Online Peer-Delivered Group Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Postpartum Depression

Postpartum depression (PPD) is one of the most common complications of childbirth, affecting up to 20% of mothers in the first year after delivery. If untreated, it can have negative effects on the mother, their partner, their newborn, and the other children in the family. Unfortunately, just 1 in 10 mothers with PPD are able to get the treatments they most want and need (e.g., talking therapies), a situation that has worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, innovative, sustainable, and engaging options that safely provide treatment to large numbers of mothers are urgently needed.The purpose of the proposed study is to test the effectiveness of an Online 9-Week Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT; a type of talking therapy) program delivered by mothers who themselves have recovered from PPD (i.e., lay peers). We will recruit 174 mothers who currently have PPD and infants 12 months of age. Mothers will either receive group CBT plus treatment as usual (TAU) from their usual healthcare providers or TAU alone. This study will determine if this online group treatment can lead to stable improvements in PPD, maternal anxiety, parenting stress, their relationships with their partner and infant, and infant temperament. We believe that this peer-delivered treatment will improve PPD and its accompanying difficulties, as well as reduce its adverse effects on families in a cost-effective manner.In addition to the suffering that PPD imposes on mothers and families, the financial cost of untreated PPD may be as high as $150,000 per case over the lifespan. If effective, peer-delivered group CBT for PPD could provide the healthcare system with an affordable and scalable treatment that can improve the health of mothers and families during the pandemic and beyond.