Bethany Hackshall, Executive Director, Stakeholder Partnerships and Programs, Foundation Australia joins the House Of Wellness

Bethany, I mean, thank you so much firstly for doing this.

It's a very, very vital circumstance.

A lot of women still sit in shame around this particular topic.

I mean, obviously we know it's a fluctuation of hormones.

That's one impact.

It could be a complete social change in their life.

isolation.

But why do we still have this stigma? And why isn't it that this is just almost assumed that there is a high potential of this happening to a woman? And so these support mechanisms are put into place even before, you know, it's part of their perinatal support moving forward.

That's

right.

And look, it is really common.

Perinatal depression and anxiety actually affects one in five mums and one in 10 dads.

It's about 100,000 Australian families every year being affected.

It is a very treatable illness with the right support.

And there's a lot of discussion, obviously, about the baby blues.

And that's, you know, a topic a lot of people are very familiar with.

But when symptoms of, you know, heart and depression or high anxiousness, irritability, feeling numb, sleep disturbances, A lot of range of these symptoms, if they prolong for more than two weeks, it's often identified as a mental illness that can be very much treated.

And sadly, there is a lot of stigma.

When you think about the birth of a new baby or preparing for the birth of a new baby, It's surrounded by joy and excitement and all those huge transitions.

But what can come with it is a huge shift in life.

Sleep disturbances, you know, changing in work patterns, just a complete adjustment and away from previous potential independence or only having one child, moving to consecutive children too.

Although it is joyful and beautiful, it often is really hard for families to talk about the challenges and the reality that can be tough.

And we're really hoping to spread the word about having the conversation to really break down that stigma so people can get the right support.

Bethany, I mean, thank you so much firstly for doing this.

It's a very, very vital circumstance.

A lot of women still sit in shame around this particular topic.

I mean, obviously we know it's a fluctuation of hormones.

That's one impact.

It could be a complete social change in their life.

isolation.

But why do we still have this stigma? And why isn't it that this is just almost assumed that there is a high potential of this happening to a woman? And so these support mechanisms are put into place even before, you know, it's part of their perinatal support moving forward.

That's

right.

And look, it is really common.

Perinatal depression and anxiety actually affects one in five mums and one in 10 dads.

It's about 100,000 Australian families every year being affected.

It is a very treatable illness with the right support.

And there's a lot of discussion, obviously, about the baby blues.

And that's, you know, a topic a lot of people are very familiar with.

But when symptoms of, you know, heart and depression or high anxiousness, irritability, feeling numb, sleep disturbances, A lot of range of these symptoms, if they prolong for more than two weeks, it's often identified as a mental illness that can be very much treated.

And sadly, there is a lot of stigma.

When you think about the birth of a new baby or preparing for the birth of a new baby, It's surrounded by joy and excitement and all those huge transitions.

But what can come with it is a huge shift in life.

Sleep disturbances, you know, changing in work patterns, just a complete adjustment and away from previous potential independence or only having one child, moving to consecutive children too.

Although it is joyful and beautiful, it often is really hard for families to talk about the challenges and the reality that can be tough.

And we're really hoping to spread the word about having the conversation to really break down that stigma so people can get the right support.