I'm taking on the Miles for Mums challenge for Action on Post Partum Psychosis.

For the month of May I'm going to walk, run or cycle 63 miles, read below to find out why.

My Story:

After a relatively easy pregnancy I was induced due to having gestational diabetes. What followed was four days of pain, very limited sleep and all sorts of birth attempts. Our wonderful son Toby was eventually born via emergency c-section on 15th September 2024.

I started parent life off exhausted, bruised, overwhelmed and quite honestly feeling like a bomb had gone off in my life.

I struggled to sleep as I kept having racing thoughts, hearing beeps/noises from my hospital stay and panicking that I didn't know how to parent.

Over the course of the next few weeks I gradually got worse and experienced other symptoms. I had high/ low moods, racing thoughts, anxiety, feelings that I couldn't cope being a mum. I became obsessed with Toby's routine. I distanced myself from my friends and family. What was supposed to be a happy bubble was turning into a nightmare.

Soon after I began to have intrusive thoughts and I would be up half the night as I couldn't sleep. I started to believe that Toby wasn't my baby or that he wasn't Rich's and that was why I was struggling. I became convinced my family were conspiring to throw me out of the house.

I had a call with a psychologist, who I accused of being an actor and part of the plan, who suspected I had post partum psychosis and advised Rich to take me to A&E as it's classed as a medical emergency.

I had never had any issues with my mental health prior to having a baby and we had never heard of post partum psychosis before so as you can imagine it was a frightening time for my family.

I refused to leave the house to go to A&E as I thought I wouldn't come home. Eventually after several psychiatrist visits, paramedics in the house and me still refusing to leave I was placed under a section on the 12th October for my own safety and taken by ambulance with Toby to the Mother and Baby Unit {MBU) in Morpeth, nearly 150 miles from home.

Whilst there, I believed everyone was actors so was suspicious of everyone. I thought I was being filmed for some big brother style show where I would eventually be killed as I'd done something bad.

After a few days I was transferred to the Leeds MBU, where following medication, care, therapy and sleep I began to feel more like myself.

The staff were amazing, the other mums I met were lovely and it was a great place to recover and find my rhythm as a Mum. Being nearer to home also meant Rich could come to see us every night along with visits from friends and family.

I was eventually discharged from the unit in December (63 days from the day I was sectioned, hence my challenge duration).

Coming home felt amazing but also brought along anxiety as I wasn't used to being on my own and I really struggled the first few months for various reasons.

I was referred to the charity Action on Post Partum Psychosis. They hosted an online session which I attended and spoke to multiple other mums who had been through psychosis too. Hearing their stories made me feel less alone and normalised my experience in some way and for that I'm grateful as it's helped me process what has happened and move into a happy place.

I'm now in a position where I feel happy, I'm enjoying motherhood and feel it's time to give back so that other mothers/families who go through this can continue to receive support.

As most of you know exercise isn't my first love so this is certainly going to be a challenge so please donate if you can to motivate me.

Love

Mel x

Action on Postpartum Psychosis is a UK charity. We’re here to make sure mums, parents and families are supported through postpartum psychosis – a severe, but treatable, form of mental illness that occurs after having a baby and affects over 1000 new mums in the UK each year.

We offer information and peer support, facilitate ground breaking research, raise awareness and campaign for improved services.

Our life changing peer support network helps women and families affected by postpartum psychosis feel understood, supported and less isolated.