Postnatal depression: how can midwives help?

OBJECTIVE: To explore and understand women's experiences and accounts of postnatal depression. DESIGN: A qualitative approach. Participants were accessed through community sources. Data were collected through semi-structured, in-depth interviews, lasting on average three and a half hours. Interviews were taped, transcribed verbatim and analysed using a range of methods which sought to ground theoretical insights in the data. SETTING: England. PARTICIPANTS: Forty primiparous and multiparous mothers of young children, living with the father of their child(ren), with varying experiences of motherhood. FINDINGS: Eighteen of the 40 women experienced postnatal depression. The depression centered around the women's unwillingness or inability to disclose their feelings and difficulties to partners, family, friends or health professionals. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Implications for the potential role of midwives in helping women at risk of, or experiencing postnatal depression are discussed in terms of the following issues: training courses; antenatal classes; the birth experience; early identification of postnatal depression; talking and listening to women; referral to relevant health professionals or voluntary organisations; a continuum of support from pregnancy to the postnatal period; and cultural issues.