Perinatal Mental Health

PERINATAL PSYCHOTHERAPY

We often hear that the bond between parent and infant is instant, or that being a parent is instinctual, that breastfeeding will come easily and naturally, or that parents will instantly fall in love with their baby.  There is often an assumption that parents should innately “know” what to do when they come home with their baby or that they will be able to know each of their baby’s cries and cues.  These are all socially constructed assumptions and can contribute to, or worsen, perinatal depression and anxiety.  Some parents do not immediately experience this feeling of bonding with their baby, some may be frustrated or overwhelmed by parenting, some are easily distressed when their baby fusses or cries, and some parents may experience ambivalence, anger, or resentment.  Sometimes parents simply feel stressed and overwhelmed. 

Perinatal psychotherapy is available to all parents at every stage, from contemplating pregnancy through the first two years postpartum, and every phase in-between.  I work with mothers, fathers, and non-birthing parents.  All parents deserve to have a space where they can talk, openly and honestly, without judgement or criticism.

PARENT-INFANT PSYCHOTHERAPY

My training as both a Perinatal Mental Health Specialist and an Infant Mental Health Specialist provides me a unique perspective and understanding of how perinatal anxiety and depression affects both parent AND baby, and the importance of including baby in treatment, when appropriate.  Parent-Infant Psychotherapy (PIP) is an evidence-based psychodynamic treatment that values a parent’s experience of their baby while simultaneously supporting parental mental health, promoting infant attachment, and strengthening the parent-infant relationship.  PIP is beneficial for parents with current or past perinatal depression and anxiety, birth trauma or trauma during the neonatal period, separation in the neonatal period, and parents who have experienced loss of another infant or child.  Parents who have experienced childhood trauma sometimes worry about the impact of their own early caregiving relationships on their ability to care for their baby.  In PIP, we bring together parent and baby to facilitate coping and healing in the context of the infant-parent relationship.  PIP can also help parents who are experiencing challenges transitioning to parenthood, caring for a very fussy baby, having difficulty reading baby’s cues, or even feeling like they are not bonding with their baby. 

As a Certified Lactation Counselor, I can also support families who are struggling with breastfeeding using an infant and perinatal mental health approach.