‘Just Because I Like it Doesn't Mean it has to Work’: Personal Experiences of an Antenatal Psychosocial Intervention Designed to Prevent Postnatal Depression

Abstract

The antenatal psychosocial intervention to prevent postnatal depression, Preparing for Parenthood, was evaluated in an additional qualitative study of the participants' experience of the classes. This was to complement the findings of the core study with respect to the intervention's immediate impact on their emotional well‐being. All the women interviewed who attended the intervention considered it a positive experience. However, initial indications are that the intervention did not decrease, overall, the likelihood of a woman's developing postnatal depression. The distinction between developing a ‘pleasant’ and an ‘effective’ health promotion intervention requires careful negotiation and longer‐term assessment.

Citation

Wheatley, S. and Brugha, T. (1999), "‘Just Because I Like it Doesn't Mean it has to Work’: Personal Experiences of an Antenatal Psychosocial Intervention Designed to Prevent Postnatal Depression", Journal of Public Mental Health, Vol. 1 No. 1, pp. 26-31. https://doi.org/10.1108/17465729199900006