UNC Center for Women's Mood Disorders

05/06/2020

Honoring all Mom's this Maternal Mental Health Week!

03/05/2020

Hi all, we are moving our page! Thank you for your support for the UNC Perinatal Psychiatry Program. To ensure that you continue to see new updates about the program, please follow our UNC Center for Women's Mood Disorders page . This page will be deactivated by 4/30/2020.

01/13/2020

Despite perinatal depression being common and having significant negative impacts, over half of women with this condition are currently not being identified and 85% are not receiving care. Read more about the challenges and opportunities in

Depression and anxiety during pregnancy and the postpartum period are common and have significant negative impacts on mother and child. Su***de is a leading cause of maternal mortality. Evidence-based efforts for screening, assessment, and treatment improve maternal and infant mental health, as well...

10/19/2019

Congrats to our wonderful colleagues! UNC Obstetrics and Gynecology

  Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, including the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology’s Alison Stuebe, MD, MSc, and the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health’s Kristin Tully, PhD, in collaboration with partners at North Carolina State University and The O...

07/29/2019

Very excited to embark on this important international collaboration investigating new ways to deliver psychotherapy in the perinatal period and how we can break down barriers to accessing care. We are joining our wonderful research partners in the Department of OB/GYN here at UNC and colleagues in Chicago and Toronto.

The departments of psychiatry and obstetrics and gynecology at the UNC School of Medicine are collaborating on a large-scale, $13.2 million PCORI-funded perinatal psychiatry trial that will also bring together researchers at University of Toronto in Canada and NorthShore University HealthSystem in C...

07/11/2019

There have been a few pregnancy-related mental illness events that have made the news recently (and not in a good way) so Dr. Mary Kimmel, Medical Director of the UNC Perinatal Psychiatry In-Patient Unit discusses symptoms and treatment options and the importance of getting help!

Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorder, a condition that some experts say affects about 20 percent of mothers, includes a number of different types of mental health issues. WLOS. Women can experience symptoms during pregnancy or up to a year after birth. Attempted murder of infant. In May, authorities....

06/04/2019

"Among the mental health disorders that affect new mothers, postpartum obsessive-compulsive disorder just might be the most misunderstood, if it's even recognized at all."

Postpartum OCD is real and can be very distressing for anyone experiencing it. While there is effective treatment, postpartum OCD is often missed due to lack of education about the condition. OCD is about twice as common in the perinatal period, making it all the more important to educate, screen and treat for this serious condition.

The sheer volume of terrifying thoughts can transform new-parent nerves into unmanageable anxiety.

05/08/2019

Even though this article's title focuses on , it presents helpful steps if you are experiencing or might be at a higher risk for mood or anxiety disorders. Knowing the risk factors and talking to your health professional during pregnancy (or ideally before!) can be a life saver when faced with the possibility of prenatal or .

One in five women will have mental health issues during and after pregnancy. Raising awareness matters for getting them the treatment they need.

05/02/2019

Our own Dr. Mary Kimmel, Medical Director of the UNC Perinatal In-Patient Psychiatry Unit, discusses postpartum psychosis, a rare (and treatable!) form of postpartum depression. While often requiring more intensive types of treatment, like in-patient treatment, postpartum psychosis can be fully recovered from with the right types of support.

The condition isn't well understood, and that can have tragic consequences.

05/01/2019

In honor of Maternal Mental Health Day today, (and MMH week!) a very timely publication on the societal burden of untreated maternal mental health conditions. We know that the status quo of mental health treatment is bad for individuals and for families but it's also bad for our society as a whole and has troubling implications for future generations.

The closing statement sums up where we need to go from here, "“Helping women and their families access effective and affordable treatment for these disorders will ultimately lessen the overall burden and costs on society, and more importantly, support mothers and infants to thrive.”

Mathematica’s analysis, released today in conjunction with national Maternal Mental Health Week, estimated the national economic costs of these disorders.

03/20/2019

We are so happy to be posting that the first drug specifically for postpartum depression treatment was approved by the FDA! As the lead academic site on this trial, we at UNC have seen firsthand how this treatment has made a dramatic impact for moms and families affected by postpartum depression and are thrilled there will be a new fast-acting option for those suffering.

The medication works quickly, within 48 hours. But it’s an expensive infusion and requires a stay in a medical center.

03/06/2019

Extreme emotions after giving birth could be postpartum depression. The Chickadee Study is a research study in teens with PPD that is now recruiting at UNC.

To learn more, please visit www.TeenPPDStudy.com or call Jamie at 919-962-4798.

Learn about the Chickadee Study: A research study in teens with postpartum depression.