Tara Maguire, a mother who experienced postpartum psychosis and had thoughts of harming her baby, has called for the opening of a mother and baby mental health unit in Northern Ireland. With the announcement of Northern Ireland’s first dedicated unit, based at Belfast City Hospital, Tara shared her frightening experience of hearing voices telling her that her newborn baby “should be in heaven.” When admitted to hospital, Tara was placed in a general mental health ward, separated from her daughter for three weeks.
Northern Ireland is currently the only part of the UK without a dedicated mother and baby unit, with the proposed unit first suggested 15 years ago. The new unit will provide in-patient services for serious post-partum mental health issues, with mothers being admitted alongside their babies while they receive treatment. Although only the location has been confirmed, how the project will be funded and staffed remains unclear.
Postpartum psychosis is a rare but serious mental health issue that can affect new mothers, causing symptoms like hallucinations, delusions, and manic and low moods. If left untreated, postpartum psychosis can rapidly get worse and lead to mothers harming babies, themselves, or others. Treatment options include mother and baby units, medication, cognitive behavioural therapy, and electroconvulsive therapy.
Tara’s husband, Chris, spoke of the disjointed and broken system that the family encountered, with the community support team being unaware of the hospital team’s actions. Despite being given helpline numbers upon leaving the hospital, the family had no previous knowledge of postpartum psychosis. Chris noted that “if we lived in England she would have had a totally different experience, the baby would have had a better experience, the connection would have been stronger.”
Although a positive step, Northern Ireland’s challenging financial situation may cause delays in funding the building and running of the new unit. For now, assistance and support with pregnancy-related issues are available on the BBC website
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