Welcome to our ever-growing Alliance for perinatal mental health!

The Perinatal Mental Health Alliance of NL (PMHANL) aims to enhance awareness and promote care and supports for perinatal mental health across the province.

New Virtual Perinatal Mental Health Clinic: Prakash Pathways

Psychiatrist Dr. Archana Vidyasankar has launched a new virtual Perinatal Mental Health Clinic to address the many different needs of perinatal mental health. From intake assessment to counseling, lactation support and sleep, patients can find it all in one place, and with a virtual format it is accessible across the province.

Now open for booking, with an easy to access self-booking system, there is no referral required, unless for insurance purposes. The clinic is currently offering support for individuals and couples during the perinatal period, lactation/feeding, sleep consultation, counseling, grief supports, perinatal education and intake assessments.

Congratulations Dr. Vidyasankar, and thank you for your continued passion and dedication in advancing Perinatal Mental Health in NL.

Visit www.prakashpathways.com for more information below:

Local Municipal Support

The St. John’s City Hall will be looking blue & bright as of April 29th, when it will be lit up in teal to recognize World Maternal Mental Health Week. The lights will remain teal through May 5, 2024.

Thank you to St. John's City Hall for your support in raising awareness for perinatal mental health.

If you know of a local Flora's Walk Team organized in your community, let us know! Email: pmhanlconnect@gmail.com to share your event with us!

Virtual PMH Book Club

Interested in reading books related to Perinatal Mental Health? The Canadian Perinatal Mental Health Trainings are taking a different approach to book clubs!

"Every three months, we will select a specific topic important to those of us in Perinatal Mental Health and read one (or more) books on that topic. The discussion will focus on the topic rather than the book itself. You are free to choose any book or select one from our recommended list. Then, we will get together to share our newfound knowledge and discuss the topic in-depth.

There is no cost for this group. Our first meetup will be our introductory launch!"

First meet up will take place Tuesday, March 19th, 2023 (Via Zoom)
8:00 PM EST (9:30PM Newfoundland Standard Time)

More information and registration can be found at the link below:

Postpartum Planning for Expecting Parents - Free Class 

Postpartum International (PSI) hosts a 2-hour class twice a month for expecting parents, as a space to assist in preparedness and skill building for parents' emotional well-being in the postpartum period.

The class will include education, discussion, a review of a postpartum plan, and resources. The main topics covered include postpartum physical recovery, partner support, self-care, support networks, lactation and emotional well-being, and perinatal mood and anxiety disorders.

All expectant parents are welcome: moms, birthing people, non-gestational parents, partners, couples, and single parents. If you are expecting a baby soon, you are welcome to join!

These classes are meant as a one-time session, so please only register once. This is a free resource, so please cancel your registration at least 24 hours in advance if you cannot attend the class to provide an opportunity for someone on the waitlist.

This month's classes are offered on:

Wednesday, March 6th 2024 @ 9:00pm NL Time

Wednesday, March 20th 2024 @ 2:30pm NL Time

Registration can be found in the link below:

Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorder and Reproductive Justice: Examining Unmet Needs for Mental Health and Social Services in a National Cohort

In January 2024, a new study from the United States was published in the Health Equity journal, which explored the disparities in perinatal mental health services amongst racialized populations. This study found that Indigenous women, Black women, and Latina women were more likely to have unmet needs for perinatal screening and treatment. The study discusses various barriers to integrating assessments and interventions into perinatal services. However, a protective factor was that those with a Midwife in the provision of care were more likely to have experienced perinatal mental health screening.

While this study is localized to the United States, it does highlight the racial disparities and structural barriers that exist to further support the need for national, universal screening programming and treatment services for perinatal mental health.

To read the full text, visit:

Do you or your team have an event coming up related to Perinatal Mental Health? Let us know! We would love to share more updates from our community on our website and through newsletter! Email pmhanlconnect@gmail.com with your information.