August Newsletter

August 2023 Newsletter

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.

Engagement Opportunities

AGM Registration - Now Open!

We will be hosting our 2nd Annual General Meeting on 
September 13th, 2023 at 7pm (NFLD Standard Time) via Zoom. 
 
We extend AGM invitations to the public to learn about our ever-growing alliance.  We look forward to sharing with you the work of the Alliance in the 2022-2023 year, review of our Strategic Plan, and present the governing constitution of the Alliance. We are excited to share more engagement opportunities arising for our PMHANL members in the upcoming fiscal year. 
 
Hope to see you there!

Register Here

Call for Education Committee Members - CLOSED!

Thank you to all who expressed interest in our Education Committee. We are thrilled to have so many valuable members of our community reach out to us and share their passion for advancing perinatal mental health educational support in NL. 
 
Our education committee will be in touch soon to follow up with those who have applied.

In the News..

U.S. FDA Approves First Oral Treatment for Postpartum Depression 

On August 4th, 2023, the US Food and Drug Administration approved the first oral medication for Postpartum Depression in adults. 
 
The drug, Zurzuvae (zuranolone), has been tested through two randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, multicenter studies.
 
 "Patients in the Zurzuvae groups showed significantly more improvement in their symptoms compared to those in the placebo groups. The treatment effect was maintained at Day 42—four weeks after the last dose of Zurzuvae." 
 
The drug is not yet approved by Health Canada, however, it's potential has generated hope and optimism for the treatment of postpartum depression in coming years.
 
To read the full press release from the U.S. FDA, see the link below:

Full Text

Feature of the Month: 
Atlantic Summer Institute on Healthy and Safe Communities 

The Atlantic Summer Institute on Healthy and Safe Communities (ASI) provides an Atlantic platform for inter-sectoral collaboration to promote child and youth mental health in the region. 
 
ASI 2023 Policy Forum holds the theme, "Inspiring Hope through Local Action". Its aim is to increase understanding the importance of infant, child, and youth mental health for the whole society, and foster policy actions to influence upstream investment in support of mental health. 
 
The event will take place from August 21-23, 2023 in Charlottetown, PEI with virtual option to attend from home. We are excited to share that two PMHANL Members are attending this year's Policy Forum. We wish all participants attending the forum best of luck in their collaborative and advocacy efforts to improve infant, child, and youth mental health. 
 
To learn more about ASI, please visit their website linked below:

ASI Website

Resources 

If you, or a loved one, are experiencing struggles with your mental health during the perinatal period, know that you are not alone. Please check our Resource Page to find what supports are best for you.

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.