Mission

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The American Psychiatric Association Council on Women’s Mental Health defines “Reproductive Psychiatry” as the study of and care for individuals with psychiatric illnesses related to, or influenced by, the physiologic changes of the female reproductive lifecycle (from menarche through perimenopause). Examples of such psychiatric conditions include psychiatric symptoms in the context of endogenous fluctuations in female reproductive hormones (menstruation, infertility and its treatments, pregnancy, postpartum, lactation, perimenopause and menopause) and hormonal alterations resulting from medical or surgical interventions (hormonal birth control, hormonal therapies, gynecologic surgeries, gynecologic oncologic treatments). 

Over half the population of the United States is female and may present with sex-specific psychiatric symptoms across the lifespan. 86% of women in the US will become mothers and nearly half of all pregnancies are unplanned. Up to 20% of women meet criteria for psychiatric disorders during pregnancy and postpartum; psychiatric illness, inclusive of substance use disorders, is a leading cause of maternal mortality across the United States. Nevertheless, 3 in 4 women do not receive appropriate treatment.

Despite the significant burden of reproductive-related psychiatric symptoms, there is inadequate access to psychiatrists with the knowledge, expertise, and experience necessary to provide adequate treatment. Survey studies indicate that U.S. psychiatrists, including trainees, lack confidence treating women in pregnancy and postpartum. Knowledge and experience treating patients in the perinatal period or in reproductive psychiatry are not ACGME training requirements in residency programs. Many, if not most, accredited residency programs do not have faculty with the expertise to provide didactic education and clinical supervision in this area. 

Establishing a pathway of certification for psychiatrists who demonstrate interest and expertise in reproductive psychiatry will 1) improve direct patient care, 2) enhance the availability and credibility of expert consultation for general psychiatrists and other physicians and frontline providers, 3) enhance residency education and disseminate the critical knowledge of appropriate psychiatric care across the reproductive life cycle, and 4) advance research and understanding of reproductive psychiatric illness and treatment to further the field and advance the state-of-the-art care for patients in need.