Starting a Family
You’re here because you are starting or trying to start a family. This is an exciting time that can also leave you riddled with feelings of anxiety, self-doubt, and social isolation. I’ve been working with pregnant people for more than a decade, first as a doula and now as a therapist.
New Parenthood
Returning to Work
Challenges to Reproduction
Small Groups
Pregnancy
Together, we will help you:
- Alleviate fear and anxiety with concrete techniques
- Plan for the birth and newborn period
- Survive physical changes
- Prepare your relationship for the arrival of a child
- Explore your own childhood experiences and your relationship to your parents
- Connect to resources (doulas, providers, birth classes)
Pregnancy
There is a lot of pressure on women to have the “perfect pregnancy” - you know, the one where you gain exactly 25 lbs, have meaningful conversations with the little one in your womb while listening to classical music, and have great sex up until your orgasmic birth. You take deep breaths and pretend to meditate because you’ve read on the internet that high cortisol levels are bad for the baby. You can have one cup of coffee a day, and it is precious, and you hear rumors that half a glass of wine here and there is really quite fine in the third trimester...
Meanwhile, the anxiety over not having anxiety has reached peak levels. You are working 50 hours a week, trying to smoosh a nursery into the open space (hallway) outside your bedroom, and since your coworker told you doulas are “a must” if you want to have a “natural birth” you’ve added “Google wtf is a doula” to your long to-do list.
If any of this sounds familiar you’ve come to the right place. I’ve been supporting pregnant people for the last decade, first as a doula and now as a therapist. I know intimately the expectations that are put on new moms and that these are felt from the moment you get that first positive pregnancy test.
New Parenthood
Together, we will help you:
- Care for your newborn with confidence
- Alleviate feelings of anxiety, fear, and sadness with concrete techniques
- Process any birth trauma you may have experienced
- Meaningfully reconnect with your partner
- Be kind to yourself during this transition
- Connect to resources (sleep trainers, new mom groups, lactation consultants)
New Parenthood
Perfect Pregnancy, meet Perfect Mommy. She does it all, and she makes it look effortless.
Congratulations! Your baby is in the world and probably in your arms 23 hours a day. You are a mix of emotion, feeling awe and wonder and fear and love and dread. What else?
You’re barely sleeping. Your baby poops and pees about a million times a day. Your lactation consultant insists your baby has tongue-tie, your pediatrician rolls her eyes “they all say this” while handing you formula, and all the online mommy groups have convinced you that if you give the baby a bottle even once, breastfeeding is toast. You’ve decided you kind of hate your partner and don’t understand why they are having so much luck bonding with the baby while your fear continues to overwhelm your love.
If you’re in this immediate postpartum phase, you may be experiencing some feelings of anxiety and sadness, cutely termed “the baby blues” (we’re certain a man came up with this). You may be worried that you are at risk for postpartum depression. Maybe you aren’t telling anyone how you feel because you are embarrassed that you aren’t better at this or ashamed that you don’t like it more. The social isolation is wearing on you, yet you aren’t sure of a safe place to turn to. As a seasoned doula and enthusiastic mommy therapist (with a gorgeous little beast of my own), I’m here to see you through this intense transition.
Together, we will help you:
- Alleviate your anxiety and stress with concrete techniques
- Successfully return to the workforce
- Learn to love the realities of “having it all”
- Deal with societal expectations
- Rediscover your Self
- Reclaim your sex life
Returning to Work
You’ve made it through the first three months and - BAM! - just like that, it’s time to go back to work (imagine being shot from a baby blue cannon, that very brief feeling of soaring high above it all, before landing smack in the middle of a staff meeting). As you may already know, the “fifth trimester”can come with its own unique challenges.
Here’s where you are: chugging 32 oz. bottles of water while you pump in your office during conference calls (that little puttering noise slowly killing your soul), sloppily hitting important deadlines on 3 hours of sleep, missing your little one so much it hurts, being strangely relieved to be out of the house and away from your little one (should you feel guilty about this?), still kind of hating your absolutely amazing partner sometimes for totally irrational (and maybe a few legit ) reasons, being in possession of the driest vagina in the world (like, Guiness Book here), losing the battle with severe dehydration, wondering if your hair will ever stop looking blah...the list goes on and you barely have time to read it because YOU ARE SO BUSY. And anxious. And still a little sad.
The first year of motherhood is TOUGH. The feelings of doubt and ambivalence you are experiencing are incredibly common and, sadly, incredibly silenced. It’s the curse of living in a society where women have to look and act totally put together at all times if they want to be seen as good or capable. If you’re experiencing any of these feelings, I can help.
I HELP INDIVIDUALS EXPERIENCING THE FOLLOWING:
- Fertility Challenges
- Pregnancy loss
- Abortion
Challenges to Reproduction
Sometimes no matter how much you plan and prepare, the difficult reality is that pregnancy doesn’t always happen when we want it to. This can bring up feelings of sadness, inadequacy, hopelessness, and anxiety. It can also impact the most important relationships in our lives and leave us wondering what the next step should be.
Small Group Topics Include:
- After-Abortion
- Prenatal Anxiety
- Fertility Challenges
- Pregnancy Loss
- Birth Trauma
- New Parent
Small Groups
Does your experience of trying to start a family often feel socially isolating? Do you feel like you’ve lost connection with those close to you because they just don’t understand? I offer small support groups so that you can have the opportunity to share your experiences with individuals who are going through similar experiences. The following groups are offered at different times throughout the year. Please reach out to me if you are interested in learning more.