Support group wants specific unit for new moms suffering mental health issues

After having a traumatic birth that involved a postpartum hemorrhage and the loss of feeling in one of her legs, Kayla Bell began struggling with postpartum depression.

The 29-year-old nurse began obsessing over routine. The obsession grew into OCD and PTSD.

Within months she was having invasive, "horrifying" thoughts.

"Three months after my son was born my symptoms hit me out of nowhere," Bell told Saskatoon Morning's Jennifer Quesnel. "They were just horrifying, intrusive thoughts and images that came to me every second of the day."

Bell was afraid admitting having these thoughts would mean she wouldn't be able to care for her baby anymore.

"I was very much in crisis."

She eventually sought professional help and was able to get back to normal with the support of her family.

"It was a very difficult time," Bell said. "The next eight months I suffered."

Now she has used that experience to help other mothers experiencing mental health issues after birth.

This fall, Bell and a friend started a support group called Mother May I.

They are pushing to have a maternal mental health unit in Saskatoon, where mothers would get help but also be allowed to have their baby stay with them.

Bell said she doesn't want mothers to avoid getting mental health help due to fear of being separated from their baby.

I see it as being just a place where families are cared for and it's a safe place where women just aren't afraid that their babies are going to get taken.- Kayla Bell

Bell said she was inspired by the mental health story of her grandmother, who spent a lot of time in hospital and was described as "being overly sad and uninterested in caring for her child."

Until recently, her family never really talked about it, said Bell's aunt Maureen Tash, who is a board member of Mother May I.

Tash said Bell's postpartum depression brought back a flood of memories from when she was a child.

"When my sister was born, my mom was separated from her for 10-and-a-half months," Tash said.

"She was totally separated from her husband and child. But it was really kept hush-hush."

There was a stigma attached to mental illness back then, and some of that still remains, Bell said.

Bell said her suicidal thoughts were based on anxiety.

"So they were the last thing I wanted to do because of the context of them," Bell said. 

While there have been great strides made with mental health, Bell said that if a mother needs to be hospitalized they are usually separated from their child. 

Tash said it is critical for mothers to stay with their children while they receive treatment.

"Separation from a child is very difficult. I remember my mom telling me that the longer she was in the hospital, the more the routine of the hospital became her norm and made her more afraid to be a mother."

Where to get help:
If you have faced suicidal thoughts, you can call toll-free, any time of day, at 1-833-456-4566, or any of the following resources:

Canada Suicide Prevention Service: 1-833-456-4566 (phone) | 45645 (text) | http://www.crisisservicescanada.ca/ (chat)

In Quebec (French): Association québécoise de prévention du suicide: 1-866-APPELLE (1-866-277-3553)

Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868 (phone), Live Chat counselling at www.kidshelpphone.ca.

Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention: Find a 24-hour crisis centre.

Hope for Wellness Help Line at 1-855-242-3310 or chat online at hopeforwellness.ca.