AND FAMILY TIPS

and new parents missing out on that interaction and support. “There’s also a sense of loss regarding what new mums had expected the postpartum period to be like,” says Miller.

“It’s period of life that cannot be brought back. These feelings of loss and grief can be very distressing, particularly at a time when new mums are so emotionally vulnerable in the early postnatal weeks.”

Having a baby comes with huge hope and expectation, and Miller says: “Many new parents have been trying for a baby for years and some have suffered multiple losses leading up to this.”

That’s not to mention additional financial struggles or homeschooling responsibilities some families may be facing. “Mums with other children are now juggling caring for a newborn with the burden of homeschooling,” Miller says. “This leaves little time for bonding with a new baby and establishing breastfeeding, or resting and taking essential recovery time post-birth. Instead, new mums are stretched with an unprecedented level of expectation and pressure.”

POSTNATAL MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES

Pablo Vandenabeele, clinical director for mental health at Bupa UK Insurance, says: “One in 10 women are thought to experience postnatal depression but in the current lockdown situation feelings of anxiety and depression may become heightened.

“For new mothers experiencing it, the uncertainty and isolation of lockdown could make anxiety, insomnia or low moods even worse.”

There is also a danger right