Having a baby and becoming a parent is an incredible, life-changing event.
Uncertainty in the world around us can trigger worry and fears about pregnancy, giving birth and becoming a parent, either for the first time or again.
We all want to provide our babies with the emotional support and care they need. But some parents will find it hard to give their babies and children the care that they need for lots of different reasons. This section covers key topics including preparing for birth, becoming a parent, and bonding with baby.
Parent infant relationship and birth support resources
Keeping the baby in mind during a pandemic - FAQs for Perinatal Clinicians, Cheshire and Merseyside Specialist Perinatal Service:
This guide is written for Specialist Perinatal Mental Health clinicians but may also be useful for midwives, health visitors, and other front-line practitioners.
Supporting mum, birthing person and parent in the transition to parenthood
Helpful video links:
Research carried out before the pandemic showed that over 80 per cent of mums feel lonely some of the time. Sharing experiences and being supported by family and friends can help mums and parents in their journey to parenthood. In the first video, clinical psychologists Dr Libby Chamberlain and Dr Anna Lovatt, outline key challenges and share ideas about how you can help a person to develop their support network and ways of coping with feelings.
The second video talks about being 'good enough' as a parent and the final video is a video from Anna Freud Centre. It is called 'We All Have Mental health can be useful video for partners, older children and the wider family to understand that we all have mental health challenges at times:
