Postnatal depression and perinatal mental health

'Antenatal' and  'prenatal' both mean 'before birth'. These words refer to when you're pregnant. 

'Postnatal' or 'postpartum' both mean 'after birth'.  These words describe the year after your baby is born. 

'Perinatal' means 'around birth'. This term describes the whole period from when you become pregnant, until around 1 year after your baby is born.  

So doctors and midwives might talk about perinatal mental health, and perinatal care.  

If you experienced a mental health problem around a previous pregnancy, there's more risk that you'll become unwell again. This is particularly if you've experienced postpartum psychosis. But this doesn't mean you definitely will.

If you became unwell previously, you might worry about having another baby. But you may also feel more confident in how to look after yourself. And you may know how to spot any signs that you're becoming unwell.

If you get pregnant, or want to, talk to your doctor as soon as possible. You can discuss how to look after your mental health and the support you might need.

Your doctor can also refer you to a perinatal psychiatrist. This is a specialist doctor. They can support you if you're pregnant or recently gave birth, and have experience of mental health problems.

Action on Postpartum Psychosis (APP) has a series of guides about postpartum psychosis. This includes a guide to planning a pregnancy if you're at high risk of developing postpartum psychosis.

See our page on perinatal support and services for information about what support is available during pregnancy.

In some cases, your doctor may suggest that you stop taking certain medications to make sure your pregnancy is safe. In other cases you might decide together that it's best to stay on your medication. Or change to a different one with fewer risks.

Talk to your doctor about the risks and benefits. They can discuss how to manage medication during pregnancy and after having your baby.

If you decide to come off your medication, or your doctor suggests this, it's important to do it safely. 

Find out more about:

• Antidepressants during pregnancy
• Antipsychotics during pregnancy
• Lithium and mood stabilisers in pregnancy
• Coming off medication

If you have a mental health problem and you get pregnant, it's a good idea to talk to your doctor as soon as possible. It may also help if you're thinking of getting pregnant.

This could be speaking to your GP. Or you could talk to any other doctor involved in your mental health care, like a psychologist or psychiatrist.

This is because having mental health problems can increase your risk becoming unwell during pregnancy and after birth. This is especially if you've experienced severe depression, psychosis, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or schizoaffective disorder.

Your doctor can help you make plans to manage your mental health during pregnancy. They can also help you think about any extra support you might need. Our information on how to talk to your GP may help with having this conversation.

If you experience thoughts about harming your baby, this can be very frightening.

But remember that having these thoughts doesn't mean you are going to harm your baby. These thoughts can be a sign of postnatal depression, anxiety or obsessive-compulsive disorder.

You might be afraid to tell anyone about these feelings. But the more you can talk about them, the sooner you can get support. This could be talking to a family member or friend. Or to a health professional like your doctor or midwife.

You may worry that if you tell someone how you're feeling, your baby will be taken away from you. But having mental health problems and getting help doesn't make you a bad parent. And it doesn't mean that you're unable to care for your baby.

Talk to your doctor, midwife or health visitor as soon as possible. They can help make sure that you get the support you need.

A baby would only be taken into care in extreme circumstances. It only could happen if social services believe that your baby is at risk of serious harm or neglect.

Healthcare professionals want to help and support you.