Service : Forget-Me-Not Service (East Berkshire)

We can help if you’re struggling with your mental health caused by early baby loss or fertility difficulties in the last 2 years.

We offer psychological therapy support if you’re experiencing mental health difficulties due to complications, such as:

• a miscarriage or a loss of a baby, before 24 weeks gestation
• termination for medical reasons
• are pregnant following a loss
• fertility difficulties

We know that grief can be a complex and personal experience.

You might feel isolated and even misunderstood in your grief, and that difficulties like depression and anxiety are affecting your day-to-day life, such as work, relationships, and sleep.

We’re a Frimley Maternal Mental Health Service, and work directly with Berkshire Healthcare.

Referral criteria

You must be registered with a GP in the Frimley Integrated Care Board (ICB) area, which includes East Berkshire, Surrey Heath, North East Hampshire, and Farnham.

You must also be experiencing mental health difficulties following your loss or losses, or fertility difficulties.

Please speak to your GP, midwife, Health Visitor or other healthcare professional if you’re having difficulties with your mental health.

They will talk to you about available support, and may refer you to us.

Unfortunately, we do not currently accept self-referrals.

Your referral

We’ll review your referral and may contact you for more information.

If we feel our service is right for you, we’ll arrange an online assessment with one of our clinicians to talk with you about your situation.

We’ll discuss what treatment options may be available to you.

If we’re unable to accept your referral, we’ll contact your referrer and suggest other services that may be able to help.

Depending on your needs, we’ll offer you either individual or a group therapy intervention.

We provide open and respectful spaces to support you and those closest to you during this difficult time, such as:  

• sharing your experience and story in a therapeutic environment which feels safe
• learning how the brain and body responds to trauma, loss, and grief
• developing coping strategies for overwhelming emotions
• creating helpful ways of supporting your partner through the loss
• guiding you to other agencies, and help with self-referrals to talking therapies 

Individual therapy

If you choose the individual therapy with one of our clinicians, you will be offered a minimum number of six sessions.

This will be reviewed so we can think together with you about the number of sessions that may be most helpful.

We’ll ask whether you prefer face to face, or online appointments.
If you choose face to face sessions, we have three clinics you can travel to:

• Camberley
• Farnham
• Slough

Our clinics are away from hospital environments, schools, or children centres, where possible

Appointments typically take place 9am to 5pm, Monday to Wednesday.

Group therapy

Our group therapy sessions are provided online.

Group environments can allow you to share your thoughts and experiences in a safe space, with others who may have gone through similar situations. 

They may help you build greater connection with others, so you feel less alone. 

We provide group sessions regularly throughout the year.

We're currently offering a Pregnancy After Loss group intervention, which runs twice yearly and is a joint venture between Forget-Me-Not, Birth in Mind, and Berkshire Perinatal Mental Health Team. 

Getting ready for your appointment

We’ll send a confirmation email with details of your appointment, with links to the online video platform. Please complete the online questionnaires ahead of your appointment, so that we can adjust our therapy to support you. 

Make sure you’re in a confidential space where you can talk freely and without interruption. It is helpful to find a space where you are away from any distractions throughout your appointment.

We’ll talk with you about your story of loss and the lasting impact it may be having, as well as any past mental health difficulties or life events that may be relevant. We’ll also ask about your support network, and possible stresses and strains that comes from it.

Based on what you tell us, we’ll talk about your goals and hopes for therapy, and offer the right support to suit you. Take some time to think about the kind of ongoing support you may need to help you or what you might hope to get out of therapy. 

As some of the discussions may be upsetting, it can be a good idea to plan in time after the appointment for yourself before going back to your daily life. 

There are many different charities and communities available if you need to talk to others about pregnancy or child loss. 

Sands

Sands offers a range of activities to help those affected by baby loss and bereavement, such as support groups run by trained volunteers, coffee mornings, training for health professionals, newsletters, precious memory items, and organising member memorial events.

• Visit the Sands website

The Miscarriage Association

A community of care professionals and families that offer support if you’ve been affected by miscarriage, molar pregnancy, or ectopic pregnancy.

• Visit the Miscarriage Association website

Tommy's  

Support for loss of a baby during pregnancy or after birth  

• Visit the Tommy's website

Saying Goodbye 

Saying Goodbye is the primary division of the Mariposa Trust, a UK based charity that provides support to anyone who has suffered the loss of a baby at any stage of pregnancy, at birth or in infancy.

They provide comprehensive information, advice, support and much more to anyone who has suffered the loss of a baby, at any stage of pregnancy, at birth or in infancy.