My Approach to Helping
The journey to becoming a mother does not always go quite as expected or planned. There are times when new mothers need additional support in managing some of the difficulties that they might face along the way. I have spent the past several years specializing in meeting the therapeutic needs of women and their families, including treatment of the life transitions, developmental challenges, and psychiatric complications related to pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period.
Working with me, you will receive supportive, compassionate care in a safe and confidential environment. I utilize a comprehensive, holistic approach to help treat your current symptoms, and get to the core causes of your difficulties. This means partnering with you to examine how your psychological and emotional needs, thoughts and beliefs, relationships, physical health, and lifestyle all contribute to your overall state of well-being.
Perinatal and postpartum counseling includes things like: preconception counseling; prenatal parenting; mindful pregnancy practices; perinatal and postpartum mood disorders; preparing sexual abuse survivors for birth; grief and loss, including challenges with fertility, miscarriage, and neonatal loss; birth trauma resolution; and the adjustment to parenthood.
I have additional experience as the former Vice-Chair and as an Advisory Committee Member for Postpartum Support International of Washington, (which is now known as Perinatal Support Washington), and as the Washington State Coordinator for Postpartum Support International. I was also the primary author for the 2010 revised edition of the book, Beyond the Birth: A Family's Guide to Postpartum Mood Disorders.