Postnatal depression remains a challenging condition affecting many women, their babies and those around them. Rebecca McGawley, Communications Manager for Breathe Arts Health Research shares evidence of the impact of singing groups on women with this condition and suggests how midwives can help spread the word about them.
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The Healing Power of Song: How Breathe Melodies for Mums is Changing Postnatal Depression Care
Postnatal depression (PND) is one of the most pressing mental health challenges faced by new mothers, affecting at least 1 in 10 women in the UK. Often underestimated, its impact can be profound—not only for mothers but also for their babies, families, and communities. With suicide being the leading cause of maternal death in the first year postpartum, it’s clear that we must find new, effective ways to support maternal mental health.
This is where Breathe Melodies for Mums, an innovative group singing programme, is making a tangible difference. Supported by rigorous research and designed specifically for mothers experiencing symptoms of postnatal depression, the programme is bridging the gap between clinical care and community-based interventions.
The Science Behind Singing and Maternal Mental Health
While singing is widely recognised as a mood-enhancer, Breathe Melodies for Mums takes this a step further by grounding its approach in robust scientific research.
The foundation of the programme stems from a study conducted by the Royal College of Music and Imperial College London. This randomised control trial (RCT) involved 134 mothers with moderate to severe PND symptoms, comparing the effects of group singing, creative play, and standard care over a 10-week period. The results were striking; mothers in the singing group showed significantly faster recovery.
By six weeks, the singing group had experienced a 35% reduction in symptoms, with 65% no longer classified as having moderate-to-severe depression. By the end of the programme, these figures had improved further, with a 40% reduction in symptoms and 73% of participants no longer meeting the threshold for moderate-to-severe PND.
In addition to subjective measures, research also explored biological markers such as cortisol levels, which reflect stress in both mothers and babies. Singing not only reduced stress levels but also fostered a stronger sense of connection between parent and child—a critical factor in early attachment and child development.
What Sets Breathe Melodies for Mums Apart
Unlike traditional postnatal groups, Breathe Melodies for Mums places the mother at the heart of the experience. While babies are welcomed and actively participate, the programme prioritises maternal wellbeing. This is a subtle but significant shift in focus, particularly in a society where mothers are often overlooked once their baby is born.
The sessions are structured to offer:
- A Safe, Inclusive Space: The nonjudgmental environment allows mothers to focus on themselves without pressure to discuss their mental health openly, something many find difficult.
- Connection Through Creativity: Singing creates a unique shared experience. The repertoire, ranging from global folk songs to uplifting harmonies, avoids nursery rhymes and instead reflects diverse cultures and experiences.
- Practical Mental Health Benefits: The group format reduces isolation, a key contributor to PND, while fostering a sense of achievement, identity, and self-care.
Importantly, the programme is delivered by experienced singing leaders who have been trained to support mothers with PND. These leaders create a nurturing environment that balances musicality with mental health awareness.
For many participants, it’s the unspoken solidarity that makes the difference. As one mother put it:
“We were all just there singing, trying to find ourselves through music. There was no stigma—it felt safe.”
Evidence in Action
Breathe Arts Health Research, the organisation behind the programme, has been delivering Breathe Melodies for Mums since 2017, initially piloting it in Lambeth before expanding to Southwark, Croydon, and Wandsworth.
The programme continued to grow as part of the Wellcome Trust-funded SHAPER-PND (Scaling Health-Arts Programmes: Implementation & Effectiveness Research) study, in partnership with Kings College London and University College London, which evaluated the programme’s scalability and effectiveness over a 5-year period. Working with 200 mothers, this was one of the largest pieces of research of its nature. Preliminary results were shared at a dissemination event at the Science Gallery, London last year.
These showed that, as expected, participation in group singing produced an improvement in symptoms of PND, but what was particularly interesting (and makes singing groups different from other similar community interventions) is that the improvement in depression was sustained six months after the end of the singing groups. This is exciting because it’s the first study that has shown such a sustained effect of this type of intervention on mental health. We already knew that group singing was at least as effective as other similar psychosocial interventions for short-term benefits, but this sustained improvement, well beyond the end of the intervention is new, and of real clinical significance.
The research also showed that the singing intervention engendered synchronicity between mother and baby. This was reflected both in a mirroring of mother and baby cortisol levels, and mentalisation – the ability of the mother to perceive and respond to the baby’s emotions as assessed through the CARE index (a three-minute video interaction where behaviours like maternal sensitivity, infant cooperation, and dyadic synchrony are analysed).
It is well known that interaction during the perinatal period and the first 1,000 days of life lays the foundation for a child’s overall well-being throughout life, so as well as improving maternal mental health, the enhanced maternal attunement fostered by Breathe Melodies for Mums is also likely to have positive downstream impacts on the baby’s emotional and developmental outcomes.
Why Midwives Should Refer to Breathe Melodies for Mums
Midwives are often the first point of contact for new mothers struggling with their mental health. Your role in identifying those at risk and connecting them with effective support is critical. Breathe Melodies for Mums offers a non-clinical, accessible pathway for mothers who may be hesitant to engage with traditional mental health services.
Here’s why midwives should consider referring mothers to this programme:
- Proven Effectiveness: Supported by peer-reviewed research, the programme has been proven to significantly reduce PND symptoms.
- Accessibility: Sessions are free to attend and designed to accommodate mothers with little to no prior singing experience.
- Holistic Impact: In addition to mental health benefits, mothers report improved parent-baby bonding and increased confidence in their parenting abilities.
- Scalability: With the ongoing SHAPER-PND study, the programme is poised to expand, making it available to even more families across the UK.
Looking to the Future
Breathe Arts Health Research has ambitious plans for the programme. They are currently collaborating with the World Health Organisation to adapt Breathe Melodies for Mums for international contexts, with pilot programmes now running in Denmark, Italy, and Romania. Closer to home, the first sessions for Breathe Melodies for Dads are also underway, recognising that fathers too face significant mental health challenges in the perinatal period.
The ultimate goal? For Breathe Melodies for Mums to become a standard NHS intervention, prescribed alongside other treatments for postnatal depression.
Last year, Breathe’s Managing Director and Founder opened TEDxNHS with a talk on the science of singing for postnatal depression and was joined on stage by some of the participants and their babies. It’s a moving performance and one that really captures the magic of this unique intervention and Breathe’s hopes for the future of the programme.
How You Can Help
If you are a midwife or healthcare professional, you can play a vital role in supporting mothers by spreading awareness of Breathe Melodies for Mums and referring eligible women and birthing people.
To find out more about the programme or to refer a mother, visit Breathe Arts Health Research or get in touch at [email protected]
Together, we can ensure that no mother feels alone in her journey through postnatal depression.
Author bio
Rebecca McGawley is Communications Manager (Maternity Cover) for Breathe Arts Health Research, and a mum of two.
Contact email: [email protected]
February 2025