Improving mental health support for early pregnancy loss

Throughout Mental Health Awareness Week and beyond, we’re exploring how to turn evidence into action to support the mental health of children, young people and families. This includes sharing some projects that show how our work is using the latest evidence to transform wellbeing, through classrooms, clinical practice and decision-making at the heart of government.

Linking Loss is a research project led by Dr Camilla Rosan, Clinical Research Lead at Anna Freud, and funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The study is drawing on the experiences of 40 people who have experienced early pregnancy loss, as well as 20 health professionals, to improve mental health care.

Noopa Anna Roshan, a Research Assistant who joined Anna Freud in January, shares more.

What’s the aim of Linking Loss?

The Linking Loss study is all about improving mental health support for people who have experienced pregnancy loss before 24 weeks. Although early pregnancy loss is really common (~15% of pregnancies) most people do not receive support, even though there's often a significant impact on their mental health. For example, research shows that up to 29% of people experience post-traumatic stress and around 24% experience clinical levels of anxiety following early pregnancy loss.

Through this study, we want to get a much deeper understanding of the experiences of people following early pregnancy loss, and the kind of the mental health support that would be helpful at this time to help improve care.

We’re particularly focused on listening to individuals from Black, Asian, and LGBTQIA+ communities who are more likely to experience barriers to accessing services and navigating healthcare systems, which are not always designed with people from underserved backgrounds and marginalised experiences in mind.

How is the project transforming evidence into action?

The Linking Loss study ultimately aims to inform practice by coproducing what a person-centred, inclusive mental health intervention following pregnancy loss should look like. Insights from the study’s in-depth interviews are being brought together through a series of workshops to co-design a group, peer-led intervention to better support people affected.

The project is really powerful as we’re not just collecting evidence, but we’re making sure that the voices of people with lived experience are heard and are translated into a meaningful and accessible programme, tailored to a diverse range of needs and backgrounds.

What’s one thing you’ve learnt from the project so far?

As an early career researcher, every day is a learning day! From the project specifically, one of the biggest things that I've learned is how prevalent early pregnancy loss is but how rarely it's spoken about. Through the research interviews I’m carrying out, people keep sharing how alone they feel while they're going through these experiences.

However, what has also really stood out is how they’ve also described the value of having an open space to simply talk about their experiences, be that with friends or family, in support groups, or even through the interviews we’ve carried out for the Linking Loss study. That act of sharing can feel really validating and help people feel heard. For me, that’s really highlighted the importance of community-based and peer-supported approaches, and the need to create spaces where people’s experiences are acknowledged and supported.

Tell us about your role

Within the project, my role involves conducting interviews with people with lived experience of early pregnancy loss and professionals, as well as contributing to data analysis and outreach. Before joining Anna Freud, I had recently graduated from King’s College London, where I was involved in research projects on women’s mental health across perinatal and reproductive health contexts in South Asia, which got me really interested in this important topic.

What change would you like to see to improve the mental health of families?

For me, it’s high time that emotional and psychological support becomes a standard part of care. There is often a wide separation between physical and mental health support, which can mean psychological needs aren’t always addressed in a timely or consistent way. I think that consistently integrating both together would provide more streamlined, holistic and effective care for individuals.

Find out more

Anna Freud is a mental health charity, transforming care for children and young people through science, collaboration and clinical innovation.

This Mental Health Awareness Week, help turn evidence into action and support the wellbeing of children and young people by making a donation today. You can also find out more about our research projects.