In the weeks following the birth of her first child, Kelly McGloon developed postpartum anxiety that left her feeling paranoid and afraid.
“It was pretty debilitating for me,” McGloon said. “I really struggled with anxiety around my husband leaving the house and kind of fears that he would get in a car accident, and I would be alone, and I couldn’t deal with it all by myself.”
Maternal mental illness affects one in five women annually in the United States, and it is the leading cause of maternal mortality, due to suicide and drug overdose, according to Dr. Constance Guille, a reproductive psychiatrist and director of the Women’s Reproductive Behavioral Health Division at the Medical University of South Carolina.
“We have a really good understanding about those deaths and why they occur,” said Dr. Guille. And a lot of them have to do with the fact that women often can’t access the appropriate care at the right time.”
She said even when somebody identifies that they have a problem and they want help, there often isn’t help available due to long wait times for behavioral health treatment. Another barrier to care is within the medical system itself, where some providers may not be comfortable identifying maternal mental health conditions.
In response to these barriers, Dr. Guille created the Moms Impactt program, a mental health and substance use disorder resource and referral program for people who are pregnant or within 12 months postpartum, and any health care provider caring for a pregnant or postpartum person.
The program utilizes telehealth to get patients into appointments and allows for patients to receive treatment faster.
Kelly McGloon turned to the Moms Impactt program for help after she gave birth to her second child and again developed postpartum anxiety. Through the program, she was connected to a counselor who specialized in postpartum care.
“It really significantly changed the trajectory of my second postpartum recovery,” McGloon said. “I was so thankful that they were consistent, that they followed up with me and that they took away those barriers that were keeping me from accessing the care that I needed.”