The Body in Perinatal Health 1.0
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The Body in Perinatal Health: Women's experiences of Dance Movement Psychotherapy intervention for postnatal depression
IRAS ID
286780
Contact name
Vicky Karkou
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Edge Hill University
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
Postnatal depression is a growing concern for maternal health services and is estimated to affect 15-20% of mothers in the UK. Dance Movement Psychotherapy is a creative psychotherapeutic intervention that supports an embodied approach to psychotherapy. This study aims to explore women's experiences of Dance Movement Psychotherapy as an intervention for postnatal depression. The perinatal period is transitory and transformational for the mother as her sense of self shifts alongside her changing body; the body and mind undergo huge strain and it can be a vulnerable time. This study is interested in the use of body-based therapy to address these vulnerabilities.
There are some reports of addressing perinatal depressive symptoms with Dance Movement Psychotherapy, but there is little research that highlights the experiences of the mother receiving such treatment. The aim of this study is to give a voice to the experiences of women receiving Dance Movement Psychotherapy treatment for postnatal depression and seeks to understand how the intervention may be developed further for this patient group.
In order to better understand the subjective experiences of the participants, qualitative methods including arts-based and evaluative methods will be used to both collect data and to disseminate the findings. The study is in partnership with Liverpool Women's Hospital and Sefton Council, mothers of children up to 18 months old, and who are experiencing symptoms of depression will be able to access the therapy as part of the study. Participants will be invited to attend twelve weekly sessions of Dance Movement Psychotherapy. Data relating to participants’ experiences will be gathered from four qualitative interviews with creative/embodied response and questionnaires conducted throughout the therapy. The interviews will support open responses from the participants so that relevant themes may emerge in the research and it is expected that such themes will inform further practice and research.
REC name
Yorkshire & The Humber - Bradford Leeds Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
21/YH/0176
Date of REC Opinion
1 Sep 2021
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion