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Birth workers and friends, Maternal Mental Health week is right around the corner! As we look to May, we ask you to take a moment and think about the ways in which you are supporting your own mental health, those of your friends and family, and as a provider, the way you support the mental health of your clients. World Maternal Mental Health Day falls on the first Wednesday of May each year in order to bring awareness of maternal mental health issues and to encourage mothers to seek support. The work that we do as a collective is so crucial to all expecting families, but especially to those that are at higher risk of developing PMADs, like our military families. Serving as a doula, lactation professional, or any of the other roles within the perinatal space is providing a lifeline to a military family and helping decrease those instances of PMADs that plagues this population. We cannot thank you enough for the work you do for military families - whether as a professional, an advocate, or a military family yourself. As you continue in your birth work, advocacy, or a member of the community throughout the month of May, take special focus of the mental health of those around you and those that you support. There are countless resources for our military families such as through the Military Family Life Counselor program (MFLC - Military OneSource), and various branch specific parent support initiatives. We are so proud to partner with PSI, who is leading the charge in this area and provides much needed support to all families, but also very specific support to our military connected families. We are grateful for their intentionality in making space for these families and are proud to join with them in sharing this resource. We ask that you please take the time to share with ALL of your military families (clients, friends, peers, etc) the PSI Military Moms - Perinatal Mood Support Group information. Having this information on hand can make the world of a difference.
So how can you join us in raising awareness of Maternal Mental Health? Share the PSI Military Moms - Perinatal Mood Support Group 2nd Wednesdays 4 PM PT/ 7 PM ET and 4th Wednesdays 5PM PT / 8PM ET
Description: Military spouses, active-duty personnel, and veteran moms are welcome to attend this online group to help you connect with other parents, talk about your experience, and learn about helpful tools and resources. Our trained peer facilitators are active-duty personnel and military spouses who understand the unique stress of military family life. No matter your rank, branch, or military status, all moms connected to the military are welcome. Conversations are confidential and judgment-free. Partake (and encourage others to participate) in the PSI The Blue Dot Project Maternal Mental Health Awareness Campaign starting May 5th! Details can be found HERE. A link to the social media toolkit is HERE.
Let’s share, support, and continue to raise awareness on maternal mental health issues, but also how important birth work (doula, lactation, massage, etc) are to supporting positive outcomes and decreasing mental health issues. Thank you for your work and trust in our organization. Warmest regards, MBRNPC team
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