Pregnancy & Postpartum
Supporting you through the messy, beautiful, and overwhelming seasons of parenthood.
This isn’t what I imagined it to be…
You might’ve thought pregnancy or parenthood would feel different, maybe exhausting but rewarding. Instead, you might feel overwhelmed by worries, struggling to sleep even when the baby does, or questioning if you’re doing it “right.” You may feel resentful at times, disconnected from your partner, or even like you’ve lost parts of yourself in the process of becoming “mom” or “dad.”
You’re not alone- most parents quietly struggle with anxiety, mood swings, sleep deprivation, or just the sheer adjustment of it all. Having a baby is one of the biggest life transitions there is, so naturally it presses all the sensitive buttons in your relationships and turns existing systems upside down. Parenthood stirs up both joy and struggle. It can be confusing and devastating to navigate new relationship dynamics, feelings of loss, and guilt about not enjoying every aspect of this season of life.
Pregnancy and postpartum is a meaningful journey that isn’t meant to be tackled in isolation. If you’ve been blaming yourself for how hard it feels, it’s not a personal failing — it’s that this is a lot. Getting support and care for yourself as a parent is a great gift to your children.
If you’re ready to feel more grounded in yourself, your parenting, and your relationships, let’s connect.
Postpartum Depression & Anxiety Can Look Like…
Crippling Anxiety- every choice seems to carry an immense impact and may feel too risky like life and death especially if you’re trying to keep an infant alive.
Perfectionism- you feel preoccupied with things needing to be “just so” and never feel good enough.
Depressed Mood- low and hopeless as if you’re trapped in a joyless cycle of feeding, diaper changes, and exhaustion that you have no control over.
Grief- You might find yourself wishing for your old life back or overwhelmed with the permanence of parenthood.
Shame & Guilt- you may feel like a bad parent and have a hard time forgiving yourself for mistakes. You have a hard time resting, enjoying activities, and sharing ownership of caregiving with your partner.
Resentment- you may notice a pattern of taking care of too much and then resenting your partner or someone when they do not contribute or if they do it in a way that is dis-satisfactory to your standards.
Dissociation & Numbness- you might not feel able to name your feelings or find you go through life feeling like you’re not really in your body
Chronic Pain & Health Issues- significant body changes, baby carrying, high levels of stress, and sleep deprivation all do a number on the body.
Thoughts of Suicide- thoughts of self-harm or suicide can happen and it’s essential to seek professional help and also to implement immediate sleep protection. Sleep is often the most important protective factor, but for sustainability, outside support is needed.
if you have an active plan to harm yourself or act on a desire to die,
Call 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Call 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262) for the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline
Common Challenges
Burnout- If you’re in postpartum, your body may stay stuck in “survival mode,” for a while. Carrying the stress of constant sleep and feeding transitions, sleep deprivation, and relationship dynamics on top of everyday life eventually wears you down and leaves you running on fumes. This part of your life may feel thankless and you resent the people you used to feel connected with. Burning out leaves you exhausted, unmotivated, and disconnected from the things and people that matter most.
Lack of Support- if you don’t live near family or friends, it’s easy to become overwhelmed with the responsibilities of parenting with few breaks and no emotional support. This is a very vulnerable season and near impossible to do in isolation.
Resentment- if parenting with a partner, often one takes the brunt of the mental load of learning, coordination, and planning around a growing child as well as the natural increase in household labor. Meanwhile the other partner may experience overwhelm of feelings of inadequacy and criticism when attempting to participate equitably in parenting responsibilities. Both may experience resentment and feel at a loss for how to improve the partnership.
Loss of Sense of Self- when you’re busy surviving, there often isn’t a way to prioritize your needs or desires. So the body learns to numb to those things to protect us from the pain of feeling the loss. Unfortunately, that can become an overworked muscle. While early parenthood does require an adjustment to how time is used, it’s so important to work towards creating systems that promote basic self-care (sleep, nutrition, exercise/movement, social engagement). When we isolate or neglect our own needs, it becomes hard to connect with and understand oneself.
Consequences of Avoidance
Seeking help is one of the most responsible things you can do as a parent- and especially in the postpartum period. Without adequate support, it’s challenging to stay regulated and be the parent you desire to be. Sometimes the hardest part is dealing with our internal world- how we feel about ourselves, our parenting, and our circumstances. Sometimes people get lost in loops of negative thoughts, intense feelings, self-destructive behaviors, and suffer silently. At it’s worst, isolation (and consequently, severe sleep deprivation) can be endangering to moms and children. It can lead to suicide, psychosis, and in some cases harm to the baby. The thing about letting suffering brew or trying to stuff it down, is that it doesn’t go away. Eventually it leaks or explodes out. It shows up as health issues, addiction, emotional dysregulation, divorce, etc.
Benefits of Therapy
I’ve found that moms and dads I work with during the postpartum period experience relief from feeling understood. It can feel incredibly lonely during this season and often brings up anxiety, depression, distressing memories and emotions from your own childhood. Early parenthood requires practical knowledge that many don’t feel equipped with. Our work together may be a combination of tools for addressing everyday logistical challenges, resentment in the partnership, as well as the deeper emotional processing that aids parents in showing up as their most regulated, curious, and compassionate selves for their children. When moms and dads are thriving, baby does too!
Still not Sure?
It can be overwhelming to make yet another decision when you’re already in survival mode. You’re weighing cost and whether this is really going to be worth the time and effort. You’re wondering if you really need it. A part of you wants the satisfaction of figuring it out on your own. Another part of you wants your partner to finally step up and be the one to figure it out. The thing is, you’re already paying high costs when you:
Take every night waking involuntarily because you don’t have support
Can’t keep up with pumping, dishes, laundry, and cooking
Deal with anxiety or hopelessness
Resent your partner for everything
Constantly feel criticized
Yell or take your frustrations out on baby or your other children (or any relationship)
Have no time for basic self-care
Are thinking about divorce
Truth is, most of the problems that come up in this season have been problems for a long time. But the postpartum period comes with shorter fuses and immense vulnerability. It doesn’t have to mean everything is hopeless, it just means something desperately needs attention. Are you ready to pay it?
Who You’re Working With
Hi, I’m Priscilla- I’m a wife, a mom to a preschooler, and an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist. I grew up in the Bay Area in a Chinese church community, worked in my family’s education business, and now spend my days walking alongside people as they navigate life’s ups and downs.
When I became a mom, I was thrilled—so much so that those first days felt like a blur of excitement. I hardly noticed I wasn’t sleeping because I was captivated by my baby. But my body quickly reminded me that it wasn’t meant to run on pure adrenaline. I lost my hunger cues and was shaken by waves of hopelessness. For someone who usually loves food and struggles more with anxiety than depression, this felt foreign and frightening.
I remember the confusion of being in love with my baby while also panicked at the weight of responsibility for a little human who could only cry but not tell me what he needed. That season gave me a new level of empathy for the complexities of parenthood, marriage, identity shifts, and physical & emotional health. If you’re a new mom or dad, I’d love to support you! If there’s anything I’ve learned from personal experience and professional training, it’s that we’re not meant to do it alone.