The Perinatal Psychology Association has been presented in Madrid
We have interviewed Cristina Silvente, one of the founders of this association to which other professionals belong to which Babies and more have interviewed: Mónica Álvarez and Gabriella Bianco. They also belong to this team, other professionals who focus their work on the psychological care around birth that we hope to approach soon.
We will talk now with Cristina Silvente, who will explain what the Perinatal Psychology Association is and what they offer to society.
How was the association born?
A group of psychologists agree in the El Parto Es Nuestro association, we begin to exchange visions, points of view, information, and collaborate on some projects, including training, pregnancy and childbirth care guides of the Ministry of Health, attention to Perinatal death, among others. We created a blog, in its beginnings to be able to attend online to people who could not have specific psychological assistance in the perinatal area, to publish articles, and to publicize psychology and perinatal psychotherapy. Soon we began to write other psychologists interested in this area, in training, since there is no specific training in Spain, we have been self-taught, forming on our own. So we saw the need to create an entity dedicated to Perinatal Psychology.
How many professionals work in Perinatal Psychology in Spain?
Well we have no data. We know that in some Programs or services of attention to sexual and reproductive health of women have professionals of Psychology that deal with topics of the perinatal field, that in some faculties there are some research groups, in some psychologist colleges there are working groups, and private professionals. Precisely one of the objectives of the Association is to bring together all the professionals that work in the field.
What exactly is perinatal psychology?
We could say that it is the branch of psychology that is dedicated to the processes of conception, pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum and parenting.
In which case is it necessary to go to a psychologist specializing in these issues?
As in any other case, that is, when any difficulty arises, discomfort but that is specific to this period: when there are difficulties of conception, depression, anxiety in pregnancy, when the expected baby is lost, or it is necessary to decide whether continue or not with pregnancy, when there has been a traumatic birth or that makes us feel unhappy, when there is postpartum depression, anxiety, difficulties in adapting or breastfeeding, or establishing a secure attachment, to name just a few.
What can you offer to society?
One of our specific objectives is to create a specialty, a training, a meeting point for professionals, research, offer advice to other professionals in the perinatal, maternal and child health field, and thereby intervene when necessary and, above all, do prevention . Today we are the founding members, we hope that many more will be associated and we can get down to work.
We wish all the successes to the Perinatal Psychology Association and we will keep an eye on your work that is sure to be of great use to our readers.
