‘After that phone call, I felt desperately alone.’
The actress Sam Frost has spoken candidly about the emotional challenges faced by new or expectant mothers as well as her dissatisfaction with the “very dysfunctional” mental health system.
When visiting her website, Believe The former Home and Away actress penned an article for Sam Frost on some of her recent hospital experiences in Queensland.
I’m incredibly disappointed in the mental health treatment for expecting/new mothers, wrote Frost, who is expecting her first child with fiancé Jordie Hansen, in her Instagram stories.
Frost, 33, says in the piece that she relocated to the Sunshine Coast 20 weeks into her pregnancy.
She started bleeding unexpectedly at 22 weeks and visited the hospital to be examined.
She took advantage of the good situation to schedule the birth of her child.
The procedure entails filling out a patient health questionnaire, which includes a psychological component to ascertain your risk of getting post-natal depression and whether you need any additional help, according to Frost.
“At the time, I believed it to be a generic screening and didn’t anticipate being asked about my past experiences, mental health, etc.
“Until I couldn’t hold it back any longer, I could feel my chest constricting, my breath becoming shorter, and tears welling up in my eyes.
“I just started crying and had a little panic attack.”
Frost praised her midwife as “wonderful,” “kind and kind” and added that she had to ask the questions because of this.
She described her lengthy history of depression, suicide ideas, and attempts in detail after regaining her composure.
“I talked about my childhood struggles, my ongoing worry that my past may come back to haunt me now that I’m about to have a parent, and my family’s history of postpartum depression.
“I disclosed all of this extremely private material, which was incredibly challenging to discuss.
“However, I recognized the value of getting mental health support.
Before bringing a kid into the world, “I felt a big duty to make sure my health is in the finest condition it can be.”
Frost reiterated that her midwife was immensely supportive, telling her that someone would be in contact with her soon to discuss mental health support throughout the rest of her pregnancy and after the birth.
After that, however, not a lot happened, according to Frost.
Frost said she waited 10 weeks for a psychologist referral, following up four times to no avail.
“(I) sent an email with my concerns; how the screening process triggered a trauma response, and failing to follow up with the appropriate mental health care was reckless and irresponsible,” Frost said.
“I explained how I’ve been proactive in trying to receive support and I was deeply concerned for other women, perhaps in a more vulnerable position, who may have slipped through the cracks also.
“No response.”
Frost claimed that after a second follow-up, the patient liaison team finally got in touch with her and informed her that a nursing unit manager would contact her the following day.
Frost wrote, “2 days later, I hadn’t heard anything.”
I finally received a call from the nursing unit manager after 12 weeks, four verbal requests, and three letters pleading for someone to proceed with a mental health treatment plan.
She very firmly asserted that she had reviewed my file and that I do not match the criteria for receiving any mental health care.
Frost was shocked when the nursing unit manager denied her eligibility after questioning the tiresome process she had just gone through.
If you would like a re-evaluation, I can arrange for someone to call you, she merely said, according to Frost.
“Forget it, I’m not going through that process a third time, I simply said. I simply hope that other weak women don’t go through what I did.
As she described what had occurred to her companion, Frost claimed she was unable to stop crying.
I’m a fierce supporter of mental health,” Frost concluded.
“I have spent years talking about my experiences in an effort to encourage people to speak up.
“To not be reluctant to ask for help when you’re having a hard time and need it.
“And if you ever feel like the world is crumbling, there is help available. You are never alone.
“Yet, after that phone call, I felt desperately alone.
“I felt betrayed by the system I passionately advocate for.”
Queensland Health has been contacted for comment.
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