Coronavirus: mental health help for struggling new mums

A national mental health helpline for new parents is being inundated with calls for assistance.

New parents Adam and Caitlin Doolan with eight-week-old son Ralph. Picture: David Geraghty

A national mental health helpline for new parents is being inundated with calls for assistance, as isolated families are forced to grapple with the demands of raising their babies alone.

Perinatal Anxiety & Depression Australia, known as PANDA, has recorded a 20 per cent increase in the number of calls to its free helpline since self-isolation and social-distancing policies to combat the spread of coronavirus were introduced across the country.

Alarmingly, parents of infants as young as two days old have been among the callers.

“Many of our callers at the moment have never experienced mental vulnerability before,” said PANDA chief executive Julie Borninkhof.

“Historically, these women would still be embraced by the hospital system and their support teams but they’re being moved out of the hospital a bit faster and in most instances, the maternal health nurses are not visiting.

“These new parents are overwhelmed, basically, asking, ‘how do I cope?’.”

The spike comes as local government-run maternal and child health services, which conduct regular check-ups of babies and toddlers to monitor growth and development, have replaced face-to-face appointments with telephone or Skype consultations in a bid to halt the spread of COVID-19.

They have also suspended group activities, such as information sessions for new parents, drop-in breastfeeding support and popular mothers’ groups.

The ability of new parents to call upon extended family or friends has been curtailed, with new laws in some states preventing people from visiting others’ homes for social reasons. Grandparents, often a lifeline for new parents offering help and advice as well as much-needed respite, are being advised to stay away, particularly if they are over 70.

Ms Borninkhof said the pandemic’s wide-ranging social and economic effects meant that many parents who might have historically adjusted well to the challenges of bringing home a new baby, often thanks to their strong personal support networks, were now struggling to cope.

She said job losses, financial pressures and the stress of having partners working from home were compounding the problem, causing significant anxiety in the community.

Ms Borninkhof urged anyone struggling with their mental health to contact their general practitioner.

“It’s really important to reach out for help, and reach out early,” she said.

“Also reach out to those support networks, your friends and family and those who know you the best.”

First-time mother Caitlin Doolan was fortunate to have her own mother move in and help for three weeks following the birth of Ralph, now eight weeks old. But her preconceived image of early motherhood — visits from doting family and friends, mothers’ group catch-ups and showing off her baby to the world — have been thwarted by the new rules.

The 34-year-old nurse from Geelong, in regional Victoria, has the support of husband Adam, who is working from home, but she’s feeling the loss of a wider support network.

“I was just starting to feel as though I was getting some independence back and now we’re in lockdown,” she said.

“I’m feeling OK at the moment but I know it will get harder the longer it goes on.

“The saddest part is the grandparents.

“Mum’s three hours away and she’s finding it very hard, and we’ve made a decision to not have Adam’s parents come over for health reasons.

“I do believe that saying, that it takes a village to raise a child and that village doesn’t really exist at the moment.”

Ms Borninkhof urged employers to ensure they remain in contact with workers who were on parental leave and for new parents to take advantage of Facebook and WhatsApp parenting groups and other outlets to ensure they retained social contact throughout the crisis.