I’m excited to be a vendor at the 5th annual Natural Family Fair. And I’m very excited to have tickets to giveaway. Just for subscribers of my monthly newsletter, I have four tickets to the fair. Not a subscriber, yet? No problem! You can still sign up and enter! (Don’t worry, I only send it out once a month and with the very best of my content for healthy living.)
I am honored to be accepted as a vendor at this year’s Natural Family Fair. I have enjoyed the Natural Baby Fair in years past, but this will be my first year having a table and representing my own therapy services. This year will be the best ever as Natural Baby Pros has teamed up with our family’s favorite band, Hullaballo, and Reproductive Wellness to present three events on one occasion.
I am looking forward to sharing with the Natural Family Fair attendees how I can help families trying to conceive, considering having a baby or adjusting to pregnancy. My mental health background gives me a solid expertise in helping adults overcome anxiety and depression and I specialize in the particular challenges […]
Most people have heard of postpartum depression. With good reason. It affects 1 in 7 new mothers. But what about postpartum anxiety? Most studies document that this “other postpartum” mental health concern is even more common than PPD, with as many as 1 in 5 new moms struggling with postpartum anxiety. 1 in 5!
photo credit: sunset girl via unsplash
When suddenly a parent for the first time, there is much to worry about. I remember watching my first baby as a newborn sleep at night, worrying she would stop breathing in the middle of the night. And then there is breastfeeding… is baby getting enough milk? Is she gaining enough weight? Does he […]
The postpartum stage is not just a vulnerable time for mothers, but for couples and their relationships. Baby changes EVERYTHING. The bad news is that relationship satisfaction tanks for over two-thirds of couples after a baby. * Worse, 50% of marriages end in divorce after 7 years. The good news is that there are things we can do to keep relationships strong, happy, and satisfying after growing from a couple to a family. Loving that little squish is easy. Staying kind and calm and forgiving with your spouse when you are both sleep deprived, stressed and possibly hormonal? Read on…
I am all for cosleeping […]
Thanks to my association with the Postpartum Health Alliance, I recently attended a lecture by Dr. Krishelle Marc-Aurele, of UC San Diego/Rady Children’s Neonatology Division, on “Coping with the NICU experience.” Dr. Marc-Aurele is board certified in pediatrics, internal medicine, neonatalogy, and palliative medicine. She has been a Medical Director at San Diego Hospice and neonatal attending at UCSD. She is also a lovely human being who conveys a genuine caring for her patients, a deep understanding of very difficult times, and a sincere desire for families to overcome the trauma of the NICU experience.
Her talk covered birth stress and birth trauma for parents who have had experiences in the neonatal intensive care unit. I was surprised to learn how prevalent birth trauma can be, which she states […]
I am lucky to live and work in San Diego, California, where there is a vibrant community for pregnant women and families of babies and young children. Recently I have been networking with Natural Baby Pros. Natural Baby Pros produce an annual event called the Natural Baby Fair and have a wealth of information and resources on their website. Click through to explore!
I am proud to support the Postpartum Health Alliance. The PHA has supported women in San Diego since 1998 by focusing on Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders. Also known as “Maternal Mental Health,” Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMADs), which include Postpartum Depression, affect 1 in 8 pregnant and new mothers.
And I am very proud to have been approved as an official provider, or psychotherapist approved by the Postpartum Health Alliance. And I can now share that the PHA is very careful in screening therapists before recommending them to pregnant and new parents. The PHA provides support and referrals for treatment through their “warmline,” which is staffed by trained volunteers. The warmline takes messages 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and can be reached at 619-254-0023.
Want to know if you may be at risk for postpartum depression or depression during pregnancy?
Pregnancy changes many things. One thing you may find is that your old circle of friends no longer understand what you are going through. Just when you need more support. So how can you find or create support when pregnant or a new parent?
Challenge yourself to strike up a conversation with at least one interesting woman during one of your birth education classes.
Parents love to give advice to those following their footsteps!
Find a Facebook group of local women going through the same thing. Google+ can be a great place to find communities with common interests. And Babycenter and What to Expect have “birth month clubs” that can be […]
Once a month, including this Sunday, Nature’s Whisper School of Yoga, offers a community yoga class for parents, especially mothers, who have experienced the loss of a baby.
This free class is available for mothers who have experienced the loss of a child; offering a place for mother’s to move, and let the feelings of love and grief co-exist in a safe space together. This is a beginner class, and focuses on breath and movement, and hoping to connect women who are experiencing the deep grief of the death of a child, no matter how distant or recent the loss.
The class is taught by Carla Grossini-Concha. A few words from Carla,
“After losing my first born child just shortly after delivery at full term, I was devastated, and in deep and complicated […]
I recently read Julie M. Smith’s article on “The Anthropology of Providing and Nurturing.” She challenges the notion of a “traditional family” consisting of a father who works and a mother who stays home to nurture the children. As an anthropologist, she examines the roles historically taken by each parent.
What’s more, she discusses the risk to maternal mental health in continuing this model. She writes:
“It’s unusual cross-culturally and historically for mothers to go it alone in the isolation of a single-family household while dad goes off to work. It’s very difficult to figure out how to be a mother for the first time, without someone more experienced there to coach you along the way and give you lots of breaks. The isolation and the overwhelm contribute to maternal […]
