Women’s post partum health and care has been neglected and is due for a much needed overhaul….

The state election will soon be upon us and Mums of the Hills is keen to make sure that our candidates know what the mums in their electorates want. Mums of the Hills cover a large geographical area with members living in the electorates of Monbulk, Rowville, Croydon, Ringwood, Evelyn, Bayswater, Eildon and Narre Warren North. We will be bringing you our key issues and how we want them addressed in the coming weeks.

Written by: Rebecca Lovett (MotHs Committee Member and Osteopath at Yarra Ranges Osteopathy)

Women’s post partum health and care has been neglected and is due for a much needed overhaul. We are facing a nation of women that are overworked, burnt out, physically and mentally traumatised from our current birth practices and the lack of post partum support and healthcare. Covid has had significant effects on maternal health and wellbeing that have extended far beyond the initial post partum period. Higher rates nationally (19%, previously 14%) of post natal depressive symptoms have been reported and Victoria measured (31%) higher again. The main contributing factors have included isolation from family and friend supports, increased family discord, change in professional care provision with reduced appointments and reduced or absence of family supports in birthing suites.

Birth trauma is reported in up to 1 in 3 women in Australia and can trigger ongoing psychosocial symptoms for women. Additionally, future fertility choices can be inhibited by birth trauma. The current birth rate is declining again in Victoria and it’s not surprising given the restrictions that affected women’s health who depend on their support networks more heavily than men do.

Up to 50% of women who experience physical injury from childbirth experience reported ongoing pain;
44% said they suffered urinary incontinence;
roughly one in five said they experienced fecal incontinence across Australia, New Zealand and the UK.

More than half said their birth trauma had stopped them bonding with their baby
85% said it affected their mental health
65% said it affected their relationship with their partner
84% said it affected their sex life
74% said it affected their ability to exercise or play sport

Our society in general champions women who are “selfless” and who take the burnt chop at dinner leaving everyone else with the best. It’s well and truly time this societal narrative changed. Well women look after families better – not women who are traumatised, burnt out, do not have enough support while bearing the majority of the emotional and physical labour associated with having a family. We would not feel comfortable handing over a newborn baby to a soldier with PTSD, however we do this every day to women who are then expected to look after a newborn, recover from physical and emotional trauma who are often isolated or silenced.

Women often think that their symptoms are just “part of being a woman”, however there is evidence for pelvic floor rehabilitation. It is nowhere near as accessible though and public campaigns have not been successful in encouraging women to speak up about their concerns to their health care professionals. This results in long lasting poor contributions to health. 1 in 4 hospitalisations of our elderly population is due to incontinence, contributing significantly to the health burden on our society. Prevention is better than cure, and with the current support for women we are letting women down with inadequate information, advice, treatment and support.

The best start would be, at a bare minimum, adequate post partum care. When visiting the maternal and child health nurses, there is a comprehensive checklist for the baby – and over the period of 4 years one single 8 question questionnaire for mothers on mental health and none for the physical wellbeing of women post partum. Added to this, women frequently do not have the same skill set to care for babies, often spending isolated hours researching what to do and how to look after their baby when the fabric of society was stronger because mothers did not work or work as much, they relied more heavily on their village – mothers groups currently are focused on risk prevention for the baby, but not on maternal health or wellbeing.

People with chronic conditions in our society are enabled 5 visits to an allied health professional under Medicare. Although there are some public resources for women to access pelvic floor physiotherapists, these are inadequate to address the physical needs that women have.

To summarise, I urge you to consider supporting women who are the cornerstones of society. Women focused societies thrive wherever they are implemented in the world and this has been proven again and again in the literature – this gender gap needs to be addressed. To blind eye to this would be doing not only women, but society a disservice. Women who are well make better mothers, better partners and better workers.

MotHs is asking for:

Greater access to Medicare funded post partum care
A revision of the post partum care standards and current birthing practices to line up with evidence based medicine rather than consensus based care
Funding for mums groups that focus on women’s post partum health and wellbeing.

Blue Knot Foundation

Blue Knot provides information and support for anyone who is affected by complex trauma. They have web chat options available but can also provide up to 1 hour of phone support a week. They have great resources including this one on PhCoping Strategies, Impacts and healing.

Ph: 1300 657 380

Swinburne Psychology Clinic

The Swinburne Psychology Clinic was established to provide a range of low-cost psychological services to the Melbourne community. Telehealth services are still available although their Hawthorn clinic has resumed face-to-face assessments. The link to their website can be found HERE.

Monash University – Turner Clinic

The Turner clinic can conduct assessment and treatment for adults, children and specialist services for neurodevelopment disorders including autism and ADHD. Note that a referral is required to access their services. The link to their website can be found HERE.
Ph: +61 3 9902 4480
E: turner.clinics@monash.edu

Webinars for parents, carers and educators

Suicide prevention webinar for parents and carers

This webinar is designed to help parents and carers recognise and respond to risk of suicide. The more we understand why people feel this way, the greater we can practice early intervention and support. The next workshop date is Thursday, 20 October , 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM. Here is the LINK to that event

Other Helpful Links

Finally, here are a list of resources I have shared previously but you may not have seen. These and more can be found on this April blog post.

Beyondblue aims to increase awareness of depression and anxiety and reduce stigma. Call 1300 22 4636, 24 hours / 7 days a week.

COPE: COPE stands for the Centre Of Perinatal Excellence. They are dedicated to reducing distress and restoring lives of mothers, fathers and families affected by perinatal (ante and postnatal) mental health conditions.1300 740 398

Lifeline: 131114

MindSpot is a free telephone and online service for people with stress, worry, anxiety, low mood or depression. It provides online assessment and treatment for anxiety and depression. MindSpot is not an emergency or instant response service. Call 1800 61 44 34 AEST, 8am-8pm (Mon-Fri), 8am-6pm (Sat).

PANDA (Perinatal Anxiety & Depression Australia) provides a national telephone information, counselling and referral service staffed by trained volunteers, professional counsellors and supervising staff. Many helpline counsellors have had their own experience of perinatal depression or anxiety. Call 1300 726 306, 9am-7:30pm AEST (Mon-Fri)

QLife provides nationwide telephone and web-based services to support lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people of all ages. Call 1800 184 527, 3pm-12am (midnight) AEST / 7 days a week

Suicide Call Back Service provides 24/7 support if you or someone you know is feeling suicidal. Call 1300 659 467

Head to Health : Head to Health can help you find digital mental health services from some of Australia’s most trusted mental health organisations. They have evidence-based apps and online programs that can help you build personal skills and track progress, dedicated online forums and other peer support services where you can talk to people with similar experiences. Finally, Phone, chat, and email services, if you're looking for confidential, professional support.

Inspiro Community Health : Inspiro is a local, non-profit community health service that provides dental and allied health services for the Yarra Ranges community from our Lilydale and Belgrave clinics and various community venues. Ph: 9028 0153

Monash Health Community Health Counselling: Psychologists, social workers and nurse-family therapists offer community-based counselling in community health centres and through home visits.

Ph: 03 8572 5631
E: icareaccess@monashhealth.org