Postpartum Therapy in Chicago
Identity-affirming and neuro-affirming care in an inclusive environment in Logan Square and Avondale
WHAT HAVE WE DONE?!
The postpartum phase can be overwhelming; therapy can help!
Where to begin with the postpartum period? It can be a roller coaster: joy, tears, confusion, testing reflexes when the first blowout occurs. Adjustments abound. Relationships shift. Day becomes night, night becomes… a potentially anxiety-inducing time of feeding, not sleeping, and checking baby’s breathing. After the meal train ends, isolation and sadness can creep in.
Having a nonjudgmental therapy space to discuss all of these adjustments, feelings, and experiences can be incredibly supportive for both birthing and non-birthing partners.
Therapists at Common Thread Counseling Chicago can help differentiate between a typical baby blues experience and a perinatal mood and anxiety disorder, like depression, anxiety, or OCD.
Postpartum conditions that therapy can help with include:
Postpartum Depression vs. Baby Blues
Postpartum depression is a common disorder experienced up to a year after birth, though studies have shown it can surface years after.
You may have postpartum depression if you have:
intense feelings of sadness
despair
difficulty bonding with the baby
irritability
are withdrawing from friends and family
fatigue (beyond normal new parent fatigue)
Postpartum depression differs from baby blues in that it is a mood disorder that can start any time in the perinatal period and can last for months to years if left untreated.
Baby blues are related to the intense drop in hormones after birth, include oscillating mood swings, typically starting 2-3 days after birth, and last around two weeks.
Postpartum anxiety
Postpartum anxiety can feel like a million tabs open in the brain. It can be difficult to differentiate between typical new parent worries (Did the baby eat enough? Why are his nails so sharp? Why do they keep staring at the ceiling fan?) and postpartum anxiety.
Postpartum anxiety is typically more intense than typical parent worry, has a longer duration, impacts concentration and sleep, and does not go away with reassurance (like after a doctor’s appointment).
Postpartum anxiety often includes:
racing heart
stomachaches
muscle tension
constant worry over the baby’s safety
ruminating over details
trouble concentrating
brain fog
feeling disconnected
irritability
If this sounds like you, Common Thread Counseling can help.
Postpartum OCD
Postpartum OCD is unwanted (intrusive), distressing thoughts about harm coming to the baby.
A majority of birthing people and their partners have intrusive thoughts.
When the thoughts lead to anxiety, avoidance, and distress, they can interfere with daily functioning and wellbeing.
Intrusive thoughts could center around contamination or harming the baby. These thoughts can be incredibly difficult to talk about because of how disturbing the content is and shame it brings up; a perinatal therapist, like at Common Thread Counseling Chicago is able to recognize an intrusive thought and provide education on this experience instead of judgment.
Postpartum OCD is also very different from postpartum psychosis, in which the person could also be experiencing hallucinations, delusions, and confusion. Postpartum psychosis is a medical emergency, and is not treated through talk therapy and medication management alone.
Postpartum Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Postpartum PTSD shares the same symptoms as PTSD, such as:
flashbacks
nightmares
avoidance
mood changes
PPTSD can lead to a parent having difficulty bonding with their baby, isolating from others, and exacerbating symptoms of anxiety and depression.
PPTSD can result from a traumatic labor and delivery, such as unwanted interventions, feeling helpless, perceived fear of death or injury to baby or birthing person, or from a prior trauma being triggered by labor and delivery.
PPTSD can be experienced by both the birthing person and their partner.
Our Approach to Therapy for Postpartum
Postpartum therapy can help both parents with mood changes, emotional regulation, and major adjustments.
We incorporate:
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): to assist you with identifying and replacing negative thought patterns and behaviors
Interpersonal Therapy (IPT): tools to increase healthy communication and support within your relationships.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): increasing psychological flexibility and acceptance of difficult emotions, values clarification and what really matters to you
Postpartum counseling can assist with processing traumatic experiences using narrative therapy and strengths-based techniques.
We can also discuss the experience of matrescence and parenting challenges throughout the lifespan.
An important part of perinatal therapy can be medication management and being connected with the correct prescriber. If you would like, we can help connect you with a reproductive psychiatrist, who specifically works with people in the perinatal period.
