Perinatal Patient Stories and Resources

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    Patient Stories and Resources

    Perinatal Positivity

    Amy's Story

    A poem by Amanda

    I dreamed about you often, imagined how I’d feel
    A sense of ecstasy, pure joy, a feeling so unreal
    I craved your existence, the family we could make
    It was going to be magical, the journey we would take.

    Naively, I had it planned it all, I never once did fear
    I’d seen the smiles on other mums, the laughter I would hear
    Nobody could sway me, or make me doubt me strength
    I believed you were my destiny, I’d go to any length.

    Your arrival, quite traumatic, couldn’t push away the thought
    My heart now should be bursting, so why am I distraught
    My days were spent just crying, tired but I couldn’t sleep
    My mind it did not feel my own, the worries on they’d creep.

    I watched the other mums, they seemed just like before
    Why on earth could I not be like them, why was I still raw?
    Comparisons took over, resentment setting in,
    So angry at the way I’d feel, I couldn’t seem to win
    I’d feel powerless and nervous, the role not working out
    Just getting through the next day, another day of doubt.

    But see, I love my baby, I love her like no other,
    Just sadly for a little while, I was robbed of being a mother
    My brain could not allow it, the illness it is real
    It hurts a lot to look back and remember how I’d feel

    Yet I should not feel guilty, this path has paved the way,
    For now we have the strongest bond that I can truly say
    You were sent to teach me, my heart is now full
    Those thoughts, though never far away, they’re dwindling,
    They’re dull.

    So mums forget the pressures, comparisons, the norm
    Your journey’s a unique one from the day your babies born
    It sure as hell ain’t easy, there’s mountains there to climb
    Just climb them at your own pace, one step at a time.

    Amanda Davidson

    Useful Websites

    Other sources of help and information include:

     

    Information leaflets perinatal mental health

     

    Resources aimed at partners and carers

     

    Self-care resources for perinatal mental health