Together in Mind

Transcript

Mom 1: When I first became a mum, I was just terrified. It was all so new, I would over analyse. And then I did the Together in Mind group, and it was such a weight lifted off. Hearing that other mums were just as scared and that it was normal. And then having all these people, all these experts, tell me that you're okay, that it's normal to worry, and that it's normal to be afraid, and that it makes you a good mum. And that was so validating.

Jennifer Waterson: The Together in Mind program is an opportunity to have a perinatal mental health nurse, an infant mental health nurse, and a child health clinician to help you with education, techniques, and practical support for you and your infant. Most women have masses of strengths in their parenting, in managing their mental illness. This actually allows those skills that you already have just to become available.

Mum 2: Benefits of the program for me would be knowing that I'm a good mum. Creating those networks, the support groups I didn't know existed. It is interactive. Your opinion and your voice matters and is listened to. Like, no question is silly, no answer is silly. It's like a family of mums. It's good.

Kate Staff: So one of the benefits of the program is the mums and the bubs come and stay with us for up to 6 hours at a time. And that's a beautiful opportunity for us to, as clinicians, to observe the interaction between mum and bub, but also to highlight, you know, those things that mum is doing really well. But then sometimes there might be some cues that the baby's trying to tell us and mums, new mums particularly, find that difficult to decode. And so it's helping mums and bubs become more attuned to each other. As a clinician, what I love to see is the parents' sense of confidence and competence growing throughout the six weeks that we're together.

Mum 3: You have your mother's instinct, and, you know, that you know that he's okay. But just to have those little cues confirmed was really nice, and to have the child health nurse there as well. And I'd say, "Oh, I've started feeding this. Is that okay?" Or "he's starting to do this at night-time. Is that okay?" And they're all lovely.

Mum 1: Once you have the knowledge, it removes a lot of the fear and a lot of the insecurity that you're doing things wrong. And it really helps you to feel like you're in a bit more control.

Angela McKee: Each week as part of the program, we talk about a different topic from the nurse's perspective. So one week it will be sleep, or sleep and settling. And we talk to them about the best way to promote your baby's development through play. So you notice that when we first start, they're all getting to know each other. There's usually around six mums and the three clinicians. And then as the weeks go on, you can see that they're all forming their own little tribe, I suppose, and they trust each other and open up.

Mum 2: I am the queen of stress.

Mum 1: Meeting the other mums has been so fantastic because just that feeling of togetherness that you get and that you're not alone and it removes so much isolation you have as a mum. And that was such a relief to have that support network because some of the feelings you have as a mum aren't always rosy. And having them be able to validate that it's okay actually makes you feel a lot better and less scared.

Mum 3: You know, you've got the Instagram generation with "this is what motherhood should be like" and "this is what you should look like after you've had a baby". And your child "is your child not sleeping through the night yet?" and you think, oh, are they supposed to be. And the ladies would always just be like, no that's...developmentally, that's appropriate, so don't worry about it. And then there was no judgement from anyone, which is you just want a safe space. It was almost like a yarning circle, and then by the end, it was like it was like going to meet up with a group of friends.

Mum 2: When it was pitched to me, I was a little bit apprehensive about, you know, coming to a place of especially, you know, mental health has that stigma. But, you know, I sucked it up and I went, and I'm so happy I did.

Jennifer Waterson: As part of Together in Mind, we have a session for fathers and non-birthing parents. It's a short session, but we really get them to identify their role in the care of their child. It incorporates what you take home so that they can see where they fit.

Dad 1: It's stressful enough just raising a little person anything else on top of that combines. You know, you feel you can easily be overwhelmed. Dads, too, like, oh, I feel overwhelmed. I go to Katie, we ask questions. If I have any questions, she goes and asks for me because we've all been down the rabbit hole of Google or whatever else. Coming from somebody's mouth in front of you takes all of that pressure away and a lot of stress, you know, that tiny little piece of mind can save you. You have the answers to that one little question, and you go, Oh, take a deep breath. You know, that's like I said, I think it's priceless.

Mum 3: I knew that as a family, we were supported. So I would recommend just give it a go, you know, what's the worst thing that can happen? You meet some friends, you have some nice lunch, and you get a little bit of an education as well. And that's helped us a lot.

Mum 1: For me, the group's been, it's life-saving. And it's definitely helped save my life. It's helped me to forge connections with my kids and to forge connections with other mums and to learn about them and myself. And it's given me so much confidence as a mum that I didn't have before, and I wouldn't have without this group. Like, it's genuinely been the best thing I've ever done, and I can't recommend it enough. I really can't.

Thank you to the families who participates and for sharing their stories.