Calls for parents with mental health issues – The Boston Globe

In April the White House announced $105 million in funding for public resources to improve the health of mothers and babies nationwide. The money, while not enough to meet the dire need for mental health resources, is a glimmer of hope. Last month, the government’s task force to improve maternal mental health published a report that found “unmet need for treatment of mental health conditions and pregnancy. [substance use disorders] it has reached a crisis point.” A lack of resources for mothers has also led to an increase in preventable diseases. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the maternal mortality rate in the United States is 2 to 3 times that of other high-income countries, and fewer resources are devoted to health care. it’s just mental beauty.

“That surprises a lot of people. They tend to think about things that happen in the hospital,” Dr. Michael Warren, co-director of the federal government’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau told me. Instead, Warren said, issues including depression, alcoholism, and suicide can arise long after a new mother leaves the maternity ward. For the past two years, Warren and her staff have operated the National Mental Health Hotline, 1-833-852-6262, which provides free and confidential support for mothers and families of see. So far the hotline has received 33,000 calls from across the country and the new federal grant will go toward marketing the hotline so more parents know it exists, Warren said. “It’s okay to say I can’t do this alone and I need help,” Warren said. “Some people don’t have those support systems.”

But despite that reassurance, many mothers have mental health problems they don’t talk about because the stigma of mental illness is so strong and, traditionally, mothers they are expected to be able to handle everything and not complain. Some mothers fear that asking for help will result in their child being taken into custody by child protective services or that it will lead to a visit from the police. Parents, especially poor and working-class parents of color, have long been “missed” by child protective services, a ProPublica report found. In addition, the increased stress of working, the lack of family or social support, the increasing demand and cost of childcare, all of which can cause mental health problems.

“Mental health issues are very serious and it’s a difficult time to get services, especially if you’re poor,” said Sarah Brinley, executive director of the Massachusetts-based nonprofit Parents. Helping Parents, who works 24 hours anonymously. “Parent Stress Line” to help parents in crisis (1-800-632-8188). Some calls involve parents “crying on the phone, where they can’t even breathe,” Brinley told me. We get calls from people who are waiting for help to come in for depression, or they are calling because they have a child who is being bullied, or who cuts themselves, or who is violent. For some callers, a toll-free line may be the only help they can get. “Even for people who have insurance there’s a long waiting list, or some providers don’t take it,” Brinley said. “Who’s going to pay $250 an hour for a doctor?”

But even mothers with access to insurance say they also need better resources to address the mental health of pregnant women, including the postpartum period. One mother I spoke to recalled when she had suicidal thoughts and went to her local hospital for psychiatric help. The pressures of being a parent, being a wife, caring for her elderly family members, and working full time caused her to have what she described as a breakdown. But what worried him was the doctors’ lack of understanding of what caused him to fall. She said: “There was no program that sat me down and said ‘You’re a very stressed mother.’

That’s why it’s important to have resources like the Parent Stress Line and the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline that are free and available 24/7. I’m glad these hotlines exist because I know firsthand how difficult it can be to ask for support as a mother, especially when you’re a vulnerable parent. It is important to note that these hotlines are there to provide emotional support but are also equipped to do what they call “warm” to provide an emergency call like 988, the national suicide and crisis line , if the parent has suicidal thoughts or severe depression.

On the other hand, Brinley said her hotline also receives messages from the national 211 hotline, which offers help for people struggling with everything from paying bills to to their mental health. At least half of Massachusetts-based callers call from other states. “We want to be that bridge,” Brinley said. “We’re trying to prevent that disaster, to hopefully get you where you’re going with the plan of what you’re going to do.” And for parents who feel guilty about having to call, Brinley offers this advice: “Just the fact that you called us, already shows how much you love your child.”

Being a parent is hard. Parents should know that in times of crisis, help is not only available by phone.

Tanzina Vega is a journalist whose work focuses on inequality. I am a Globe Opinion contributing writer.