Perinatal Mental health

You are not alone. Becoming a parent can be a isolating experience. Many people experience feelings or thoughts they don’t share with anyone, such as thinking of death, regret about having a child or a lack of connection with their infant. Please know you are not alone (or a bad person). Help is available. Click HERE to visit the Pregnancy and Postpartum Support Minnesota website for local resources.

Common themes worked on in therapy include:

Honestly expressing thoughts and feelings about your experiences

Identifying triggers for anxious feelings, thoughts and behaviors, and then learning to respond differently

Exploring your values as a parent (or parent to be) and how your upbringing impacts these values

Grieving the loss of a child, pregnancy or the experience you expected

Processing a traumatic birth

Navigating communication with your spouse, family employer or childcare provider

Decreasing feelings of isolation and shame about your experience

Rebuilding a relationship after the birth of a child

The most recent statics show that 1 in 4 people of childbearing age will experience the loss of a child between conception and infancy, and 1 in 7 women will experience a clinically significant mood or anxiety disorder during their postpartum period. This number is 1 in 10 for their partners (Postpartum Support International).

Many parents find themselves feeling lost or overwhelmed during the process of having a child. Becoming pregnant in itself is a complex process, and does not come easily for many, and for others leads to feelings and experiences that were not expected.

Some common reasons people may choose to seek therapy during this time period are:

Increased anxiety or sadness during pregnancy

Birth Trauma

Fears around childbirth and becoming a parent

Feeling like you are a failure as a parent

Pregnancy or infant loss

Depression, anger or scary thoughts