In May, together with the charity SHOUT and the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsych), West London NHS Trust launched a two-year pilot project, providing a free, confidential 24/7 text support service to pregnant women / birthing people, new parents with babies and toddlers up to the age of two, and those who have experienced baby loss, or pregnancy loss (including termination for any reason).
People can now text the word HUG to 85258 if they are struggling to cope or need help “in the moment.”
Local parents and service users who worked with on this project have said it is a necessary resource for a generation which routinely uses short electronic messages, or text messages to communicate.
More than a quarter of new and expectant parents in the UK experience what’s called perinatal mental health problems, which can occur during pregnancy or in the first two years after a baby’s birth. Pregnant women / birthing people can develop mental ill health for the first time during pregnancy or after giving birth, and pre-existing mental health conditions can sometimes worsen at any time during the perinatal period.
How does it work?
The pilot is supported by the RCPsych, which has provided bespoke training for the Shout volunteers handling and responding to the text requests.
When someone texts HUG to 85258, their text will go through to trained volunteers, who are supervised and supported in real time by an expert clinical team.
You can find more information about the new service on the WLT website.