Kizzy’s Blog – Black Maternal Mental Health Week
This week (Monday, 21st September – Sunday, 27th September) marks Black Maternal Mental Health Week. Maternal mental health refers to someone’s emotional and psychological wellbeing during pregnancy and after giving birth. This period of time involves huge physical, hormonal and lifestyle changes, which can be incredibly overwhelming.
Black Maternal Mental Health Week is an important reminder that how we feel matters. So often, mothers are expected to be strong, keep going, and to put everyone else first. But behind the smiles, societal demands, school runs, meals, and styling a natural afro every day, many Black mothers are quietly struggling. This is evident in recent findings from Fivexmore: 71% of Black mothers experience mental health difficulties during the postnatal period and 66% experience this during pregnancy.
As a Black woman and a mother to two daughters, I know that motherhood can be beautiful, challenging, overwhelming, exhausting, rewarding and everything in between in one 24-hour day. Motherhood has taught me that being strong doesn’t mean doing everything on your own; asking for help is not a sign of weakness; rest is not selfish, it’s in fact productive (I am still working on this one!); and admitting that you’re struggling doesn’t make you a problem.
My first daughter was born the day we went into lockdown back in March 2020. It’s hard to even comprehend the levels of anxiety that so many of us experienced during that time, for so many different reasons. Becoming a new mum is a huge change at any point, but navigating those first few weeks and months during a global pandemic brought a completely different level of uncertainty. Following the many lockdowns and new rules came the Black Lives Matter protests of June 2020, which was when I experienced anxiety.
Black mothers deserve to be listened to, supported, and taken seriously when we speak about our mental health. We deserve to have safe spaces where we can be honest and have our experiences recognised and respected. Considering this, it is shocking that 61% of Black mothers were not referred to or signposted to mental health support, and only 34% were able to describe their overall mental health support experience as ‘good’.
Every Black mother will have a different experience of pregnancy, birth and motherhood. However, race and culture will influence how someone experiences healthcare, and how comfortable they feel talking about their mental health. For me, I’ve been incredibly lucky to have had positive female role models throughout my life, and I am truly grateful for that. This includes matriarch grandmas who came over during the Windrush – the ones who are practically psychic and only have to take one look at you to know you’re pregnant (before you even know yourself); a mum who is the heartbeat of the family, whose cooking is unmatched, and who you’ve never actually seen sit down for more than five seconds; and aunties who gave you the cousins you grew up alongside.
I have witnessed first-hand just how much love, strength and resilience pours out of these women and mothers in our community. But sometimes, alongside that incredible strength, there can also be a learned tendency to bury struggle and pain in order to survive. This is why listening is so important. Listening to each other, but also to our bodies and minds. Black mothers should feel able to speak openly about pain, anxiety, changes in their mood, or worries about their health without feeling that they are being judged or ignored.
Being strong can be empowering – looking at the incredible women in my lineage and the strength they’ve carried is a blessing – but sometimes the expectation to always be strong can create pressure to hide vulnerability. Overtime, this can be detrimental to our mental health. This is why appropriate referrals and signposting to mental health support is so important.
I can see how, as Black women, we can get caught up in the feeling that we’re supposed to manage everything ourselves without asking for help, but asking for help is not weakness. Admitting your mental health isn’t as great this week as it was last week is perfectly normal. That’s something I’ve had to work hard to continue reminding myself, and it’s something I still remind myself of today. Sometimes, strength looks like asking someone else to step in, or reaching out to healthcare providers and relevant organisations for advice and support because you deserve it.
Mental health can sometimes be difficult to talk about within Black families and communities. Some mothers might worry about being judged, misunderstood or seen differently if they admit that they are experiencing depression or anxiety. But everyone has mental health, and creating spaces where these conversations can happen without shame is an important step. Family, friends, colleagues, faith communities, and wider communities can all play a role in helping to make Black mothers feel supported.
Small acts of support can make a big difference, this can be as simple as listening, checking in regularly, helping with the baby or reminding a mother that she doesn’t have to handle everything by herself.
One of the most important messages surrounding Black maternal mental health is your feelings matter. You deserve to receive support, be listened to, ask questions, and talk about your mental health without feeling ashamed. One thing I’ve learnt over the past few months is that sometimes being strong means recognising when you need support and allowing yourself to receive it. That is one of the most empowering things you can do, because at the end of the day we are all human.
There are lots of nationwide organisations doing really important work to support and advocate for Black women and mothers. Fivexmore is a leading organisation focused on Black maternal health. They empower, support and advocate for Black women and have played an important role in ensuring Black women’s experiences are heard.
In 2022, Fivexmore made history with the first ever Black Maternity Experiences Survey which I am proud to have taken part in. Their latest report, the Black Maternity Experiences Report 2026, builds on that work and captures the lived experiences of Black women across the country.
You can read the report here: Black Maternity Experiences Report 2026 — FIVEXMORE
You might also find the following organisations helpful:
- The Motherhood Group – supporting and advocating for Black mothers and addressing inequalities experienced by mothers
- Black Mothers Matter – providing support, advocacy and resources centred around Black mothers
If you would like further information about any resources, support or maternity organisations, please contact me via the EDI team’s email: EDI@creativesupport.co.uk
And, most importantly, if you’re a Black mother reading this, I hope you remember to check in with yourself. How are you really feeling?
– Kizzy Green, EDI Engagement Lead