Women who have faced natural disasters whilst pregnant or in the early stages of motherhood are being sought for a new study.

The research aims to put the needs of such women into preparedness, relief and recovery planning.
Monash Rural Health PhD student Xiangmin Tan has spent recent weeks in Warragul to recruit volunteers for her study.
She is seeking women to share their experiences and needs during natural disasters including bushfire, COVID, heatwaves, drought, severe storms, floods, bushfire smoke and landslides.
Ms Tan urged any mothers who had experienced mental health challenges before pregnancy, experienced a natural disaster during pregnancy or the first year after birth, and who live in rural Australia to volunteer for the study.
Monash University lecturer Rochelle Hine is supporting Ms Tan's research project.
"We know that in an emergency response to those disasters, the needs of perinatal women are not often considered, and they are unique," Dr Hine said.
As an example, Dr Hine said evacuation centres were often noisy, had all ages and even pets, so were not suited for new babies who need to be breastfed and settled.
"You can't put the perinatal period or pregnancy on pause," she added.
Ms Tan is currently based in Clayton but spent a three-month stint in Warragul earlier this year.
She has returned in recent weeks to visit schools, cafes, early childhood services and community clubs to hand out flyers to locate participants.
Pregnant women were at a higher risk of having adverse birth outcomes such as low birthweight and preterm births after experiencing a disaster, Ms Tan said. And, given climate change had globally shifted both the frequency and intensity of environmental disasters, she said this posed a problem for pregnant women around the globe.
"With the incidence of natural disasters expected to increase, it's important to know how this cohort of women and their families cope - or don't - and what we can do to help them," Ms Tan said.
Partners and family members of women are also invited to participate.
Ideally, the woman should have experienced pregnancy or birth in the past five years.
To find out more, contact Xiangmin Tan on 0493 979 000 or email xiangmin.tan@monash.edu