Investigating the Onset of Postpartum Psychosis: A Review of Psychosocial Factors and Analysis of Women’s Lived Experiences

As part of a Professional Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, the author of this thesis was particularly interested in investigating the onset of Postpartum Psychosis from a psychological perspective. The investigation included a review of the literature to identify the psychosocial factors involved in the onset of Postpartum Psychosis and an analysis of the lived experiences of women during the onset of Postpartum Psychosis.
Paper one presents a comprehensive review of the literature pertaining to the psychosocial factors involved in the onset of Postpartum Psychosis. Ten papers were identified, and the findings were critically appraised, synthesised and analysed, and are presented as three succinct master themes. Each of the three master themes, Psychological Factors, Sociological Factors and Birth Characteristics contain explicit subordinate themes, depicting a more in-depth account of the evidence regarding the psychosocial factors involved in the onset of Postpartum Psychosis.
Paper two presents a qualitative analysis of women’s experiences of Postpartum Psychosis during the onset and early days. Purposive sampling was used to identify seven women from the UK who had lived experience of Postpartum Psychosis without any prior known risk indicators. Semi-structured interviews provided data for an Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis and four superordinate themes describe phenomena associated with the experience during the onset of Postpartum Psychosis.
Paper three presents an executive summary of the findings described in paper two, in a succinct and accessible format. The summary is aimed at health care professionals and those interested in finding out more about the onset of Postpartum Psychosis