Watch this mother hold her baby after overcoming serious pregnancy complications
Lindsey Schulz holds her baby girl in the hospital after surviving life-threatening pregnancy complications.
Humankind
- One in five Florida women experience mental health or substance use disorders during or after pregnancy.
- Many pregnant and postpartum women suffer from perinatal mental health disorders, often undiagnosed and untreated.
- Florida hospitals are working to improve access to perinatal mental health care through screenings, therapy, and community support.
Many pregnant and new moms describe welcoming a baby into the world as the most blissful and awe-inspiring time in their lives. But for others, it can be overwhelming, lonely and anxiety ridden.
Across Florida, far too many pregnant or postpartum women are silently struggling. One in five will experience a mental health or substance use disorder during or after pregnancy.
It’s an everyday, urgent crisis hiding in plain sight.
Perinatal mental health disorders don’t always look like sadness or the ‘baby blues’. Instead, it can look like overwhelming guilt, intense rage and crippling anxiety that won’t go away. It’s a mom who can’t eat, sleep or connect with the baby she so desperately longed for. At its worst, it’s a mom who is hallucinating and believes her baby might be better off without her.
Three in four women who experience mental health symptoms during or after pregnancy never receive the care they need. That demonstrates an alarming gap in our health care system – and it’s one Florida’s hospitals are working diligently to close.
Unaddressed mental health needs are a top underlying cause of pregnancy-related deaths. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that as many as 80% of pregnancy-related deaths are preventable. There is also a proven link between women with untreated maternal mental health issues and significant long-term negative outcomes for their children, such as developmental delays and emotional difficulties. It’s clear: When moms suffer, their babies and families suffer too.
But there is hope and help for moms across the Sunshine State.
Florida’s hospitals are stepping up to ensure new moms do not have to walk this journey alone. They are working tirelessly to ensure women have access to life-saving interventions to navigate and manage perinatal mental health conditions successfully.
Our state’s hospitals prioritize early assessment and treatment of perinatal mood disorders. They offer maternal mental health screenings, individualized treatment and community connections with other moms, so they feel seen, heard and supported by someone facing similar struggles.
Many hospitals also offer individual and group therapy led by experts who specialize in perinatal mental health to help moms cope and function in daily life and feel like themselves again.
Still, we need to do more to support new moms when they need it most.
We must continue to raise awareness and break down the stigma that keeps women from seeking help. We must train providers to recognize and respond to the signs and symptoms. We must embed behavioral health into every stage of prenatal and postpartum care, from obstetricians to pediatricians and primary care providers.
Medicaid plays a key role in supporting new moms – it’s the largest payer of pregnancy care and births in Florida. It also covers women for 12 months postpartum, which is a critical time when moms are most vulnerable and at risk of facing mental health challenges.
It’s important for our state’s private Medicaid-managed care insurance companies to provide a robust network of mental health providers who offer mental health screenings and assessments routinely across all obstetric, pediatric and primary care offices.
While Florida is making progress in strengthening our behavioral health care workforce, we still do not have enough providers to meet the needs of our communities. The provider-to-population ratio in Florida is one behavioral health provider for every 510 Floridians, ranking Florida 43rd in the nation.
More than 200 federally designated mental health professional shortage areas exist in Florida, leaving about 1 in 5 people who can access the care they need. We must prioritize training and recruiting more mental health professionals.
Every mom and baby deserve high-quality, compassionate and timely care close to home.
Hospitals across the Sunshine State are committed to delivering that care and educating Floridians on factors causing perinatal mental health conditions and how to recognize the warning signs to seek help.
By supporting strong moms, we can create healthy futures for Florida’s children.
If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, call or text 9-8-8 to access the 988 Lifeline. The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline can also be reached 24/7 by calling or texting 1-833-TLC-MAMA.
Mary C. Mayhew is president and CEO of the Florida Hospital Association.
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