With a family history of postpartum depression, Chloe thought she knew what signs to look out for in perinatal mental illness. But immediately after both births, she experienced insomnia that escalated into psychosis — what she calls ‘the crash’. Chloe shares the intensity of postpartum psychosis, and the long aftermath of making sense of what happened and rebuilding a sense of normal.

For the first three months of her daughter’s life, Sarah put on a brave face while anxiety and insomnia quietly intensified behind the scenes. When she could no longer hide the severity of her illness, she finally said, ‘I need serious help’, marking the beginning of her journey towards finding the support she needed.

After a joyful first postpartum experience, Tegan was unprepared for how quickly her mental health unravelled the second time. As her OCD intensified and her symptoms were repeatedly dismissed, she struggled to access the care she needed, until finally she was admitted to a mother-and-baby unit — all thanks to the help of an unlikely stranger.