Therapy for Perinatal Challenges
Here are some of the perinatal challenges that I can help with.
Perinatal Anxiety
New and hopeful parents may experience overwhelming worry, persistent or intrusive troubling thoughts, restlessness, and/or increased physical signs of stress. Those worries often have to do with your baby or children (including baby's feeding, safety, or about an older child), though they can also be about a number of different things (such as family finances, going back to work, that mountain of unfolded laundry that never seems to shrink, or how "good" or "bad" of a parent you are) . With the proper tools and supports in place, it is possible to feel more in control of your worries and anxiety.
Perinatal Depression
While all parents feel moody or exhausted at some point, depressive symptoms can become especially severe, intense, or prolonged during the perinatal period. Some may be surprised or concerned about the new levels of irritability, rage, fatigue, or guilt that they experience. If this is you, you are not alone. The right support can help you feel more like yourself again.
Experiences of Oppression and Marginalization
The intensity of becoming a parent is unfortunately made harder due to the injustices of racism, classism, xenophobia, and sex and gender-based discrimination in our society. Black, Indigenous, and/or other People of Color (BIPOC) can experience racial trauma at any and every stage of our birthing and parenting journeys. Low-income and immigrant parents are often overlooked and not provided the resources they need to thrive. Women and LGBTQI+ parents experience discrimination within the multitude of systems intersecting with families. And all forms of oppression and marginalization can be painfully internalized. Therapy that recognizes and seeks to end systemic and internalized oppression may feel particularly supportive to you if you identify with one or more of these marginalized communities.
Intergenerational Trauma in Immigrant/BIPOC communities
Early parenthood, while bringing about joy and excitement, can also invite unresolved past and inherited trauma to resurface. When we as the descendants of immigrants and BIPOC become parents ourselves, we consciously or unconsciously bring with us certain behaviors that are shaped by the difficult experiences of those who came before us. Unhelpful familial patterns can be unpacked and ended. Therapy for intergenerational trauma empowers those who suspect that the hardships of their ancestors impact their ability to be the parents or individuals they would like to be.
Perinatal Depression
While all parents feel moody or exhausted at some point, depressive symptoms can become especially severe, intense, or prolonged during the perinatal period. Some may be surprised or concerned about the new levels of irritability, rage, fatigue, or guilt that they experience. If this is you, you are not alone. The right support can help you feel more like yourself again.
Relationship Stress
Children bring joy to our existing relationships. At the same time, new parents often experience a sense of social isolation, and their new additions can also incredibly challenge partnerships, marriages, family and work relationships, and friendships. New parents can benefit from a safe and supportive space to focus on how they relate to those around them. With the right type of interpersonal support, one’s early parenting journey can feel more fulfilling, less isolating, and easier to navigate overall.
Paternal Perinatal Challenges
New dads deserve support too! Even though at least 1 in 10 fathers will develop a perinatal mood and anxiety disorder, we rarely discuss paternal perinatal issues. Men who are BIPOC or the adult children of immigrants face nuanced forms of marginalization and pressure as parents, making culturally sensitive, social justice-oriented support particularly important.
Issues of Identity & Transition
Who am I?? Where am I going in life?? Maybe you thought you had it all figured out before, but now that you’ve become a parent, your world has been turned upside down. You may be grieving your previous life and identity. Or maybe you are expecting a child for the first time, which is prompting you to want to face things about yourself that you usually try to put off. In any case, you know that NOW is the time to GET YOUR S*** TOGETHER. Or at least to give it your best try 😊