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Evie Canavan BEM- Maternal Mental Health & Menopause Advocate

@eviecanavan

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Co Founder of Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week & @perinatalmhpartnership
Ambassador @actiononpp
UK Rep @postpartumsupportinternational .

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16 years ago , I developed Postpartum Psychosis & was admitted to a psychiatric Mother and Baby Unit in the UK to recover. These are units with around 6-8 beds where you go with your baby to recover from severe perinatal mental illness.

Postpartum Psychosis had by that point, taken control of me for nearly 7 weeks . I was in a daze of hallucinations, feeling trapped by what I thought were moving walls, that I was in a coffin and I felt like I wanted to escape being trapped in the world. I was terrified of my baby.

When we arrived at the Mother and Baby Unit, I was terrified. It was warm and welcoming—nothing like the psychiatric ward I’d imagined—but the realisation that I’d be in a room alone with my son sent me into a massive meltdown. I sat screaming in a chair, petrified of being left with my own baby.

But the nurses knew exactly what they were doing. They sat with me, rocked me back to sleep when I woke up screaming, and gently guided me through the exposure therapy I needed.

For that first week , my husband John was by my side from 9am until closing, holding me while the nurses slowly encouraged me to accept Joe into my life. By the end of that week, I did something I hadn’t done since he was born: I sat in my room with Joe, and I closed the door. It was the biggest turning point in my illness. If I had been admitted to a normal adult psych ward, we would have been separated, and I wouldn’t have experienced that moment.

Recovery took a long time. It involved medication, months of gradual exposure therapy at home, and huge amounts of support.

But it happened.

Mums with serious perinatal mental illness need access to these specialised units near their homes. Babies need their mummy, and mummys need their babies. When I was in the depth of it, I thought the nurses were ridiculous for saying I’d get better. I thought I’d be the one person who never recovered.

But I did.

Follow @actiononpp for more information about Postpartum Psychosis & MBUs and @postpartumsupportinternational for global resources.

#maternalmentalhealth #Postpartumpsychosis #motherhood #postnataldepression #postpartumpdepression by @eviecanavan

With the Lindsay Clancy trial taking place , I am so sad there are still SO many myths about Postpartum Psychosis & maternal mental health in general. Please believe us when we say PP is a psychiatric emergency and the symptoms can mean you lose your total grip on reality.

It has been 16 years since I had my son, Joe & became very very unwell with PP. Yet, when I was hallucinating , believing my duvet was dancing while my hair fell out, health care professionals didnt know how to treat me. One doctor even told me to bake a cake.

Terrified, trapped, and experiencing a total blackout, I was falling apart. My incredible partner, John, eventually bundled me, the baby, and our pet hamsters onto a train to a psychiatric mother & baby unit —200 miles away from home.

It saved us. Unlike a standard psychiatric ward, which would have separated us, the MBU used safe exposure therapy. The nurses held my hand, rocked me to sleep when I woke up screaming, and gently guided me to bond with Joe. By the end of week one, I did what felt impossible: I sat in my room with Joe, with the door closed. It was my biggest turning point.

Recovery took time, but my despair faded into a fierce, natural love for my son. But those early days were the most terrifying thing I HAVE EVER EXPERIENCED. I did not know who I was or what was real.

Since recovering, I’ve worked with Mind and EastEnders on their postpartum psychosis storyline, and co-founded Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week, later receiving a British Empire Medal for my services.

To any mum in the dark right now: it’s the illness talking. You will get better.

And please please believe women.

#PostpartumPsychosis #MaternalMentalHealth #PerinatalMentalHealth #postpartum by @eviecanavan

Around 1 in 5 parents experience a perinatal mood or anxiety disorder during pregnancy or their baby's first year. Postpartum Psychosis—which affects about 1 to 2 in every 1,000 births—is a medical emergency that is fully treatable with the right help

If you're watching this anywhere in the world, @postpartumsupportinternational is your destination to see how to access support where you are:
• They run a helpline reachable by phone or text 1-800-944-4773

• Their online global directory connects you to support groups, trained therapists, and peer support coordinators in over 130 countries. I am the UK rep and there are people like me across the globe ready to signpost you to support in your country.

In the US, The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline number is 1-833-852-6262

In Australia , @pandanational National Perinatal Mental Health Helpline is on 1300 726 306.

In Canada, @pacificpostpartum are on 1-855-255-7999 .

@worldmmhday is also a great global page to follow

In the UK, an entire network of support exists:

• @apniuk and @pandas_uk offer direct peer support & information.
• @perinatalmhpartnership helps signpost you to the exact service you need.
• @hmpartnership features an interactive map on their site showing local perinatal support group across the UK.
• @actiononpp provides insight, peer support, and guidance for anyone navigating Postpartum Psychosis.
• @mmhalliance hosts a map detailing every specialized Inpatient Mother & Baby Psychiatric Unit across the UK.

Symptom Checklists - If your thoughts feel too frightening to say out loud, @smilepeersupport PANDAS, MMHA and @by_your_side all have checklists you can complete and hand to your health care professional.

No matter where you are on the map, help is waiting. Check the caption for all the direct links and phone numbers, and please share this—it could save someone's life.

Comment below if you are a non profit, charity or organisation who offers free support in the perinatal period, detailing what country you are based in , what local area you cover, and how you can be contacted.
#maternalmentalhealth
#PerinatalMentalHealth
#postpartumpsychosis
#postpartumdep by @eviecanavan

@theturmericco kindly sent me this beautiful box of turmeric shots a little while ago. It was so lovely and I ordered a box for my friend after that and she loved it. They come in such a gorgeous box.

They are spicy, refreshing, and a kick-start to begin the day feeling recharged. The teenager became quite partial and I did pour one into a lentil dish I made cos he is all about the health now innit.

Thank you for the kindness.

#gifted by @eviecanavan

My Personal Experience of Perinatal OCD with our Ambassador @realkimberleynixon and Co Founder of Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week @eviecanavan

Kimberley is an actress, known to many for her roles in Fresh Meat, Angus , Things and Perfect Snogging and many more. She is also an incredible advocate for Perinatal Mental Health , sharing her own story which has helped so many others. Her brilliant podcast 'Kimfluencing My Brain' discusses her experiences with perinatal OCD and OCD , helping to bring the conversation about mental illness out into the open.

Kimberley says "After the birth of our little IVF miracle baby in October 2020, life changed irrevocably for me when I began to suffer severe symptoms of Postnatal OCD. I had never even heard of the condition and yet it took over my life for 2.5 years. I wish I had known that’s it’s fairly common. I wish I had known that I wasn’t a bad mum - just poorly. I wish I had known about the Perinatal Mental Health Partnership.I am beyond thrilled to be the first ambassador , so that together, we can educate more people about, not only, how debilitating perinatal mental health conditions can be - but how common. You’re not alone, even though it feels like you are ".

We cannot thank Kimberley enough for sharing her story and for joining our team.

Trigger warning- we discuss intrusive thoughts and thoughts of suicide.

Do look at resources from @perinatalmhpartnership andfollow @maternalocd and @tamingolivia for brilliant specific information on Perinatal OCD.

You can and do get better.

#maternalmhmatters
#maternalmentalhealthawarenessweek
#maternalmentalhealth
#perinatalmentalhealth
#Perinatalocd
#perinatalanxiety
#Postpartumpsychosis
#Postpartumdepression
#postnataldepression
#antenataldepression
#maternalocd
#ocd
#birthtrauma
#pregnancy
#motherhood by @eviecanavan

Experiencing maternal mental illness while pregnant or after having a baby can be really frightening. Opening up about your feelings can seem frightening so please know there are things such as the checklist from @smilepeersupport which allows you to write your symptoms down and you can hand them to your GP, Health Visitor or Midwife.
You can and do get better.
#postnataldepression #postpartumdepression #maternalmentalhealth #maternalmhmatters #maternalmentalillness
#antenataldepression #Postpartumpsychosis #perinatalmentalhealth #mentalillness #mentalhealth
#worldmentalhealthday
#mentalillness
#mentalhealth by @eviecanavan

I need to share some news and frankly, I am still processing it over my third cold cup of tea. Not wine as an have Pneumonia and my blood lactate levels are not at a fun rate right now.

I have only gone and been nominated for Advocate of the Year at the @thehandprintawards @_thejessicaproject_

Pinch me, or better yet, hand me a biscuit because honestly? When you spend your days knee-deep in advocacy, trying to make sure no new mum feels like her brain has completely detached from reality and rolled under the sofa, you don't really stop to think about awards. You just keep going.

As some of you might know (or if you’ve had the absolute pleasure of reading my rants about motherhood, homeschooling in Lockdown chaos, and how I look fetching greeting the Amazon delivery person looking like I’ve been dragged through a hedge backwards), perinatal mental health isn’t just a buzzword for me—it’s personal. Having walked through the dark, terrifying fog of postpartum psychosis myself, my absolute life’s mission has been to ensure nobody ever feels as isolated as I once did.
And what a time to be doing it!

This year marks a massive milestone: 10 years of Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week. A whole decade of smashing stigmas, talking about the messy, unvarnished truths of motherhood, and telling intrusive thoughts to do one.

In lockdown, I pulled together something I am fiercely proud of: a pioneering, comprehensive directory detailing every single perinatal mental health service in the UK and beyond. Because when a mum is sitting on her living room in despair at 3 AM, she shouldn't have to hunt around like an FBI agent to find help. She needs signposting, she needs safety, and she needs to know she’s going to be okay.

Being nominated for doing this work means the absolute world. Thank you to whoever nominated me—you’ve given this tired mum a massive boost. Let’s keep shouting about maternal mental health from the rooftops because mums deserve it. by @eviecanavan

The proudest day of my life was receiving a British Empire Medal from Her Majesty the Queen in 2017 for my work in maternal mental health. This incredible journey began back in 2010 when I had my son, Joe, and experienced postpartum psychosis, driving me to turn my lived experience into a beacon of hope for others. In 2014, I started a blog about my experience that has since received nearly 200,000 views.

That advocacy eventually led me to work on EastEnders for two years, where I shared my story and they based a powerful storyline on my experiences. Afterward, I met a group of wonderful women on Twitter, and together we founded the @perinatalmhpartnership and created Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week, which launched in 2017 as a free global resource for women across the world, built entirely on our lived experience.

Today, as a perinatal peer supporter, Ambassador for @actiononpp , and UK representative for @postpartumsupportinternational , my commitment to this cause is stronger than ever.

I am so incredibly proud to share that this year we celebrated 10 years of Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week under the theme of "Decade of Voices." Looking back at everything we’ve achieved, I am deeply proud of the impact we've made, I will never stop working to support women, and above all, I am proud to have done all of this with my son Jay by my side every step of the way.

#maternalmentalhealth
#postpartumpsychosis
#motherhood by @eviecanavan

For the very first episode of Postpartum, Panic & Pee, I will be chatting with my friend @thepostnatalgp about something so important.

She recently spoke out about a truth we all need to hear louder: The postpartum body isn’t a problem to solve.
Seriously... when will 'bounce back' culture finally let women breathe? It is completely unfair to heap that kind of pressure onto a recovering, vulnerable new mum. And judging by how many of you resonated with her piece, we are all exhausted by it.

Let’s talk about the algorithm trap.

The second those search terms change to baby clothes or postpartum care, the weight-loss industry swoops in like hungry hawks. New mums are heavily targeted by aggressive marketing almost days after giving birth—pushing fat-burning supplements, intense workout regimes, and quick-fix weight-loss jabs (GLP-1s) right when we're at our most vulnerable and sleep-deprived.

No I do not want to drink your magic tea made out of boiled donkeys or use discount code #ihadababy8hoursago&needtolosemyoverhang to get £20 of a weight-loss injection. But these hungry businesses are preying on new mums and its hideous, reckless & bloody irresponsible.

It plays right into body insecurities, fatigue, and that heavy identity shift after having a baby. But you are not a before picture waiting for an after to make companies rich.

Dr. Sadif Rafiq is a GP with specialist expertise in women’s health, pregnancy, and postnatal care. Alongside Dr. Moona Aslam, she co-founded @thenewbornfamily_ a wonderful doctor-led service offering whole-family postnatal consultations, maternal wellbeing checks, and real, tailored medical care for the critical weeks and months post-birth.

She’s also a valued supporter of Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week and recently lent her expertise to the Wellbeing of Women webinar on postnatal depression. In this episode, she shares why looking after yourself (focusing on actual healing and nutrition instead of shrinking because of these targeted adverts) changes everything.

#bounceback
#weightloss
#motherhood by @eviecanavan

This was such a lovely moment from World Maternal Mental Health Day when our beautiful friends @worldmmhday and @sportinmind honoured our members @eviecanavan and @_farah_l on behalf of @perinatalmhpartnership for 10 years of Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week. We missed our other members @stephanie.perinatal and @pndandme in person but stood proud with them and their work and give huge thanks to our Ambassadors @realkimberleynixon and @dr_emily_official for their constant support.

Creating Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week was to give a voice to women at their most vulnerable, created from lived experience and supporting parents.

Thank you for A Decade Of Voices.

#maternalmentalhealthawarenessweek
#adecadeofvoices by @eviecanavan

Join our Co-Founder @eviecanavan as she chats with Debbie Sells, Ward Manager of the @mbu_nottingham in Nottingham.

This is a full circle moment for Evie as she was an inpatient in this very MBU after experiencing Postpartum Psychosis and knows personally how supportive and wonderful they are.

Debbie will talk through what a Mother and Baby Unit is, when typically women can be referred to one ( what stage in pregnancy for example) , and up to what stage in the perinatal period, what the biggest misconceptions people have before they arrive, how they involve partners and the wider family in the care process and what happens when it is time to go home .

#maternalmentalhealthawarenessweek
#adecadeofvoices by @eviecanavan

Behold my Vulva and Uterus toast that I just spent my lunch break making. No one is allowed near them, husband had the absolute audacity to say said Uteruses looks like Rams and I used 58567 slices of bread.

This is my hobby now I am in Old Lady Puberty.

Now what else is in my cupboards that I can vulvafy and toast?

#Motherhood
#pregnancy
#vulva
#uterus
#womanhood by @eviecanavan