Perinatal Mental Health Services versus Community Mental Health Services: A reflection on my experiences.
I have seen several tweets and blogs recently from people who have experienced poor (and in many cases - abusive) care from community mental health services, both from outpatient services and inpatient services. This has made me reflect on my own experiences, and to realise just how different my experiences of mental health care have been, when comparing the different services I have been under the care of. When I compare my treatment from community mental health services with that of perinatal mental health services, I have come to realise that the care I received from perinatal services has been of such a high standard, that it puts my local CMHT (Community Mental Health Team) to shame, despite both services coming from the same Mental Health Trust. Why is that? I was under the care of the CMHT for several years prior to my pregnancy and during that time, I received poor care from the very people who were supposed to help and support me. I can recall several experiences of d...