The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline Celebrates 4 Years of Service and 100,000 Help-Seekers Served
The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline Celebrated its 4-Year Anniversary
The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline (1-833-TLC-MAMA) launched on Mother’s Day 2022 and has served over 100,000 help-seekers in four years of operations.
The Hotline is a 24/7, free, confidential resource available to mothers and their families who are impacted by maternal mental health conditions. Hotline counselors provide support, encouragement, information, and resources for recovery. Services are in English and Spanish, and translation is also available in 60 languages.
The Hotline is available via call, text, or chat and is staffed by trained counselors including mental health providers, certified peer specialists, and maternal-infant health professionals such as doulas and lactation consultants, all of whom are certified in perinatal mental health.
Contact the Hotline through their website or call or text 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262).
How the Hotline is Funded
The Hotline is a federally funded program managed by the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau.
The Hotline was established by federal legislation passed by Congress in 2020. Policy advocacy efforts to pass this legislation and continue funding the Hotline have been led by the Maternal Mental Health Leadership Alliance (MMHLA) with support from numerous organizations including Postpartum Support International, the Alliance for People of Color, MomsRising, Chamber of Mothers, March of Dimes, the Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health, and individuals with lived experience from across the country.
What Help-Seekers are Saying about the Hotline
In the United States, where many mothers are suffering with their mental health in silence and falling through the cracks of our healthcare system, a resource like the Hotline serves those in need of support at any time of the day or night.
Take a look at what some Hotline help-seekers had to say:
“The woman I was on the phone with tonight changed my life and the way I see my future with my baby. Whoever you were, thank you for the way you handled me. I hope I run into you again someday.”
“I just wanted to say thank you for your help with helping my wife yesterday. You guys are fantastic. We started getting some help today already, and I’m feeling encouraged. Thank you.”
“You are my ray of sunshine tonight - I have been calling this line since I was pregnant and feel so grateful. No one has been here for me like you guys.”
A Snapshot of the Hotline's Reach and Effectiveness
Were the people who contacted the Hotline pregnant or in the postpartum period?
Why did people contact the Hotline?
Data from HRSA shows that people may call the hotline for more than one reason. The top five reasons people contact the hotline are: feeling overwhelmed, depression, anxiety, relationship conflict, and pregnancy. Because some people called for more than one reason, these percentages add up to more than 100.
You Can Order FREE Print Materials About the Hotline to Share in Your Community
Anyone can order free posters, magnets, and wallet cards to share with friends, family, and clients, and to distribute in clinics, churches, mom groups, local stores, libraries, hair and nail salons, etc.
Hotline poster
Share the Hotline with the English and Spanish Promotional Toolkit
Use HRSA’s English and Spanish toolkits to share about the Hotline on social media, in newsletters, and on websites.
Hotline graphic in English
Hotline graphic in Spanish
Spotlight: Rural County in Ohio Raises Awareness About the Hotline in Creative Ways
As part of a four-year federal grant from HRSA, the Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Service at Ohio University in partnership with local health professionals, led a campaign surveying four rural counties in Ohio to assess maternal mental health. Findings highlighted a need for better support and resources for new mothers experiencing feelings of anxiety, depression, or being overwhelmed.
Pictured above: A Billboard promoting the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline on the side of a street in rural Ohio as part of their public awareness campaign.
Pictured above: Cups, stickers, tote bags, lanyards, and a medicine spoon with information about the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline as part of Ohio's public awareness campaign.
The four counties have been actively promoting the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline as a resource and to reduce stigma. Each county utilized grant funds to implement a media campaign focused on mothers that used the tagline: “Sometimes moms need help, too. Let’s talk about it.”
The public awareness campaign initially focused on new mothers, but then expanded to include families and friends, who can help identify mood changes in new mothers. Information about the Hotline was shared on social media and billboards, as well as on items used by new parents, such as coffee mugs, lanyards, medicine-dosing spoons, and first-aid kits.
We hope more public health agencies across the country draw inspiration from Ohio's great work on this!
STAY IN TOUCH
