Pregnancy and Postnatal Mental Health Programs
Does this sound like you?
Perinatal Anxiety & Low Mood
Are you pregnant or have a baby? Have you been experiencing sadness or excessive worry that doesn’t seem to go away?
You may be experiencing perinatal anxiety and/or depression. About 1 in 10 women experience anxiety and depression during pregnancy and 1 in 6 during the first year after childbirth. It is more common than you might think. It is also very common for anxiety and depression to occur together. Whilst it’s normal to experience low mood and worry occasionally, symptoms can become a problem if they are excessive, too intense, difficult to control, and interfere with your daily functioning.
Fortunately, perinatal anxiety and depression are very treatable, and many women who seek help can get better. We have developed two, short Perinatal Mental Health programs to help you reduce your symptoms of anxiety and depression in as little as four weeks. One program tackles symptoms during pregnancy and one program deals with symptoms during the postnatal period.
About the Pregnancy Anxiety and Depression Program
This 3-lesson program is based on an effective psychological treatment for symptoms of anxiety and depression during pregnancy called Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (or CBT). Throughout the program, you will follow an illustrated story of ‘Cara’ and ‘Lee’ as they learn how to manage their feelings of worry and low mood during pregnancy. Each lesson focuses on teaching you a practical skill you can use to begin changing the vicious cycle of prenatal anxiety and low mood. Once you complete a lesson, you will have 5 days to practise your new skill before the next lesson becomes available.
This program may be suitable for you if:
- You’re currently less than 36 weeks pregnant.
- You’ve been feeling persistently low, sad, and down, and don’t seem to enjoy the things you used to enjoy.
- You worry a lot about a number of different things and the worry is hard to control.
- You seem to be stuck in the way you feel and would love to learn how to get out of this cycle.
- You are ready and willing to learn new skills to change the way you feel.
About the Postnatal Anxiety and Depression Program
This 3-lesson program is based on an effective psychological treatment for symptoms of postnatal anxiety and depression called Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (or CBT). Throughout the program, you will follow an illustrated story of ‘Cara’ and ‘Lee’ as they learn how to manage their feelings of worry and low mood since giving birth. Each lesson focuses on teaching you a practical skill you can use to begin changing the vicious cycle of postpartum anxiety and low mood. Once you complete a lesson, you will have 5 days to practise your new skill before the next lesson becomes available.
This program is for you if:
- You’re currently more than 36 weeks pregnant or have given birth within the last 12 months.
- You’ve been feeling persistently low, sad, and down, and don’t seem to enjoy the things you used to enjoy.
- You worry a lot about a number of different things and the worry is hard to control.
- You seem to be stuck in the way you feel and would love to learn how to get out of this cycle.
- You are ready and willing to learn new skills to change the way you feel.
What You Will Learn
The lessons are designed to teach you proven strategies for tackling your symptoms and show you how to work with your thoughts, emotions, and behaviours so you can make a positive change in how you feel.
The Pregnancy Program
Learn about your own symptoms of anxiety and depression, and learn how to deal with the physical symptoms of anxiety and depression.
Identify thought symptoms of anxiety and depression, and how to cope using Thought Challenging and Structured Problem Solving.
Challenge unhelpful behaviours using Graded Exposure and Activity Planning, and build your confidence and keep getting better!
The Postnatal Program
Learn about your own symptoms of anxiety and depression, and learn how to deal with the physical symptoms of anxiety and depression.
Identify thought symptoms of anxiety and depression, and how to cope using Thought Challenging and Structured Problem Solving.
Challenge unhelpful behaviours using Graded Exposure and Activity Planning, and build your confidence and keep getting better!
What’s Included
Each of our programs has been designed to help you get the most out of self-guided learning and provides you with a range of materials to support you on your recovery journey.
Lessons
Story-based lessons that teach core coping skills.
Extra Resources
Tools to help you overcome common challenges.
Workbooks
Exercises designed to help you tackle your symptoms.
Alerts & Reminders
Reminder e-mails and texts to help you stay on track.
Action Plans
Step-by-step activities to help you put new skills into practice.
Progress Tracking
Questionnaires to help you monitor your well-being.
How to Get Started
Option 1
Enroll in this program as ‘self-help’ and complete it independently.
PLEASE NOTE: Currently, these two programs are only available in the context of a research project. Visit the study web pages first to find out more
Option 2
Speak with your regular clinician (e.g., your GP, psychologist, or other health professional) and see if they can prescribe you this program and monitor you throughout your online treatment. You can download and take the Clinician Letter (Quebec) to your appointment.
Choose to start right away or speak with
your clinician about this program
Enroll as self-help
- You have free access to the program for 90 days.
- Get almost immediate access to the program and start right away.
- Extra 12 months of access once completed.
- Accessible to Quebec residents only*
*PLEASE NOTE: The postnatal program is currently available as part of a research project. Visit the study’s webpage for more information.
Get a prescription
- You have free access to the program for 90 days.
- Your clinician can monitor how you are.
- Extra 12 months of access once completed.
- Accessible to Quebec residents only.
Download a Clinician Letter:
Please note: Our programs are not recommended for people who have been diagnosed as having schizophrenia or bipolar disorder; those who are dependent on drugs or alcohol, or take sedative medication (e.g., valium, lorazepam) daily; or for people who are thinking about suicide. Such individuals would benefit from being seen and supported by a clinician, and should seek medical advice before enrolling in a self-guided online treatment program for their mental health.
Frequently Asked Questions
Over the years, THIS WAY UP virtual clinic in Australia has helped many individuals improve their mental health through our clinical trials and online programs. If you have any questions about this program, check out the FAQs below or get in touch with us.
Women who are pregnant or in the postnatal period and have been experiencing problematic levels of worry, persistent anxiety, and/or periods of low mood and depression.
It is likely that you are visiting our page because anxiety and depression have become a problem for you. We know that it’s not always easy to seek help, so well done on making it this far.
Both the Pregnancy Anxiety and Depression Program and the Postnatal Anxiety and Depression Programs are self-paced. Each program consists of three lessons and is designed to be completed over 4-6 weeks. We recommend completing one lesson every 1-2 weeks. Upon completion of the program, you will be granted an extra 12-month access so that you can continue to implement positive changes. Please note, there is an automatic 5-day lockout period between lessons so that you can revise and practise what you have learned, before moving onto the next lesson.
For now, only people who live in Quebec can enroll in the perinatal programs. You can view the eligibility requirements for all programs here. Our goal is to eventually make them available across Canada.
This program is free of charge.
To make the most of the program, we recommend completing a lesson every 1-2 weeks and practicing the skills that you learn regularly. Make sure that you download and save all of the downloadable program materials so you can come back and review the strategies later on.
The Science Behind This Program
These programs are based on established clinical practice guidelines for mood and clinical practice guidelines for anxiety. They have also been evaluated in randomized controlled trials and studies in real-world settings, including:
Why choose ēquilia?
Online Programs That work
The creators of THIS WAY UP have been developing and releasing scientifically supported online mental health programs for over a decade. They ensure that these programs help individuals achieve real positive results by conducting clinical research and adhering to the best practice guidelines in the treatment of mental health conditions.
The ēquilia virtual platform now makes these programs available in Quebec and Ontario, and continues research in this field in Canada.
For Clinicians
Did you know that you can use this evidence-based online program in the treatment of Major Depression and Anxiety?
According to the clinical practice guidelines, internet-delivered CBT forms part of the stepped-care approach to treatment.
As a registered ēquilia clinician, you can prescribe the Pregnancy and Postnatal Programs to your clients and stay informed of their progress.