471: A Mother’s Healing Journey Through Postpartum Psychosis with Jade Lloyd

Today’s guest shares the events leading up to her postpartum psychosis, what she experienced, and how she managed to recover. It is important to hear stories like this so people understand postpartum psychosis and know how to get help. We all need to recognize the symptoms and get the people we love the help they need. Join us for Jade’s powerful story. 

Jade Lloyd is a survivor of postpartum psychosis and a maternal mental health advocate from the UK. Her maternal mental health struggles began with anxiety and sleeplessness, soon progressing to scary, intrusive thoughts and hallucinations. Jade shares her story in the hope that more knowledge and understanding about postpartum depression, anxiety, and psychosis will lead to more moms getting the help they need without shame, blame, and stigma. 

Show Highlights:

• Jade’s story: An easy pregnancy and plans for an at-home water birth turned into an induction, epidural, followed by a ventouse/forceps delivery.

• Immediate feelings of shame and failure for not having the delivery she wanted

• With a December 2020 birth, COVID lockdowns contributed to Jade’s mental health struggles.

• The first symptom Jade noticed was anxiety.

• Social media was Jade’s primary socialization, which led her to feel even more inadequate as a new mom.

• Getting up the courage to admit to the doctor that she was “not ok.”

• When asking for help makes you feel like an inconvenience

• A specific event one night that scared Jade because of intrusive thoughts of harming herself

• Dealing with the self-imposed pressure to be the perfect mom

• Help from medications and a doctor who checked in with Jade regularly

• Even with medication, Jade’s struggles continued with intrusive thoughts. 

• Jade’s feelings of losing touch with reality and experiencing hallucinations

• Treatment in the mother-baby unit

• Jade’s passion for sharing her story and doing advocacy work for those with PPP

• Hope for the future

• Jade’s message to listeners and those who are suffering: “It’s okay to ask for help.”

Resources: 

Connect with Jade Lloyd: Instagram 

Call the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline at 1-833-TLC-MAMA or visitcdph.ca.gov.

Please find resources in English and Spanish at Postpartum Support International, or by phone/text at 1-800-944-4773. 

There are many free resources, like online support groups, peer mentors, a specialist provider directory, and perinatal mental health training for therapists, physicians, nurses, doulas, and anyone who wants to be more supportive in offering services.

You can also follow PSI on social media: Instagram, Facebook, and most other platforms.

Visit www.postpartum.net/professionals/certificate-trainings/for information on the grief course. 

Visit my website, www.wellmindperinatal.com, for more information, resources, and courses you can take today! 

If you are a California resident seeking a therapist in perinatal mental health, please email me about openings for private pay clients.

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