Thanks for taking the time to visit Lise's JustGiving page.

Lise, died suddenly and unexpectedly on the 20th November. She took her own life during an overwhelming menopausal psychotic episode. This was a recurrence of Post-Partum Psychosis, an illness that she suffered from many years ago following the births of our two children.

Postpartum psychosis (or puerperal psychosis) affects thousands of women in the UK each year. It is a severe episode of mental illness which begins suddenly in the days or weeks after having a baby. Symptoms vary and can change rapidly. They can include high mood (mania), depression, confusion, hallucinations and delusions. Postpartum psychosis is a psychiatric emergency. You should seek help as quickly as possible.

Postpartum psychosis can happen to any woman. It often occurs ‘out of the blue’ to women who have not been ill before. It can be a frightening experience for women, their partners, friends and family. Women usually recover fully after an episode of postpartum psychosis. 

It is much less common than Baby Blues or Postnatal Depression. It occurs in about 1 in every 1000 women (0.1%) who have a baby.

Unfortunately little is known about the causes of PP. Research points to biological, probably hormonal, factors related to pregnancy and childbirth but many other factors are likely to be involved.

Just over half of women with Postpartum Psychosis will have a further episode of depression, bipolar disorder or related illness at some point in their lifetime that is not related to childbirth. 

In memory of Lise, please contribute to Action on Postpartum Psychosis and help raise awareness of, and provide funding for essential and desperately needed research into this disease. 

I hope you are able to support this charity as it would be wonderful if some good was to come out of this great sadness. 

Thank you,

Didier, Manon & Yves

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.