Motherhood is often described as one of life’s most joyful experiences. But behind the celebrations, milestones, and expectations, many mothers are navigating emotional challenges they may not feel comfortable sharing.
One in five mothers experiences a maternal mental health condition, yet three in four conditions go untreated.
These challenges can emerge during pregnancy, after childbirth, or throughout the transition into parenthood. Depression, anxiety, trauma, and substance use disorders can affect maternal well-being, relationships, and family life. Too often, stigma, limited awareness, and barriers to specialized care prevent mothers from getting the support they need.
At Huntsman Mental Health Foundation, we believe changing that reality requires more than awareness. It takes open conversations, accessible treatment, and research that leads to better care.
That’s why we’re proud to support the Ad Council’s newest maternal mental health campaign, while helping advance the work of clinicians and researchers at Huntsman Mental Health Institute (HMHI) who are transforming how mothers and families receive support.
The Secret to Motherhood: A National Conversation About Maternal Mental Health
In October 2026, the Ad Council launched The Secret to Motherhood, a new initiative under its national Love, Your Mind campaign, supported by Huntsman Mental Health Foundation, the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, and other partners.
The campaign challenges the pressure many mothers feel to appear as though they have everything figured out, even when they are struggling.
Through powerful storytelling, the campaign’s What’s Her Secret? public service announcements reveal the emotional realities of early motherhood: sleepless nights, self-doubt, loneliness, overwhelming expectations, and the difficult feelings that often go unspoken.
The message is simple but important: Mothers don’t have to have all the answers, and they shouldn’t have to navigate their mental health challenges alone.
Available in English and Spanish, the campaign encourages expecting and new mothers to recognize when they may need additional support, speak openly about their experiences, and connect with resources designed for their well-being.
As a lead partner of the Ad Council’s broader Love, Your Mind initiative, Huntsman Mental Health Foundation is helping bring mental health conversations into homes and communities nationwide.
Watch: The Secret to Motherhood
These powerful campaign videos challenge expectations and open the door to more honest conversations about motherhood.
From National Awareness to Specialized Care in Utah
Raising awareness is an important first step to helping new mothers. But when someone recognizes they need help, knowing where to turn is just as important.
At Huntsman Mental Health Institute, specialized programs address the unique mental health needs of individuals during pregnancy, postpartum recovery, pregnancy loss, and other reproductive life transitions.
The Nest: A New Level of Support for Mothers and Families
One of the newest examples is HMHI’s Nest Intensive Outpatient Program, which provides specialized mental health treatment for adults experiencing challenges related to pregnancy, childbirth, pregnancy loss, parenting, or related trauma.
The program helps fill a critical gap between traditional outpatient therapy and inpatient psychiatric care.
Through structured, evidence-based treatment, participants receive support for conditions including depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), trauma, and other mental health challenges associated with reproductive transitions.
Nest combines individual and group therapy, medication management, and specialized clinical support to help participants develop coping skills, strengthen emotional well-being, and navigate recovery while remaining connected to their families and daily lives.
Led by a multidisciplinary team, the program reflects a growing understanding that maternal mental health care must be compassionate, accessible, and tailored to each person’s circumstances.
For a closer look at the program and why it matters, read our Foundation story: Building a Nest of Support for Perinatal and Reproductive Mental Health.
Meet Dr. Rana Jawish: Connecting Research, Treatment, and Advocacy
At the intersection of national awareness and specialized clinical care is Rana Jawish, MD, an addiction-trained perinatal psychiatrist at Huntsman Mental Health Institute.
Dr. Jawish contributed her clinical expertise to the Ad Council’s maternal mental health campaign, helping reinforce the importance of early recognition, open conversations, and access to treatment.
As the medical lead of HMHI’s Nest Intensive Outpatient Program, Dr. Jawish works to improve care for individuals experiencing depression, anxiety, substance use disorders, and other mental health challenges during pregnancy and postpartum.
Her work also extends into research, where she is exploring innovative approaches to some of the most complex and underserved areas of maternal mental health.
In 2026, Dr. Jawish received a prestigious five-year, $1 million National Institutes of Health (NIH) K23 Career Development Award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
The award supports her research into transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) as a potential treatment for methamphetamine use disorder during pregnancy.
How Research Is Shaping the Future of Maternal Mental Health Care
Pregnancy can introduce unique challenges when treating mental health and substance use disorders. Clinicians must consider the well-being of both the pregnant patient and the developing baby, while navigating treatment limitations and barriers to care.
For some conditions, particularly methamphetamine use disorder during pregnancy, evidence-based treatment options remain limited.
Dr. Jawish’s research is exploring whether TMS, a noninvasive treatment that uses magnetic pulses to stimulate targeted areas of the brain, could offer another option.
Although TMS is already approved for certain conditions, including major depressive disorder, its effectiveness for treating methamphetamine use disorder during pregnancy has not yet been established.
Her first-of-its-kind clinical trial will evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of TMS for pregnant patients with methamphetamine use disorder, while gathering evidence to inform future treatment approaches.
The goal is not simply to develop another treatment. It is to better understand how care can be tailored to the complex needs of pregnant individuals, reduce barriers to treatment, and improve outcomes for parents and infants.
This work is part of a broader commitment at Huntsman Mental Health Institute to connect scientific discovery with clinical practice.
Through collaboration across psychiatry, obstetrics, addiction medicine, and neuroscience, researchers are working to translate promising discoveries into approaches that can ultimately improve care.
Supporting Mental Health Through Pregnancy, Loss, and Parenthood
Maternal mental health needs extend beyond postpartum depression.
For some individuals, emotional challenges begin during pregnancy. Others may experience significant distress following a complicated pregnancy, stillbirth, pregnancy loss, or traumatic birth experience.
Recognizing these different experiences is essential to building a more comprehensive approach to care.
Across University of Utah Health and Huntsman Mental Health Institute, specialized clinical services and collaborative programs are helping address these needs.
The Utah Pregnancy After Loss Program, for example, provides coordinated support for individuals and families navigating pregnancy following loss or serious pregnancy complications.
By bringing together specialized medical and mental health expertise, programs like these acknowledge that reproductive and maternal mental health care cannot be separated from a person’s overall health and lived experiences.
Together with the Nest program and emerging research initiatives, these services represent meaningful progress toward more comprehensive, patient-centered care.
Creating Change Through Awareness, Research, and Philanthropy
The launch of The Secret to Motherhood is an important reminder that mental health advocacy and clinical innovation are closely connected.
National campaigns can help reduce stigma and encourage people to seek support. Specialized programs can provide compassionate, evidence-based care. And research can uncover new treatment possibilities for individuals whose needs have too often gone unmet.
Philanthropy plays an important role in bringing these efforts together.
Through the generosity of donors and partners, Huntsman Mental Health Foundation supports the mission of Huntsman Mental Health Institute to advance mental health research, expand access to care, and strengthen education and awareness.
Dr. Jawish’s research is one example of how continued investment can help accelerate promising discoveries and create new possibilities for treatment.
Every mother deserves to feel heard, supported, and empowered to seek care. And every family deserves access to a future where mental health is treated as an essential part of overall health.
Together, we can help make that future possible.
Maternal Mental Health Resources
Whether you’re navigating your own mental health, supporting someone you love, or simply looking to learn more, these resources can help.
- The Secret to Motherhood — Practical tools, educational resources, and support for new and expecting mothers.
- Nest Intensive Outpatient Program — Specialized care for perinatal and reproductive mental health challenges at HMHI.
- Building a Nest of Support — Learn how HMHI’s newest program is helping address gaps in care.
- Maternal Mental Health Research and News — Explore research, treatment advances, and programs across University of Utah Health.
- 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline — Call or text 988 for free, confidential crisis support, available 24/7.
