Perinatal & Postpartum Therapy
Being a new mother is supposed to be the happiest time of your life, but postpartum depression and anxiety strip that away for a time, but trust that it will not last forever.
Is this season in your life not going as you had planned? Your feelings about being or becoming pregnant maybe aren’t adding up to the glowing picture you had envisioned? Maybe you’re afraid, confused, angry, or sad – maybe you’re struggling to feel anything at all. It’s okay that you feel this way and we are here to help you work through and understand what you are feeling (or not feeling.) reTHINK Therapy is equipped with therapists who are passionate about supporting you, and your partners and families, as you navigate this new period in your life. From pre-conception to pregnancy and childbirth to parenting, we are here for you!
Researchers have identified perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) as the most common complication of pregnancy and childbirth. Perinatal mood and anxiety disorders affect up to 1 in 5 childbearing women and are more common than gestational diabetes, preterm labor or low birth weight. Symptoms can develop any time throughout pregnancy or within the first year postpartum.
Below is a list of common signs and symptoms that you may be feeling if you have a perinatal mood and anxiety disorder:
Postpartum Depression
- Low mood, sadness, tearfulness
- Loss of interest, joy, or pleasure in things you used to enjoy
- Agitation or anxiety
- Lack of energy or feeling slowed down physically
- Difficulty concentrating
- Appetite or sleep disturbance
- Feelings of guilt, shame, or hopelessness
- Possible thoughts of harming the baby or yourself
Postpartum Anxiety
- Constant worry
- Feeling that something bad is going to happen
- Feeling like you can’t turn your brain off
- Disturbances of sleep and appetite
- Physical Symptoms like dizziness, heart palpitations, and nausea.
Postpartum OCD
- Obsessions, also called intrusive thoughts, which are persistent, repetitive thoughts or mental images regarding the baby. These thoughts are very upsetting
- Compulsions, where the mom may do certain things over and over again to try to reduce her fears and obsessions. This may include things like needing to clean constantly, checking things many times, counting or reordering things.
- A sense of horror about these obsessions
- Fear of being left alone with the infant
- Hypervigilance in protecting the infant
Treatment will vary depending on you and your situation. In certain situations, we may ask to bring in your partner or support person. Some treatment plans may include EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing), CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy), interpersonal therapy, and/or psychodynamic therapy. However, at reTHINK therapy, there are a few things that will always be in our treatment plans. We will always work to help you identify how your negative beliefs about yourself, your abilities and/or your baby – both conscious and unconscious – are affecting your daily life and the way that you relate to others. We will always provide a safe space for you to explore everything you are feeling, without judgement or fear. And we will always help you to identify the unique well of strength within yourself and to connect to that part of you.
As you work through treatment for perinatal depression, anxiety or OCD, we ultimately want to help you regain control. Control over your emotional state, overwhelm and any fear that may be present. You have all of the tools you need to be a successful parent and we want to help you to see that within yourself. And above all, we want to help you to restore or create the bond you’re dreaming of between you and your baby. Helping you to stop surviving and start LIVING!