The book offers a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of key issues in perinatal mental health. Classic topics such as screening, assessment, pharmacological, psychological and psychosocial interventions of the most common conditions (depression, anxiety disorders, etc.) are combined with lesser known issues, such as mother-infant relationship disorders or thoughts of infant-related harm and aggressive behaviors, sleep disturbances in puerperium, obsessional disorders, fetal death etc., paying particular attention to specific groups of perinatal patients like mothers with cancer, adolescents, fathers, migrants, and preterm babies. The chapters written by health professionals working in hospitals, community services or voluntary agencies alternate with contributions from researchers whose fields of expertise include biology and neuroscience, diagnosis and special needs, treatment and prognosis, etc., striking a balance between scientific investigation and clinical practice.The book offers a valuable tool for a wide range of professionals like psychiatrists, psychologists, gynecologists, midwives, oncologists, pediatricians, and social workers, who want to improve their clinical practice and the effectiveness of their treatment pathways using evidence from perinatal health research.

This text provides background on the history of perinatal psychiatry, and discusses future directions in the field. It clearly defines perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs), which are the most common complication of pregnancy. When left untreated, PMADs are morbid and devastating for both the patient and their entire family. It reviews gold standard recommendations for the treatment of PMADs, including evidence-based psychotherapies, as well as risk-benefit analysis of psychotropic medication use in pregnancy and lactation. Additionally, common presentations of depression, anxiety, and trauma in pregnancy and postpartum women, as well as mania, psychosis, suicidal and homicidal thoughts are reviewed. Women’s Mood Disorders: A Clinician’s Guide to Perinatal Psychiatry highlights special considerations in pregnancy, including teenage pregnancies, hyperemesis gravidum, eating disorders, substance abuse disorders, as well as infertility, miscarriage and loss. The text concludes with outlining the importance of collaborative care in providing gold standard treatment of perinatal women and review documentation and legal considerations. This handbook will help educate and train future psychiatrists and OBGYNs in feeling confident and comfortable assessing and treating pregnant women who suffer from PMADs.

Mood and Anxiety Disorders During Pregnancy and Postpartum earns its important place in the literature by detailing our current understanding of the course, diagnosis, and treatment of psychiatric illness during pregnancy and postpartum, including breast-feeding -- a top priority today because we now know that active maternal psychiatric illness during pregnancy and postpartum can exert long-term negative effects on child development and cause significant morbidity for the mother. In just five concise richly informative chapters, the nine distinguished contributors to Mood and Anxiety Disorders During Pregnancy and Postpartum dispel prevailing beliefs and offer invaluable guidance in treating women during pregnancy and postpartum: Course of Psychiatric Illness During Pregnancy and the Postpartum Period -- Despite the enduring belief that pregnancy is a time of emotional well-being for women, emerging data show that pregnancy is instead a time of increased vulnerability to psychiatric illness. Diagnosis and Treatment of Mood and Anxiety Disorders During Pregnancy -- Though the use of psychotropic medications during pregnancy and postpartum raises concerns, the accumulating data support the use of certain SSRIs/tricyclic antidepressants, especially when balanced against the risk to both mother and child of depression during pregnancy. Management of Bipolar Disorder During Pregnancy and the Postpartum Period: Weighing the Risks and Benefits -- Although the onset of bipolar disorder (BP) tends to occur during women's reproductive years, surprisingly little is known about the impact of the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, postpartum, breast-feeding, and menopause on the course and treatment of bipolar disorder. Postpartum Mood Disorders -- Women experience a dramatic increase in their risk of developing severe psychiatric illness during postpartum for a full year after delivery. Often overlooked, postpartum disorders must be identified and treated as early as possible to reduce the mother's risk for recurrent and treatment-refractory illness and the child's risk for long-term development problems due to the detrimental effect of maternal depression. Use of Antidepressants and Mood Stabilizers in Breast-feeding Women -- This expanded clinical appraisal of the literature on antidepressant and mood stabilizer use in breast-feeding women shows that additional detailed pharmacokinetic investigations are urgently needed to enhance our understanding of nursing infant exposure and the role(s) of pharmacogenomics in determining infant exposure. Meticulously referenced and remarkably succinct, Mood and Anxiety Disorders During Pregnancy and Postpartum provides critical information about the course of illness during pregnancy and postpartum to help guide effective individualized treatment decisions-decisions that are ultimately based on the patient's wishes.

Another Twinkle in the Eye is an essential guide for anyone contemplating another pregnancy after perinatal mental illness. The decision to bring a child into the world is rarely one that is taken lightly. When a previous pregnancy and early parenthood has resulted in poor maternal and/or paternal perinatal mental health, making a conscious decision to have another baby can be even more challenging. This unique book provides facts, resources, and discussion points to support people in making informed and comfortable decisions. It is also an essential resource for health professionals who support or are involved in the decision-making process of couples planning another pregnancy. The author combines personal experience with real-life stories from other parents. Also included are contributions from healthcare professionals. The book offers comprehensive coverage across five key areas: Reflection on the previous pregnancy, miscarriage or stillbirth, Decisions to be made when considering another pregnancy, Ways to plan for and to have a healthier experience, The role of healthcare professionals and facilities, and Self-help and complementary techniques for good mental health in the perinatal period.

Pursuing a multidisciplinary approach, this book demonstrates the best quality care for pregnant women and new mothers who may have complex social needs. This book will benefit all health and social care professionals working in women’s health, while also providing a valuable reference guide for maternity departments. The latest Mothers and Babies: Reducing Risk through Audits and Confidential Enquiries across the UK (MBRRACE-UK) demonstrates the consequences that having multiple complexities has and the need to ensure that susceptible groups receive personalised, appropriate care and meeting the needs of all women is urgent and essential. This book brings together a blend of health and social care professionals, experts by experience and the charity third sector. All have expertise in caring for and supporting perinatal women with issues that may affect their health and the type of care they require. Through our collective writing, we provide a paradigm for partnership working and hope to have strengthened voices by highlighting women’s experiences and the importance of third sector partnerships, working in tandem with women who are experts by experiences and bringing health professionals together. In combination with recommendations from specialists in the field, we have offered a unique mix of compassion and evidence-based guidance. From substance abuse, domestic violence and HIV to experiences of Black, Asian and Ethnic Minorities, homelessness, women seeking asylum and women in prison, we have addressed a range of current issues and provided essential information and opportunities to reflect. Each chapter invites the reader to step into the shoes of the perinatal woman. Through our collective writing, we provide a paradigm for partnership working and hope to have strengthened voices by highlighting diverse experiences. We have looked at how using a trauma informed approach can be applied universally to care for all women and learn from charities such as Birth Companions, the 4M project and the Salamander Trust, how different approaches may directly impact women’s care in a positive and holistic way. An overarching aim of our book has been to find ways to deliver multi-agency continuity of care, whilst being aware of bias, professional responsibilities and an understanding how we can take a holistic approach - crucial for attaining excellence in 21st century maternity care provision.

The book examines the major issues in perinatal clinical psychology with the presence of theoretical information and operational indications, through a biopsychosocial approach. The multiplicity of scientific information reported makes this book both a comprehensive overview on the major perinatal mental health disorders and illnesses, and a clinical guide. It covers perinatal clinical psychology through a journey of 15 chapters, putting the arguments on a solid theoretical basis and reporting multiple operational indications of great utility for daily clinical practice. It has well documented new evidence bases in the field of clinical psychology that have underpinned the conspicuous current global and national developments in perinatal mental health. As such, it is an excellent resource for researchers, policy makers, and practitioners – in fact, anyone and everyone who wishes to understand and rediscover, in a single opera, the current scientific and application scenario related to psychological health during pregnancy and after childbirth.

Identifying Perinatal Depression and Anxiety brings together the very latest research and clinical practice on this topic from around the world in one valuable resource. Examines current screening and management models, particularly those in Australia, England and Wales, Scotland, and the United States Discusses the evidence, accuracy, and limitations of screening methods in the context of challenges, policy issues, and questions that require further research Up to date practical guidance of how to screen, assess, diagnose and manage is provided. Considers the importance of screening processes that involve infants and fathers, additional training for health professionals, pathways to care following screening, and the economics of screening Offers forward-thinking synthesis and analysis of the current state of the field by leading international experts, with the goal of sketching out areas in need of future research