Mom and Mind | Pregnancy and Postpartum Depression & Anxiety

Latest Episodes:

196: Reproductive Psychiatry, Latinx Psychiatrist, Pandemic Pregnancy and More Jan 25, 2021

Show notes

Today’s episode is packed with helpful information about taking medication during pregnancy and the postpartum period. We’ll also take a closer look at COVID-related issues and the vaccine as they relate to perinatal mental health. Join us to learn more.

Dr. Sarah Oreck is a Columbia University-trained psychiatrist who focuses on women’s mental wellness. In addition to her expertise in general and addiction psychiatry, Dr. Oreck is one of very few doctors with specialized training in reproductive psychiatry. She runs a private practice in which she combines the most up-to-date medical treatments with talk therapy, meditation, and a whole-body complementary approach. Dr. Oreck is passionate about teaching, and she regularly lectures at Cedars Sinai Hospital, UCLA, and The Providence Hospital System, in addition to her media work. She is actively involved in advocacy work and is a member of the Board of Directors of Maternal Mental Health Now.

Show Highlights:

An overview of the field of reproductive psychiatry--and how it helps people
The “risk vs. risk” perspective regarding medication and perinatal mental health
How Sarah talks to people about the risk of anxiety and depression
Why mental health medications can be safer than untreated mental illness
The dangers when physicians don’t keep up with new mental health research and literature
How Sarah works to train and inform physicians about pregnancy and postpartum
How Sarah’s individual clients benefit from her bilingual abilities due to her Colombian heritage
The myths of motherhood in the Latin community that only magnify the need for a mental health focus
Sarah’s observations about the impact of COVID on perinatal mood and anxiety disorders
What it was like for Sarah to have her first baby during the COVID pandemic
What we should know about the COVID vaccine regarding pregnancy and breastfeeding mothers
How the stigmas around anxiety medication discourage people from taking medications that are necessary and life-saving
What Sarah has seen in people getting the help, support, and connection that they need

Resources:

Sarah Oreck MD

Instagram

Facebook

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195: Paternal Postpartum Depression: David Levine Jan 11, 2021

Show notes

Today’s topic is important, but it is hugely stigmatized in our culture. You may not have even heard about paternal postpartum depression, but my guest today shares what he experienced with the births of his two children.

Dr. David Levine is a pediatrician in New Jersey. He was blindsided by postpartum depression because, like most of us, he thought it only happens to women. He shares the struggle of having to talk to his wife about it and how he found help. Even more surprising is that he experienced postpartum while working as a pediatrician. He completed his undergraduate degree at Rutgers College Medical School at NYU and his residency in pediatrics at Yale. Dr. Levine is not on the board of Postpartum Support International (PSI), where he works in professional outreach as a staunch advocate for fathers’ mental health. He’s written a book about his experience, which will hopefully be published soon to get the message out to fathers that they are not alone.

Show Highlights:

Why so little is known about postpartum mental health, especially concerning fathers
David’s experience when his first child was born seven years ago
How David felt his aggravation and agitation increase as his infant son cried and could not be calmed
How David looked for support groups and resources for dads--and couldn’t find anything
How he kept getting worse and started envisioning committing violence against his child: “It was like watching a horror movie in my mind.”
How David finally told his wife about his depression and intrusive thoughts
How David tried medication briefly and then hit rock-bottom around week 7 of his son’s life
How David began his long road to recovery with therapy, a baby nurse, and more sleep
How he gained confidence as a father and began to bond with his son when he was 3-4 months old
How David began working with PSI and then had his second child three years ago
How his experiences were very similar, yet very different with his daughter
Why David feels that the traditional traps of masculinity kept him from seeking help earlier
How men experience anxiety and depression much differently than women do
Why postpartum depression in dads might manifest with anger, withdrawal from the family, and even physical violence
The pushback from people who don’t believe that postpartum depression exists for fathers
Why there should be more research, understanding, and resources for all aspects of male mental health
The hard statistics about male and female depression
How we can catch paternal postpartum depression better by teaching pediatricians to screen mothers AND fathers, and teaching obstetricians to inform mothers to check on dads
David’s manuscript for his book and his determination to get it published
Hopeful messages from David: “Paternal postpartum depression is fixable. We can prevent some of this from happening. With that, we can improve the lives of children and their parents and make stronger families.”

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194: The Highly Sensitive Mother Dec 28, 2020

Show notes

We all know that the challenges of new motherhood can be many--and overwhelming. If you are an HSP (highly sensitive person), then those challenges may be magnified---and you probably aren’t focusing on any self-care. This topic resonates deeply with me and intrigues me in the way the trait interacts with motherhood and its challenges.

Julie Bjelland is an LMFT, an HSP psychotherapist, and the author of Brain Training for the Highly Sensitive Person: Techniques to Reduce Anxiety and Overwhelming Emotions. Julie’s mission is to help sensitive people reduce the challenges and increase the positives.Through her website specializing in highly sensitive people (the trait also known as Sensory Processing Sensitivity), she offers many valuable resources for both HSP’s and parents of sensitive children. Julie has a mission to spread awareness and education about the trait of high sensitivity and believes the world needs the gifts of sensitive people.

Show Highlights:

High sensitivity is a trait and not a disorder--and it’s NOT the same as introversion (30% of HSP’s are extroverts and 20% are introverts)
From Elaine Aron’s work on HSP’s: Depth of Processing, Overstimulation, Emotionally responsive, and Sensitivity to subtle stimuli (DOES)
The judgment around being sensitive and its connection to weakness
How scientific research shows real brain differences in HSP’s
On the positive side, HSP’s are more empathetic, more aware, and more compassionate
Common for the HSP mother is to put themselves at the bottom of the priority list and take care of others first
Trained HSP vs. untrained HSP
Self-care---a conscious action you take to lower your stress and bring you to a balanced state
A key for HSP’s is getting enough sleep in order to understand and meet specific needs
An HSP mom’s default setting is to be hard on themselves and focus on everyone else’s needs
Certain parts of the brain in HSP moms will be overactive, like merging into everyone else’s moods and experiences
Many people who seek treatment for anxiety will also have the HSP trait
How HSP contributes to overall perinatal depression and anxiety, since everything changes in mind, body, and spirit
Why HSP’s need creative ways to get two hours of alone time each day
The tendency to measure everything in ourselves and others against the standard of perfection
Self-talk, with low levels of self-compassion and criticism of themselves
Common characteristics of HSP’s: perfectionism, sleep-deprived, overstimulated, and misunderstood
Steps to help HSP’s:
Develop self-compassion (Kristin Neff outlines 3 steps)
Take breaks when needed
Practice mindfulness
50% of clients in therapy are HSP’s
Supporting moms and dads better in pregnancy and the postpartum period could impact parenting differently and offer more support
Using the right tools for support in children can prevent many problems and help them gain confidence and have an easier time accepting who they are

Resources:

Brain Training for the Highly Sensitive Person: Techniques to Reduce Anxiety and Overwhelming Emotions.by Julie Bjelland

The Highly Sensitive Child by Dr. Elaine Aron

Self-Compassion by Kristin Neff

www.juliebjelland.com

Find Julie on Facebook: The Highly Sensitive Person

Instagram: hsp psychotherapist

Twitter: @juliebjelland

LinkedIn: highly-sensitive-juliebjelland

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193: Postpartum Anxiety with Dr. Carly Snyder Dec 14, 2020

Show notes

Welcome to Mom and Mind, I’m your host, Dr. Kat. Anxiety is at an all time high with covid, political stress, social justice stress, holidays and collective stress. So we are re releasing this episode from 2 years ago, as it is one of the most commonly downloaded episodes.

We are talking about Postpartum Anxiety today and more specifically,

We touch on the ever present guilt and shame that runs its course through motherhood as well as some ways to cope and manage postpartum anxiety.

About Carly Snyder, M.D.

Dr. Carly Snyder is a Board Certified reproductive and perinatal psychiatrist with a unique approach that combines traditional psychiatry with integrative medicine-based treatments. Dr. Snyder received her medical degree from NYU School of Medicine and completed general psychiatry residency at Mount Sinai Beth Israel Medical Center with additional reproductive psychiatry elective training at the Payne Whitney Women’s Program at NY Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center, where she remains voluntary faculty.

She maintains a private practice on the Upper East Side in NYC, and is working virtually due to COVID19.

Dr. Snyder was named a ‘2019, 2020 and 2021 New York Super Doctors Rising Star’ and is a frequent lecturer on the topic of women’s health and wellness. Her weekly radio and HuffPost parenting blog share the “MD for Moms” moniker. She also is a regular contributor to many popular websites and a member of the Women’s Mental Health Consortium and Robyn. Dr. Snyder served on the Board of Postpartum Support International (PSI) for multiple years and remains a member of the Advisory Council.

Show Highlights:

- What is "normal" anxiety in new motherhood

- How can people know when it's becoming more difficult or a clinical issue?

- What kinds of anxiety might a mother experience (types)

- Examples of cases?

- What is a side effect of the perinatal anxiety (guilt, shame, relationship problems, etc)

- what can they do to heal/cope/manage?

- Hopeful messages of repair/recovery?

Great Info, right?! The more we can understand these things, the easier it will be for us to cope and heal.

Carly's bio is here: https://www.carlysnydermd.com/about/credentials/

Social Media:

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/CarlySnyderMD

Twitter - @CarlySnyderMD

For this and all episodes of Mom and Mind, go to www.momandmind.com, join on on FB, twitter and IG as well as our FB group, Mom and Mind connection. Until next time!

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192: Colic, Postpartum Anxiety and Postpartum Depression Nov 30, 2020

Show notes

Today’s show covers a topic of great concern and high stress for many parents. Many of us don’t understand colic and how to soothe a colicky baby. Today’s guest shares how her experience raising her colicky newborn daughter affected her life and her mental health.

Jacqueline DelVecchio is a licensed mental health counselor in Salem, MA. She works in a private practice setting and specializes in perinatal mental health, certified through Postpartum Support International. She’s a wife, mother of two, and doggy-mom to a chocolate lab.

Show Highlights:

In 2016, Jacqueline’s first child was born after a great pregnancy and birth experience; the all-day crying began immediately and lasted about seven months
Even though her daughter was a good eater, with every bottle came the intense crying that lasted for hours
The only soothing for her baby came from bouncing on a yoga ball, running the vacuum, and Justin Timberlake’s song, “Can’t Stop the Feeling”
How Jacqueline’s daughter would cry for two hours after every feeding but would sleep through the night quite well
Why Jacqueline felt helpless, isolated, and guilty
Why Jacqueline decided to see a therapist
How Jacqueline dealt with the frustration of a constantly crying baby
The expectations for parenthood---and the grief that comes from realizing “this is not what I expected”
The need for education, resources, and help for parents who are dealing with colic
How other parents and even doctors don’t understand what dealing with a colicky baby is like
How therapy helped Jacqueline normalize her experiences, thoughts, and feelings
The biggest lesson learned for Jacqueline was that all moms are on the same level
How Jacqueline was led to specialize in perinatal mental health
What Jacqueline has learned about the effects of colic on parents
Jacqueline’s tips for parents who are dealing with colic now:
Prioritize self-care
Ask and accept help from others
Educate yourself and advocate for yourself
The nervousness and anxiety that came with a second child, wondering if colic would be a problem again
Hopeful messages from Jacqueline: “You’re doing a wonderful job even if your baby doesn’t stop crying. That’s not what determines your value as a parent. There is help and support if you’re dealing with colic.”

Resources:

Connect with Jacqueline: Jacqueline DelVecchio

Instagram: @butletsberealistic

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191: A Journey Through Preeclampsia, NICU, PPD, and Finding Hope Nov 16, 2020

Show notes

Even though there is much variation in the stories that women share here on the podcast, it’s amazing how many similarities they share. In today’s conversation, like so many others, we see a commonality in both the suffering, the isolation, and the path to healing.

Leila Tualla is an author and poet. She journaled her bouts with pregnancy anxiety, postpartum depression, and preeclampsia in a memoir titled Storm of Hope: God, Preeclampsia, Depression and Me, as a way of healing.

Leila is a mental health advocate and is part of 2020 Mom as a Mom Ambassador. She is currently volunteering as a peer support provider for organizations such as International Association of Premenstrual Disorders (IAPMD) and as a mentor for Postpartum Support International (PSI).

She hopes that by sharing her maternal mental health and birth stories that moms know they are not alone in their postpartum and premenstrual dysphoric disorder journeys.

Show Highlights:

How Leila was diagnosed with preeclampsia during her first pregnancy in 2012--and she experienced anxiety over what to expect next
How her daughter was born at 31 weeks and spent 46 days in the NICU
Leila’s desperate fears during her pregnancy anxiety with her second pregnancy--and how the anxiety developed into postpartum depression later on
As a counselor, Leila noticed the signs in herself but wondered why the postpartum pamphlets don’t tell the whole story
How her son was born at 34 weeks and spent 11 days in the NICU
How Leila’s boss spoke up and encouraged her to get help at six months postpartum
How Leila found Postpartum Support International (PSI) and began writing to tell her story
Why Leila wrote her book
How her faith and writing helped her heal through anxiety, postpartum depression, and two NICU experiences
How Leila’s experiences were isolating until she started speaking up
How Asian cultural expectations didn’t help Leila and made her feel like she should pick herself up and move forward
What it was like to start to talk about her experiences and share her story
Why Leila is proud of where she’s been and where she is today
What Leila’s healing process was like when she found support for premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PPMD)

Resources:

Website and Social Media links:

Leila Tualla

Facebook: LeilaTuallaM

Twitter: Leila Tualla

Instagram: An_Anxious_Believer

Storm of Hope: God, Preeclampsia, Depression and Me by Leila Tualla

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190: Postpartum Body Image, Disordered Eating, and Finding Freedom Nov 02, 2020

Show notes

Weight-loss struggles, eating disorders, endless dieting shame--we all know what it feels like to be stuck with these issues. None of these contribute to mental wellness, joy, and contentment. The problems are compounded for women during pregnancy and the postpartum period. If you’re stuck in the shame cycle about your body shape and dieting failures, join us for today’s show.

Catie Lynch is a licensed clinical social worker specializing in eating disorders, body image, and the postpartum period. She has two daughters, a three-year-old and a ten-month-old. She has made it her mission to help women stop dieting and find food freedom for themselves and their children.

Show Highlights:

Catie’s personal story of her struggle with body image, dieting restrictions, and eating disorders
How Catie coped after her wedding with weekly therapy, dietitian appointments, and group therapy
Catie’s first pregnancy and the body changes that felt to her like two years of weight gain
How Catie felt pressure in the postpartum period to “get my body back” while caring for a newborn
How girls and young women are bombarded with ideals about what our bodies should look like
What Catie sees in her practice regarding women and body image:
Wanting to be “perfect”
Obsessing about clean eating
Struggling when they don’t “feel” themselves
How women can be triggered by their doctors’ views about food
How “health” is assessed with weight and BMI, which aren’t always the best indicators of health
What your “set point” is, where your body wants to be, and how your body protects itself
Why it’s so difficult for women to trust their bodies and feelings
Catie’s message to pregnant women who are worried about weight and body image
Why Catie wishes she had done things differently in her pregnancy and postpartum, like trusting herself more, talking to others about it less, and focusing on her own needs
Top concerns that women share with Catie during the postpartum period
Behavioral warning signs that help women know when they need to seek professional help in the postpartum
How the health and wellness industry markets dieting today as “lifestyle changes”
Catie’s “health at every size” approach, which focuses on intuitive eating
Catie’s hopeful messages for women: “Women shouldn’t feel bad about wanting to lose weight. Talk to a coach or therapist who is trained in disordered eating in the postpartum. You know what your body wants, so don’t let your brain hijack your intuition. You’ll be a better person and a better parent for it.”

Resources:

Catie Lynch LCSW

Find Catie on IG: catielynchlcsw

Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch

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189: High-Risk Pregnancy Story and Support for Moms Oct 19, 2020

Show notes

October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. Having a high-risk pregnancy and being put on bed rest brings many challenges to a woman already in a heightened emotional state. These emotions carry a lot of anxiety and worry about the health of the mother and the baby. Join us to hear Shenee’s personal story.

Shenee Bend experienced a high-risk pregnancy that required her to be on hospital bed rest for a month. It was shortly after this time that she decided to focus her counseling work on pregnant and postpartum women. Shenee Bend is from California and now resides in Georgia with her husband and their two children. She is a licensed professional counselor who is trained in perinatal mental health. Shenee has an online practice serving pregnant and postpartum women in Georgia and Florida. Shenee will be sharing her bed rest pregnancy story along with coping skills to use if you are currently experiencing a high-risk pregnancy.

Show Highlights:

Shenee’s pregnancy story of her second pregnancy with her son, when things were going very smoothly . . .
At 32 weeks, early morning bleeding caused some concern, so Shenee went to the hospital and prepared for a possible preterm delivery
After a three-day stay, she was sent home with strict instructions
With more bleeding in the next 24 hours, she returned to the hospital for what ended up being a month-long stay until her son was born
Many emotions played into the acceptance of her fate and her anxiety about her son’s health and safety
The difference between high-risk pregnancy(certain risk factors, like advanced age, multiples, and previous problems) and pregnancy complications(developing health issues, like high blood pressure, anemia, gestational diabetes, and mental health conditions)
The link between mental health and pregnancy
How Shenee was worried about her baby and sad for her body in the way it was experiencing pregnancy
Shenee’s tips about coping skills:
Feel all the feelings
Forgive yourself
Shift your perspective
Keep a schedule
Use positive affirmations
Limit social media use
Be selectively social with other people
The danger in having negative thoughts
How Shenee was induced at 37 weeks after a month in the hospital
How to recognize the need for professional help in determining the difference between high-stress situations and clinical depression
Hopeful messages from Shenee: “Remember that a bed rest situation is temporary, and you will get through it.”

Resources:

www.pregnancytherapist.com Check out Shenee’s three-part video series!

@pregnancytherapist

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188: Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome and Loss of a Twin Oct 05, 2020

Show notes

October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness month. Mom & Mind honors all of the loss families who are grieving the loss of a child. There is no timeline and no right way to grieve, so we hold your loss with tenderness and love.

In this episode, Sarah Arcotta talks about the loss of one of her twins from Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome, a condition we haven’t yet covered on the show. Sarah shares the difficult grief from her experience and shares her healing and supportive message for other families. Sarah is an artist and educator who lives just north of Boston. You can find her exploring tide pools with her two young children or making art. She advocates for arts education while earning her Master’s degree in Leadership in Education. Sarah shares her story of loss, postpartum depression, and recovery to bring awareness to a serious condition affecting twin pregnancies.

Show Highlights:

How Sarah’s story begins 14 weeks into her second pregnancy, when she found out she was having identical twins
At 16 weeks, she was diagnosed with twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS), which occurs in 10% of twin pregnancies
What is TTTS? It occurs when twins share the placenta but have separate amniotic sacs; one twin (recipient) receives too many nutrients due to the blood vessel formation, and the other (donor) doesn’t receive enough nutrients
How Sarah lived with fear and anxiety in every single moment, having twice-weekly ultrasounds to check the babies because of the unpredictability of TTTS
How Sarah was ill and uncomfortable during the pregnancy, having to have amniotic reduction, but the fluid came right back
At 22 weeks, Sarah had laser ablation surgery to try to correct the blood vessel placement
How the ultrasounds showed her recipient baby was receiving too much fluid, which put a strain on her heart
After making it to 28 weeks, an emergency C-section brought her daughters; the donor baby lived only 45 minutes, and the recipient baby went straight to NICU
How Sarah functioned in survival mode with a heightened sense of fear and anxiety every single minute
85 days later, her daughter was still in NICU, and her fear and anxiety remained
When her daughter finally came home, a tsunami of emotions hit Sarah, including rage and depression
How she felt out of control and tried to push down the rage; when she couldn’t, she turned to alcohol to try to deal with her emotions
How Sarah lost her father unexpectedly just a few days after the loss of her daughter and she didn’t feel like herself for about a year
How Sarah continues to integrate healing work into her family
How Sarah tries to use her experience to enrich her life better
How meditation, mindfulness, and creativity help Sarah to feel emotions and have compassion for herself
Hopeful messages from Sarah: “This is a very difficult, heartbreaking, and stressful experience, but it’s also something that will enrich and grow your life. It will inform who you are and the kind of family you raise. You can create strength from this hard situation.”

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187: Transition to Motherhood: Pregnancy, Birth, Postpartum and Lessons Learned Sep 21, 2020

Show notes

Hearing personal stories gives us a unique insight into the nuances of the journey into parenthood, which differ from one person to the next. Today’s guest details her experience in ambivalence about whether having kids would be part of her life story. She shares how her journey into parenthood has shaped and grown her into the person she is today.

Dr. Elise Sanchez is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist, speaker, coach, and educator who lives in CA with her husband and toddler. She provides coaching, mentoring, and consultation regarding life transitions, education, sexuality, love, friendship, mental health, diversity, equity, and inclusion. Dr. Sanchez is the founder of Speak the Secret, an online platform created to provide community, connection, and collaboration with people who have a passion for growth and healing. As a new mom, Dr. Sanchez realized there was a long way to go in her healing journey. She created a group on Facebook, #MomLivesMatter, to provide resources, support, and community for moms. She aspires to help everyone she meets feel seen, heard, and understood,r empowering others to use their voice and share stories of strength, resilience, and hope is her mission.

Show Highlights:

Elise’s story of how she and her husband wavered back and forth about having kids and when to start trying
The long process of Elise’s pregnancy, labor, and delivery
How Elise learned to “lean into the pain” of giving birth
How Elise tore and was stitched up in the traumatic aftermath of her daughter’s birth
The difficulty of Elise’s postpartum care in the hospital
The breastfeeding difficulty and pain that Elise mistakenly thought was “normal” until her daughter’s lip-tie and tongue-tie were discovered by a lactation consultant
Why Elise regrets not listening to her intuition earlier
Why the lack of sleep was the biggest postpartum hurdle at home for Elise
The blessing of COVID-19 in giving Elise more quality time with her daughter
The guilt and shame that Elise feels in expressing her dislike of many of the mothering responsibilities
The struggle for Elise to find her new identity as a mom
The need to talk about the darker and scarier side of becoming a mother, and why we need to normalize these feelings and prepare new moms for them
What Elise wants others to know: “Therapy is valuable. Speak up, find support, and get help when you need it.”
How it took about a year to recover and get back to “normal”
The value in learning to be present in the moment as a new mom
Hopeful messages from Elise: “Giving birth and becoming a mom humbled me and reminded me that I’m human. I have such appreciation for everyone who has kids because they do the impossible every single day. I have huge respect for them. We work like we don’t have kids, and we have kids like we don’t work. We are doing it all and ruling the world.”