby, or wanting to die · Intrusive memories of past events or previous birth experiences.

Behaviours: Crying a lot · Problems with sleeping or eating (too much or too little) · Difficulty asking for or allowing help · Difficulty bonding or connecting with baby · Compulsive cleaning or checking · Compulsive researching.

You are not alone, and you do not have to keep this to yourself. Whether it's reaching out to your GP, contacting one of the wonderful organisations listed above, or simply coming along to a class and being in a room with other parents who understand — every small step towards support matters. If you'd like to talk, my door is always open.

Zoe x