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Perinatal Mental Health Programs

Pregnancy and Postnatal Mental Health Programs

Learn practical strategies for managing anxiety and low mood during pregnancy and postpartum with our clinically-proven online programs for parents.

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 ‘Lee’ as she learns how to manage her 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 practice your new skill before the next lesson becomes available. 

TWU_Pregnancy Course

This program may be suitable for you if:

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’ as she learns how to manage her 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 practice your new skill before the next lesson becomes available.

This program is for you if:

TWU_Postnatal Course

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.

Here’s what you’ll learn:

The Pregnancy Program

Lesson 1

 Learn about your own symptoms of anxiety and depression, and learn how to deal with the physical symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Lesson 2

Identify thought symptoms of anxiety and depression, and how to cope using Thought Challenging and Structured Problem Solving.

Lesson 3

Challenge unhelpful behaviours using Graded Exposure and Activity Planning, and build your confidence and keep getting better!

TWU_Course_Perinatal

The Postnatal Program

Lesson 1

Learn about your own symptoms of anxiety and depression, and learn how to deal with the physical symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Lesson 2

Identify thought symptoms of anxiety and depression, and how to cope using Thought Challenging and Structured Problem Solving.

Lesson 3

Challenge unhelpful behaviours using Graded Exposure and Activity Planning, and build your confidence and keep getting better!

Access convenient, discreet, and effective online self-help...

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: Enrol in this program as ‘self-help’ and complete it independently, or 

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 to your appointment.

You will be able to select which program you’d like to complete during the sign-up process.

Choose to start right away or speak with your clinician about these programs

Enrol As Self-Help

$ 35 for 90 days of access
  • Get instant access and start right away
  • Complete a lesson every 1-2 weeks
  • Extra 12 months of access once completed
  • Available to people who ordinarily reside in Australia
Self-Help

Get a Prescription

Free for 90 days of access
  • Get free access with a prescription
  • Your clinician can monitor how you are
  • Extra 12 months of access once completed
  • Available worldwide with a prescription
Supervised

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 into a self-guided online treatment program for their mental health. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Over the years, we’ve 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 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 one-to-two weeks. Upon completion of the program, you will be granted an extra 12 months 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.

You can enrol in the ‘self-help’ option and start the Pregnancy Anxiety and Depression Program or Postnatal program right away for $35 (you must reside in Australia to access this option), or you can seek a prescription from your regular GP or mental health professional and enrol in the program for free (this option is available worldwide under the supervision of your treating physician).

The amount of support you receive will depend on the way you choose to do this program.

If your clinician – doctor, psychologist or other mental health professional – prescribes it, they will have access to the program and your well-being scores, so you can check-in with them about your progress and how you feel.

If you do the program as ‘self-help’, there is no clinical support available because the program is completely automated, although you can contact us for any technical difficulties. However, provided you complete all three lessons, the results will be as good as with supervision.

The best place to seek advice about treatment options for your specific symptoms and situation is from your GP.

To make the most of the program we recommend completing a lesson every 1-2 weeks and practising 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.

You can access this program for free if your regular clinician is registered with THIS WAY UP and prescribes this program to you by e-mailing you a personalised registration link called a “Quickscript” using our secure online system.

Here’s how to discuss this option with your health professional:

Step 1.

Make an appointment with your clinician (e.g., your GP, Medical Specialist, Psychologist or other Allied Health Professional).

Step 2.

Download, print, and take the Clinician Letter to your appointment. This letter outlines some information about how your clinician can register with THIS WAY UP and prescribe our programs using our online system.

Step 3.

Ask your clinician if they are familiar with THIS WAY UP and tell them about the program you’d like to do.

If your clinician is new to THIS WAY UP, they may need some time to register and get to know our system, so you may not be able to get a program prescription right away.

If your clinician is able to prescribe and monitor you throughout the program, they will send you a ‘prescription’ e-mail called a “Quickscript” via our system with details on how to enrol.

Please note, it is up to individual clinicians to decide whether it is appropriate for them to prescribe and monitor you through one of our programs. Therefore, we cannot guarantee that your clinician will be able to assist you.

However, majority of our treatment programs are available as ‘self-help’ within Australia so if this option is suitable for you, you will be able to enrol and receive up to 12 months of access to the Pregnancy or Postnatal programs for AUD $35 each. 

When you enrol in this program as ‘self-help’ you will be guided through the lessons by our system and will be completing it independently.

Our team is here to provide technical assistance, but we are not able to answer clinical questions or give you personalised advice about your health.

When you enrol in this program under the ‘supervision’ of your regular clinician (e.g., your GP, psychologist, psychiatrist, or other health professional) they will be able to view your progress and well-being scores, and will be able to check in on you should you require further assistance.

You may also be able to check in with them about your particular symptoms or seek further guidance on implementing the strategies you learn.

Some clinicians may choose to prescribe this program as part of your face-to-face or telehealth sessions.

Some clinicians may choose to recommend that you enrol in this program as ‘self-help’ and support you throughout without formally prescribing it to you.

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 randomised controlled trials and in studies in real world settings, including:

Mahoney et al. (2023) | Loughnan et al. (2019) | Loughnan et al. (2019)

Why choose this way up…

Online Programs That Work

THIS WAY UP has been developing and releasing scientifically-supported online mental health programs for over a decade. We ensure that our programs help individuals achieve real positive results by conducting clinical research and adhering to the best practice guidelines in treatment of mental health conditions.

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Clinicians Using THIS WAY UP

Choose to learn from a trusted Australian team that cares about your mental health

For Clinicians

Did you know that you can use this evidence-based online program in 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 THIS WAY UP clinician you can prescribe The Pregnancy and Postnatal Programs to your clients and stay informed of their progress.