Pregnancy Therapy

Prenatal therapy provides support for the myriad of mental health challenges that can come up for women during pregnancy.  Whether you’re dealing with anxiety, depression, general overwhelm, or still healing from a past pregnancy loss or challenges conceiving, prenatal therapy can help you make sense of these complex emotions, find peace during pregnancy and build confidence as you prepare for labor, postpartum and parenthood. 

Prenatal Anxiety

Anxiety during pregnancy can take many forms - fear about your baby’s health, pressure to follow pregnancy “rules” rigidly, worries about labor and delivery, self-doubt about your ability to be a good mother - the list goes on.  Women who experienced anxiety pre-pregnancy may be at higher risk, but the impact of hormones and the unique challenges of preparing for parenthood can make anyone susceptible.  You may be experiencing prenatal anxiety if you are dealing with some of the following:

• Fielding a constant stream of “what-if” thoughts about the baby’s or your own health

• Fixating on worst-case scenarios, even after reassurance from your doctor

• Spending large amounts of time researching “pregnancy-safe” choices and behaviors, or going above and beyond what your doctor recommends

• Feeling constantly on-edge, or bracing for something to go wrong

• Lying awake at night, struggling to sleep because your brain won’t shut off

• Loss of appetite or emotional eating

• Difficulty focusing or feeling mentally foggy

• Ongoing irritability, anger or rage

• A sense of impending doom, despite everything being medically stable

• Feeling disconnected from the pregnancy due to your fear overtaking excitement

• Panic attacks

Prenatal Depression

Depression during pregnancy can be harder to recognize, especially when everyone around you expects you to feel excited or joyful.  This can be especially true if you’ve experienced challenges conceiving or pregnancy losses - it may feel like you’re “supposed” to feel grateful for carrying a healthy baby, but women with a history of losses or fertility challenges are actually at higher risk for anxiety and depression in subsequent pregnancies.  Many pregnant women instead find themselves feeling persistently sad, down, emotionally numb, disconnected, or just unlike themselves. Some women enter pregnancy with a history of depression, which can increase vulnerability, but even women who have never struggled before can find themselves feeling low during this time in life. Hormonal shifts, coping with changes in body image and ability, and physical discomfort from pregnancy symptoms can all impact your mood - not to mention make it harder to participate in your usual ways of coping.  Relationship stress and preparing logistically (and emotionally) for a baby can also weigh heavy.  

Prenatal depression can be especially tough to recognize because some pregnancy symptoms can be easily confused for signs of depression.  Here are some normal pregnancy symptoms that many pregnant women experience:

• Moods swings and tearfulness

• Struggling to sleep due to the urge to pee or heartburn

• Fatigue (but energy restores with rest)

• Worry (within reason)

• Increase in appetite

• No changes to self esteem, no thoughts of harming yourself, able to experience pleasure
  

In contrast, here are symptoms of prenatal depression:

• Feeling gloomy, persistently sad, irritable or rageful

• Feelings of guilt and/or negative feelings about yourself

• Difficulty falling or staying asleep, unrelated to pregnancy symptoms

• Feeling fatigued, unimproved after resting

• Being unable to find pleasure in things you usually enjoy

• Dysregulated appetite, unrelated to pregnancy symptoms

• Thoughts of harming yourself or suicide (requires immediate medical attention)

Pregnancy After Loss or Infertility

Expectant parents who have experienced fertility challenges or pregnancy loss(es) can face a host of complicated emotions.  Women who have experienced these challenges are at an increased risk for anxiety and depression during pregnancy.  Anxiety is especially common throughout the first trimester, and may linger longer than expected, often in some capacity throughout the entire pregnancy.  Working with a prenatal therapist can help you make sense of these complicated emotions, and create a plan for coping.