How did you discover PHA’s Warmline?  In 2012 I was pregnant for the first time. I have had anxiety my whole life and before trying to get pregnant I thought and assumed I needed to come off medication for the safety of the baby. So, I went off my SSRI and was doing well until pregnancy hormones kicked in. I have always been very sensitive to hormonal shifts but did NOT expect this. We got pregnant immediately once we started trying which was a gift and very hard at the same time. We didn’t expect it to happen so quickly. My anxiety amped up and I began waking up ..read more

EMDR Therapy and Pregnancy  by Bethany Warren, LCSW, PMH-C A few months ago, EMDRIA asked long-time PHA member and supporter (and past PHA President!), Bethany Warren, to write a blog about EMDR therapy and pregnancy. In her interview, Beth talks about the benefits of this type of therapy with pregnant clients, and debunks some common myths and misconceptions associated with EMDR therapy and pregnancy. Tell us a little bit about you, your experience becoming an EMDR therapist, and your experience using EMDR therapy with clients during pregnancy.   Becoming a parent is one of the ..read more

By: Dr. Kristen J. Lipari Parenthood is full of traps, some of which come in the form of inexplicably painful Legos that hide on the floor just waiting for you to stumble at the end of a long day. Some of these traps occur in our minds. They’re thinking traps, and just because they live in our heads does not mean they are not very real. Thinking traps, also known as cognitive distortions, are thought patterns that keep us from seeing things for what they really are. These patterns create cognitive shortcuts that lead us to jump to conclusions and make it difficult for us to keep things in pers ..read more

By Jarrah Foster, IBCLC As first written in BabyTula Lately, I’ve been leaning into feeling connected and noticing how much that heals, and as I sat down to write this, four statements came to mind: We are healers, we are spirit, we are connected, we are one. These are stand-alone concepts but also self-reinforcing ones. These themes hold significance in my life, particularly during Black History Month, where we celebrate our accomplishments and educate ourselves and others of truths in our shared history. I am a lactation consultant (IBCLC) and babywearing educator. I came to the field of lac ..read more

Tracy Gilmour Nimoy, LMFT, owner of TGN Therapy, and PHA Member recently shared her story about how she met her husband, her daughter’s stillbirth, and and her continued fertility challenges post pregnancy loss. Tracy granted us permission to share her article, which was published in the LA Times, here on PHA’s blog, and writes, “What an honor it is to have my story about a 3rd trimester stillbirth, birth trauma, miscarriage, and infertility published during Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month.” Head over to the LA Times to read more about how Tracy and her husband were “living a fa ..read more

By Dr. Kristen J. Lipari, PhD and PHA Community Education Chair Much of the conversation in postpartum focuses on caring for the baby. But what about mama? Perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) impacted 15-20% of moms before the COVID-19 pandemic. Now in its midst, experts estimate the rates of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders as much higher. The COVID-19 pandemic seems to have made every transition and challenge much harder. Becoming a new parent is no exception. Becoming a parent in the pandemic may bring more social isolation and a very different experience of motherhood tha ..read more

This month, Camille Kelly, LMFT & PHA’s Equity & Inclusion Co-Chair, met with Midwife Nikki Helms and toured San Diego Community Birth Center. Here’s a little peak into what Nikki has been working hard to create. Nikki is one of four Black Midwives in San Diego county. While in Midwifery school Nikki dreamed of opening a birthing center that is inclusive and serves everybody: LGBTQIA+ family builders, marginalized BIPOC, immigrants and asylum seekers. Nikki found very limited BIPOC visibility in the birthing community. This made Nikki realize the importance of having a safe birthing sp ..read more

Written by: Nicole Unsworth, LMFT and PHA Content Development Co-Chair Becoming a new parent or expanding one’s family can be an amazing experience. It also presents many stressors and anxieties, with all of the unknowns can quickly become overwhelming for anyone. Being in a military family adds another level of complexity with deployments, duty station changes, and the demands of training cycles.  Military families often find themselves far from family or support with their partner deployed for extended amounts of time or working incredibly long hours. It is important to remember that th ..read more

By Kristy Jenkins, MS, of PHA organizational member, Life Perspectives Even though up to 25% of pregnancies will end in miscarriage, the medical community continues to struggle to find the right words in delivering this delicate news to its patients. Maria Brann, Ph.D, Jennifer Bute, Ph.D., and Susanna Foxworthy Scott have conducted further research into this phenomena with their latest article published in Qualitative Health Research titled Qualitative Assessment of Bad News Delivery Practices during Miscarriage Diagnosis. Experts in the field of effective communication surrounding reproducti ..read more

It’s officially Fall, and in 2020 that means that many parents are in the midst of navigating their children’s education remotely. Logistically and emotionally, this places new challenges on what are already incredibly full parental plates – especially for those parents facilitating virtual learning, while working, while possibly also pregnant, and/or caring for their infant or toddler. The American Psychological Association conducted a study, and 71% of parents in May 2020 reported online learning as a significant source of stress. While every family situation differs, one thing remains the s ..read more