• Postpartum Mood & Anxiety Disorders (PMADs): What New Mothers Need to Know

    The postpartum period is full of profound change—physically, emotionally, and relationally. Between healing from birth, hormonal shifts, sleep deprivation, navigating a new relationship with your body, learning to care for your baby (who didn’t come with an instruction manual), and figuring out your evolving role with your partner—it’s a lot. And that’s an understatement.

    What you expected this season to look like—based on social media, TV shows, or even stories from other moms—often doesn’t match the reality. There’s so much we don’t talk about. So many feelings that get pushed down or brushed off. The truth is, our culture doesn’t do a great job supporting new mothers—and it can leave you feeling like you’re somehow failing when really, you’re just doing something incredibly hard, without enough support.

    If you're feeling overwhelmed, disconnected from yourself, or struggling to make sense of how different this experience feels compared to what you imagined, you're not alone. Feeling lost in this transition doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong. It means you're going through something real and raw and transformative.

    Therapy can be a place to land, exhale, and begin to process all of it—with honesty, without judgment. It can help you reconnect to who you are within this new role, not in spite of it. You deserve support that centers you, not just the baby. Because when you're cared for, everything else gets to breathe a little too.

  • Common Signs of PMADs

    A lot of the symptoms of postpartum mental health disorders are extremely common - and extremely taboo. It can be difficult to admit that you are experiencing these symptoms, and the isolation and shame can be debilitating. But you are not alone in your experience! Common signs of postpartum mental health disorders include:

    -feeling like a failure and struggling to manage your day to day life

    -overwhelming fear that something awful might happen to your baby

    -intrusive thoughts or graphic images of something awful happening to you or your baby

    -intense fear engaging in everyday tasks - walking down the stairs, driving, being in the kitchen - and avoidance of those tasks

    -persistent sadness, tearfulness, hopelessness

    -inability to leave your baby with another trusted caregiver

    -difficulty sleeping, or over sleeping

    -withdrawing from friends and family

    -difficulty concentrating

    -struggling to bond with your baby

    -irritability, frustration, anger, or bouts of rage

    A lot of moms suffer silently, fearing that admitting to these experiences will bring judgment from others. You are not a bad mom because you’re having a hard time. This transition is as difficult as it feels. And there is hope.

  • Baby Blues or PMAD?

    Baby Blues happens in up to 80% of women after giving birth. It is a period of up to 2 weeks after birth that includes tearfulness, anxiety, sleep disturbances, difficulty concentrating, feeling overwhelmed, and feeling a loss of interest. These symptoms are usually mild and resolve on their own.

    PMADs may start with some of the same symptoms, but they don’t resolve on their own. They may last weeks or months and start to have a greater impact on your day to day life.

A young woman with shoulder-length brown hair smiling while sitting in a field of yellow wildflowers and tall grasses.

How I Can Help

I support California moms as they navigate the complex, often overwhelming transition into motherhood—emotionally, physically, and relationally. Using an eclectic, personalized approach, I help my clients process the many layers of change they’re experiencing: shifts in relationships, nervous system responses, self-esteem, identity, emergence of wounds from childhood, and the wide range of emotions that can feel impossible to name or carry alone.

I’m not here to judge you, fix you, or offer unsolicited advice. I’m here to listen deeply, hold space for your truth, and walk alongside you as you reconnect with the parts of yourself that may feel distant or lost right now.

I trust you.I trust that you know what you need, even if it feels buried under exhaustion, anxiety, or self-doubt. I believe you are already the right mother for your baby. And I believe that with the right tools and support, you are capable of feeling the full spectrum of your emotions without guilt, shame, or fear.

Together, we’ll work on supporting your nervous system to help you feel safe in your body, grounded in your day to day life, and present in your relationships. Rather than always pushing through, grasping for control, and worrying if you’re doing it “right,” you’ll learn to create space for pause, rest, curiosity, and contentment in your life as it is now.

If this resonates with you, I’d love to meet you.
Click the link below to schedule a free consultation to talk about how therapy can support your transformation into motherhood.

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