Publish date: 8 March 2024
Friday 8 March marks International Women’s Day and the theme this year is #InspireInclusion.
This year we are shining a light on women’s health and the importance of women from all backgrounds coming forward to access NHS health services when in need.
In a special International Women’s Day podcast, Expert by Experience with the West London NHS Perinatal Service Swagata Sen shares a personal account of her moving perinatal mental health journey.
Swagata describes how it important it is for women to seek out support that is available:
“Anybody that I speak to, who I know is experiencing mental health issues, particularly during their pregnancy, I’ve always said, reach out to your GP… ask for a referral and get the ball rolling.”
In the podcast special, Swagata is in conversation with staff from the service – listen here for the full episode.
The podcast follows the success of Trust film ‘motherhood, mother tongue and mental health’, highlighting stories of local mothers from different backgrounds and their experience of perinatal mental health services.
The film was created in 8 languages including English, Polish, Punjabi, Hindi, Tamil, Urdu, Swahili, Cantonese and Arabic, to help encourage women in the local community to seek maternal mental health support.
The film was recently recognised by the NHS Communicate Awards, winning in the ‘Promoting Diversity and Inclusion’ category. Click here to watch the full video.
Find out more about our mental health services here and perinatal mental health services here. Reach out to us today via the self-referal form and start your journey to better mental health.