Location: England
Many young people, including young mums, experience suicidal thoughts. Peer support creates an environment where young people can feel empowered to talk about their mental health and reach out for support when they most need it.
Creating Connections was a Department for Health and Social Care-funded project adding a focus on suicide prevention to our successful ‘Connect’ peer support model – delivered through our Young Mums Connect and UOK? projects.
Alongside the peer support groups delivered through those projects, workplace training sought to make professionals more aware of the mental health needs of young mums in particular, and the importance of peer support and how to provide it effectively.
About Creating Connections
Creating Connections sought to:
- Prevent poor mental health and suicide by creating safe spaces for peers to support each other, learn ways to look after their mental health, and build social connections.
- Break down the stigma around suicidal thoughts by facilitating open conversations and encouraging young people to reach out for help when they need it.
- Drive systemic change by providing professionals with the skills and knowledge to better support young mums and overcome barriers that may prevent them from accessing peer support.
As part of Creating Connections, we created materials to better enable policy makers, commissioners, service providers and those working directly with young mums to understand:
The needs of young mums
We worked with the Maternal Mental Health Alliance to co-produce materials, deliver training and run a joint social media campaign to increase understanding of young mums’ mental health needs.
The importance of peer support
We created materials and delivered workforce training to highlight the evidence for how important peer support can be in supporting young mums’ mental health and reducing risk of suicide.
Evaluation
Our internal evaluation of Creating Connections found that:
- Young people taking part in UOK? were better prepared to support a peer experiencing suicidal thoughts and developed skills to look after their own mental health.
- Young mums taking part in Young Parents Connect described the positive impact peer support has had on overcoming suicidal thoughts and improving their mental health.
Professionals who attended the workforce training gained practical skills to address suicide prevention among young mums. Some have gone on to set up new peer support initiatives and used the training materials to help with this.
Grace's story*
I became a mum for the first time at the age of 17. The birth was a traumatic experience which ended with me having an emergency C-section. Afterwards, I would constantly think that I was going to lose him. So much so that throughout the night, every 30 minutes, I had to check that he was okay. Behaviour that left me exhausted and even more susceptible to intrusive thoughts.
I was diagnosed with perinatal obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). Following my diagnosis, things got worse before they got better. I became suicidal and my husband had to take time off work to look after me and my son. I couldn’t function. It was a very scary time. But after I started cognitive behavioural therapy and gave birth to my daughter, my symptoms started to ease. I was able to bond with my daughter and started attending peer support groups, which I found so helpful.
Today, things are so much better. But I do worry for other women experiencing perinatal OCD. Awareness and understanding need to increase among healthcare professionals, because early intervention is vital to good outcomes. I’d also like to see better support for family and friends, so they can spot warning signs early and know how to support someone going through this.
*Not her real name and stock photography used.
Resources to help meet young mums’ needs
Those commissioning and delivering services, and those working directly with young mums can play an important role in supporting them by better understanding their specific needs and including peer support in their service provision.
To support this, we have worked with the Maternal Mental Health Alliance to develop materials aimed at increasing understanding of young mums’ mental health needs. Additionally, Mental Health Foundation has created resources highlighting the importance of peer support and how to provide it effectively.
