Mothers are the anchorpoint of our communities

Despite being at higher risk of serious mental illness, underserved women experience substantially higher barriers in accessing support and information around mental health and finances. Yet, we know that when given the right tools, these women are incredibly resourceful and more likely than any other demographic to invest in their own and their child’s wellbeing.

A program developed by Mind Blossom, Inc.

Where can you find our Maternal Health Program?

We are currently running our Maternal Health Program in New Haven, Connecticut at the Dixwell Community Q House.

In the Fall of 2024 we are running a 12 week program specifically tailored for Black and Brown, financially insecure new and expectant mothers in the local community of New Haven.

We will start a new cohort in this program in February 2025. Stay tuned about signing up!

In parallel, we plan to expand this program to a hybrid platform that invites new and expectant mothers of any race to participate Stay tuned about signing up!

Are you interested in bringing our program to your local community?

Reach out to us to get started!

The Program Details

Mind Blossom’s Maternal Health Program is always tailored to the specific community we are working with. 

In general, our progam runs either in-person or with a hybrid approach for ~12 weeks. Each cohort typically ranges between 6-20 people that are either currently pregnant or currently have an infant. 

The programs are designed to empower participants to take charge of their mental and financial wellbeing.

Throughout the sessions, the women will learn, among other things, to identify warning signs of mental health challenges, to build resilience and psychological growth, and confidently implement healthy habits and emotion-regulation strategies. In addition, when relevant, our sessions feature a financial literacy segment that empower the women’s ability to build a financially strong household.

How you can support our program

By supporting our program, you make a direct difference on the lives of a mother, child, and household. 

Interested in providing more support?

Want to support with less resources?

We understand the problem of limited resources, and we are grateful and appreciative of any support we recieve. 

While financial (tax-deductible!) donations have the most impact, other ways of supporting us include: 

• Donating a gift (for example gift card or merchandise) that we can use for fundraising
• Advocating for our program to your community leadership
• Share our work and impact on social media

The science behind our program

Below we describe why our Maternal Health Program is an essential and necessary resource for underserved communities, such as the one we are serving in Connecticut at the Dixwell Community Q House. 

New and expectant mothers face an increased risk of developing mental health challenges. In the United States, the most common mental health issue among mothers is depression, which can occur either prenatally (before birth) or postpartum (after birth), both of which have major negative implications for not just the woman’s but also their (un)born child’s health. For example, prenatal depression, affecting 17% of women in the US, is associated with a higher risk of perinatal complications, such as preeclampsia and spontaneous abortions (Dagher et al., 2021) and they are also at higher risk of chronic health issues, such as hypertension and diabetes (Perlen et al., 2013). Similar health issues are true for women with postpartum depression, which affects at least 15% of mothers in the United States (Anokye et al., 2018). Women experiencing prenatal or postpartum (often referred to collectively as “perinatal”) depression have higher rates of suicidal ideation (Meltzer-Brody, 2011; Lindahl et al., 2005), which is believed to be a significant factor of maternal death by suicide. Suicide accounts for 20% of all maternal deaths in the US, making it one of the leading causes of maternal mortality (Lindahl et al., 2005). Children of mothers with prenatal or postpartum depression have increased rates of mortality, serious illness, cognitive developmental delays and long-term mental illness (Slomian et al., 2019; Meltzer-Brody, 2011). One economics study estimated that over the course of five years, perinatal mental illness – defined as mood disorders or anxiety occurring during pregnancy or the first year after birth – costs the United States $14 billion (Luca et al., 2020). 

The treatment of mental illness in pregnant women and new mothers is a topic of significant public debate. Many women are reluctant to seek evidence-based treatment due to concerns about the potential (but unfounded) negative effects of antidepressants or mood stabilizers on their unborn or newborn child’s development (Meltzer-Brody, 2011). It is estimated that in the United States, 50% of women diagnosed with perinatal depression go completely untreated (Luca et al., 2020), and these rates are higher in low-income women, particularly among Black and Latina women (Kozhimannil et al., 2011). In fact, living in a disadvantaged neighborhood in the United States is associated with poorer postpartum mental health (Onyewuenyi et al., 2023), and mothers with postpartum depression are twice as likely to become homeless (Curtis et al., 2014). It is therefore critical that we provide geographically and demographically targeted mental health support to decrease existing inequities for both the mothers and their children. 

Several barriers impede access to perinatal depression treatment. In addition to economic costs and structural obstacles, stigma, beliefs about mental health, fear of judgment, and sociodemographic factors significantly inhibit treatment and support seeking (Webb et al., 2023). Many women, particularly those of color and those living in low-income neighborhoods, are less likely to seek treatment due to personal beliefs and stigma, even when diagnosed (Kozhimannil et al., 2011; Ward et al., 2009). Thus, a major challenge is providing new and expectant mothers with evidence-based knowledge and skills to support their mental health effectively. One effective approach is through group-based support and educational programs, an approach that was formally recommended by the US Preventive Services Task Force in 2019. 

One type of group-based support and education program is mental health education, also known as mental health literacy or psychoeducation. Mental health education is an effective strategy to improve mental wellbeing, mental health related knowledge, and resourcefulness among new and expecting mothers (Baldwin et al., 2022; Tola et al., 2022). Mental health education programs for new and expecting mothers is also associated with reduced rates of perinatal depression (Mhango et al., 2024; Tola et al., 2022; Park et al., 2020), and evidence suggests that it improves the mother-child bond (Yuen et al., 2022), which we know is negatively affected when mothers experience perinatal depression (Meltzer-Brody, 2011; Dagher et al., 2021). The combination of evidence-based knowledge and skill acquisition with community building is a core aspect of the success of these mental health education programs, which are critical steps in promoting social equity (Castillo et al., 2019). Importantly, the child’s wellbeing and development correlates directly with their mother’s. Studies find that when mother’s receive support for their mental health, their children benefit both emotionally and behaviorally, even if the child does not receive any direct treatment services (Swartz et al., 2016). 

Despite this research, few such programs are offered to new and expectant mothers. Mind Blossom’s Maternal Health program aims to meet this need by providing ~12 weeks of mental health education and community building for women in the local community. 

For the remainder of this section, we dive into how Mind Blossom’s Maternal Health Program at the Dixwell Community “Q” House supports new and expectant, Black and Brown women in the Greater New Haven area of Connecticut.

Composed of 50% Black and 13% Hispanic individuals (Statistic Atlas) Dixwell resides in a part of New Haven, CT, that has historically been underserved. A 2014 report from the MOMS partnership collaboration, spearheaded by Yale University, reported that across New Haven, 24% of mothers did not get mental health support because they did not know where to go and 21% of mothers reported that stigma and judgment remained a major barrier (The MOMS Partnership 2014 Data Report). In the Dixwell community specifically, 100% of mothers reported poor mental health. These data points emphasize the need of providing effective mental health support to expecting and new mothers in the Dixwell and nearby communities. 

With a median household income of $40,000 (Niche), the average household in Dixwell falls into the low financial tier based on US standards. This financial challenge is further demonstrated by the 55% and 50% of mothers in Dixwell who reported running out of food and diapers, respectively, every month (The MOMS Partnership 2014 Data Report). 

Financial stability is increasingly demonstrated to impact wellbeing and mental health (Ridley et al., 2020). Research studies show that providing people with a small, but stable financial stipend  as a part of a health program improves their mental and physical health, as well as their financial stability (Ruducha and Jadhav, 2018; Lorenzetti et al., 2017). However, most of the research combining health literacy with financial support has occurred in non-US countries such as India, Afghanistan, and Syria (Spowart, 2023). These studies have found that when mothers are provided with a stable income they are most likely to spend that money on their child’s health and education and/or the family’s economy, benefitting both the child and the mother long-term. Based on the survey from the MOMS report, mothers in Dixwell would spend their money on food and diapers. 

Our proposed program leans on the published research from psychology, public health, and economics described above, and offers an evidence-based combination of mental health education and financial support. These efforts align with the recent Maternal Health Task Force announcement from the President (SAMHSA, 2024). Our long-term goal is to enable Dixwell community members to run this program independently at their local community center, and expand the program to other disadvantaged neighborhoods in New Haven and throughout Connecticut. Through partnerships with Dixwell Q House and the New Haven LEAP program we have taken the first steps to integrate this program sustainably.

Meet the team members!

These are the team members involved with running the Maternal Health Program at the Dixwell Community Q House.

Interested in joining? We love involving community center staff members and local professionals in our programs.