Pregnant Kate Middleton cooes over an adorable infant

Pregnant Kate Middleton cooes over an adorable infant



The pregnant Duchess of Cambridge has spoken of the expectation placed on mothers to feel ‘super happy’ after they have given birth, saying: ‘One in four of us aren't.’



Kate, whose third baby is due in April, was visiting a specialist mother and baby unit at Bethlem Royal Hospital which houses mothers who have suffered severe mental illness in late pregnancy and early motherhood, ensuring they are kept with their babies as they receive treatment.



The 36-year-old duchess looked radiant in a baby blue coat by maternity label Séraphine, over a patterned dress by the same label.



It is the second day in a row that she has worn the colour, leaving onlookers wondering if it was a clue to the s*x of her unborn child (although palace sources have always maintained that William and Kate have made no attempt to find out the s*x of any of their children).



It was not clear if Kate was speaking from personal experience when she referred to the pressure of being a mother, but the royal said spending time with babies had made her feel ‘very broody’, and told patients she was ‘so glad’ they are getting the help they need.



After meeting staff at the hospital, the Duchess sat on the floor in a small sensory room, with mother Esther and her baby Nehemiah.



Nehemiah, who wore a babygro with the words ‘I'm kind of a big deal’ written on the front, played happily with a tube of lights - occasionally chewing it - while the Duchess asked his mother about her care and how the room had helped her.



She then moved to a large room to meet other patients at the unit and cooed over seven-month-old Angela, who played on a mat and blew bubbles with a nursery nurse.





Angela's mother, Claire, has been successfully treated for bipolar affective disorder at the unit, and is now at home. She told the Duchess the unit had given her confidence, and allowed her to make friends with other women with mental health issues.



Asked by the Duchess whether she was aware of any stigma about mental illness, she said: ‘It would be wonderful if it is destigmatised.’



Women spend an average eight to 12 weeks in the unit, before they are able to go home where they receive treatment for various kinds of mental illness including anxiety, depression and postpartum psychosis.



She then joined a meeting with experts including health visitors, midwives and community nurses. Briefed on research that found that, in the boroughs local to the London hospital, one in four perinatal women experience some form of mental health issues, the Duchess said: ‘There's an expectation you're going to be super happy all the time, and one in four of us aren't.



‘These statistics are there, the research is there, but actually it's getting the awareness out there for mothers to take it [help]."



Before she left she was presented with a bunch of flowers and gifts for her children: three books and cuddly toys in the shape of a monkey, unicorn and rabbit for Prince George, Princess Charlotte and her third baby due in April.



Dr Gertrude Seneviratne, Lead of the Perinatal Mental Health Services, Consultant in General Adult and Perinatal Psychiatry, and Chair of the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ Perinatal Faculty, said: ‘The arrival of a baby should be the happiest time in a woman’s life, but for some women this is not the case - our research shows that one in four women experience mental health problems during pregnancy or shortly after the baby is born



‘Mothers often arrive here in much mental distress, feeling that they can’t do things for themselves, but by keeping mother and baby together and providing a range of specialist treatment and therapy, women do recover and can bond with their child.



‘Today is a very special occasion for us. It means a great deal to staff and patients that The Duchess was able to spend some time meeting them – especially as she is a mother herself.” earlier in the day she visited scientists researching the effects of depression on expecting mums and their babies.



She heard how bouts of the blues during pregnancy can leave children depressed even into adolescence.



Professor Carmine Pariante, specialising in biological psychiatry, told Kate: ‘Children born from mothers who were depressed during pregnancy were two to three times more likely to become depressed themselves when they become adolescent.’



Kensington Palace said the duchess was keen to learn more about the perinatal and antenatal support offered to mothers.



Earlier, Kate met academics at the innovative King's College London's Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, which is developing new therapies for mental health illnesses.