Postpartum Depression &Anxiety

Online Support for Postpartum Depression, Postpartum Anxiety, Perinatal OCD & the Transition to Parenthood

You can love your baby and still be having a really hard time.

Maybe you expected this chapter of your life to feel joyful and fulfilling. Instead, you feel anxious, overwhelmed, exhausted, sad, irritable, or simply unlike yourself. Your mind may never seem to shut off. You might constantly worry about your baby, question whether you're doing things “right,” or feel guilty that becoming a parent doesn't feel the way you thought it would.

You may even wonder why everyone else seems to be handling parenthood better than you are.

You can deeply love your baby and still struggle with pregnancy, postpartum life, or becoming a parent. Both things can be true.

Perinatal mental health therapy provides a supportive place to talk openly about what you're experiencing, understand what may be contributing to how you feel, and begin finding your way back to yourself.

We provide online perinatal and postpartum therapy for clients in California, Colorado, Nevada, and Utah.

What Is Perinatal Mental Health?

Perinatal mental health refers to emotional and psychological well-being during pregnancy and after the birth of a baby.

While becoming a parent can bring happiness and connection, it can also bring significant emotional, physical, relationship, identity, and lifestyle changes.

Some parents experience postpartum depression, postpartum anxiety, perinatal OCD, or other mental health concerns. Others simply find the transition into parenthood far more difficult or overwhelming than they expected.

You don't need to know exactly what you're experiencing before reaching out for therapy.

If you don't feel like yourself, you're constantly overwhelmed, or parenthood feels much harder than you anticipated, those feelings are worth paying attention to.

What Are the Signs of Postpartum Depression?

Postpartum depression doesn't always look like constant sadness.

You may still be getting things done—feeding your baby, answering messages, managing the household, returning to work, and taking care of everyone around you—while privately feeling disconnected, depleted, or unhappy.

Postpartum depression may involve:

• Persistent sadness or frequent crying

• Feeling emotionally numb or disconnected

• Irritability or anger

• Feeling overwhelmed by everyday responsibilities

• Losing interest in things you previously enjoyed

• Feeling guilty or inadequate as a parent

• Difficulty feeling connected to your baby

• Feeling hopeless, trapped, or stuck

• Feeling as though you've lost yourself

• Wondering why becoming a parent doesn't feel the way you expected

Therapy for postpartum depression gives you a place to talk honestly about these experiences without needing to minimize them, judge yourself for having them, or pretend you're enjoying every moment.

What Does Postpartum Anxiety Feel Like?

For some new parents, the strongest emotion after having a baby isn't sadness. It's worry.

Your mind may constantly scan for everything that could possibly go wrong.

Is the baby breathing?

Are they eating enough?

What if they get sick?

What if I'm doing something wrong?

What if something happens while I'm asleep?

Even when someone you trust is caring for your baby, you may find it difficult to relax.

Postpartum anxiety can leave you feeling constantly “on.” You may repeatedly research symptoms, seek reassurance, check on your baby, second-guess your decisions, or imagine worst-case scenarios.

Therapy for postpartum anxiety can help you understand what's driving the worry, recognize patterns that may be reinforcing it, and develop healthier ways of responding to uncertainty and anxiety.

What Is Perinatal OCD?

Perinatal OCD can involve unwanted, intrusive thoughts or images accompanied by significant anxiety and behaviors intended to reduce that anxiety.

These thoughts can be particularly upsetting when they involve your baby.

You may experience an unwanted thought or frightening mental image and immediately wonder:

Why would I think something like that?

What does this say about me?

What if having the thought means something terrible could happen?

The distress may lead you to repeatedly check on your baby, seek reassurance, avoid certain situations, research excessively, mentally review events, or create routines intended to prevent something bad from happening.

An unwanted intrusive thought is not the same as wanting that thought to happen.

Therapy can help you better understand intrusive thoughts and the cycle of anxiety, checking, avoidance, reassurance, and compulsive behaviors that can make those thoughts feel increasingly powerful.

Is It Normal to Feel Overwhelmed After Having a Baby?

Becoming a parent is one of life's biggest transitions.

Your sleep changes. Your routines change. Your relationship may change. Your body may feel different. Work and finances may become more complicated. Your priorities shift, and suddenly another person depends on you throughout the day and night.

Even wanted and positive changes can be stressful.

You might think:

Why am I not happier?

Why am I so irritated with my partner?

Why can't I relax?

Why do I miss my old life?

Why don't I feel like myself anymore?

Not every new parent who benefits from therapy has postpartum depression or anxiety.

Sometimes adjusting to parenthood is simply hard.

Therapy can help you navigate that adjustment without requiring you to pretend that every moment of becoming a parent is wonderful.

The Mental Load of New Parenthood

For many new parents, exhaustion isn't only physical.

It's mental.

Feeding schedules. Childcare. Laundry. Pediatrician appointments. Sleep schedules. Work. Family expectations. Household responsibilities. Finances. Researching every parenting decision.

There can be an endless list running through your head.

If you're also the person who naturally takes responsibility for other people's needs, the transition into parenthood can make existing patterns of over-functioning, people-pleasing, perfectionism, or difficulty setting boundaries even harder to sustain.

Therapy can help you identify what you're carrying, communicate your needs more clearly, establish healthier boundaries, and create a more sustainable approach to caring for your family and yourself.

Why Do Relationships Change After Having a Baby?

Having a baby can change the dynamics of even a strong relationship.

Questions about who gets up with the baby, who handles household responsibilities, how grandparents are involved, whose career takes priority, how money is spent, and when each person gets time alone can suddenly become emotionally charged.

You may love your partner and still feel resentful.

You may miss how your relationship used to feel.

You may feel lonely even though you're rarely alone.

Therapy can provide space to understand these changes, communicate needs more effectively, address resentment and boundaries, and adjust to your new roles as parents and partners.

Adjusting to Your Identity After Becoming a Parent

Parenthood can also change the way you see yourself.

Before your baby, you may have strongly identified with your career, independence, friendships, relationship, interests, accomplishments, or simply having time that belonged to you.

You can love being a parent and still miss parts of your previous life.

You may find yourself asking:

Who am I now besides someone's mom or dad?

Therapy can help you integrate parenthood into your identity without feeling as though the rest of you has disappeared.

The goal isn't to return to exactly who you were before your baby.

It's to discover what you want this next version of your life to look like.

How Can Perinatal Mental Health Therapy Help?

Perinatal and postpartum therapy provides a place where you don't have to perform, have the right answer, or convince anyone you're doing okay.

Depending on what you're experiencing, therapy may help you:

• Address postpartum depression and postpartum anxiety

• Better understand intrusive thoughts and perinatal OCD

• Manage persistent worry and racing thoughts

• Recognize cycles of checking, reassurance, avoidance, or overthinking

• Adjust expectations about parenthood

• Cope with overwhelm and major life changes

• Reduce guilt and unrealistic expectations

• Establish healthier boundaries

• Navigate relationship changes after having a baby

• Manage the mental load of parenting

• Reconnect with your identity outside of parenthood

• Navigate returning to work or changing career priorities

• Create greater balance between parenting, relationships, work, and personal well-being

• Feel more confident in yourself and the decisions you're making

The goal isn't to become a perfect parent.

It's to help you feel more grounded, supported, and able to experience this chapter of your life without feeling consumed by it.

Our Approach to Perinatal & Postpartum Therapy

Our approach is down-to-earth, collaborative, client-centered, and solution-focused.

You are the expert on your own life. Therapy isn't about telling you how you should parent or what your life should look like. It's about helping you understand what you're experiencing, recognize patterns that may be keeping you stuck, develop useful tools, and make changes that support both your well-being and your family.

Our therapeutic approach may draw from Solution-Focused Brief Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), depending on your individual needs and goals.

We want therapy to help you understand what you're experiencing while also giving you practical ways to move forward.

Online Postpartum Therapy in California, Colorado, Nevada & Utah

Getting to another appointment can feel nearly impossible when you're pregnant, recovering from birth, caring for a newborn, juggling childcare, or returning to work.

That's one reason online postpartum therapy can be particularly helpful for new parents.

Our practice provides online perinatal mental health and postpartum therapy for clients located in California, Colorado, Nevada, and Utah.

Telehealth allows you to attend therapy from the privacy of your home without adding driving, travel time, or another complicated transition to your day.

Our online scheduling and intake process is designed to make getting started as straightforward as possible.

Our practice is private pay. A superbill receipt can be provided for clients who would like to request possible out-of-network reimbursement from their insurance company. Reimbursement depends upon your individual insurance plan and benefits.

When Should I Seek Help for Postpartum Mental Health?

You don't have to wait until you're at a breaking point to seek therapy.

Consider reaching out when anxiety, sadness, intrusive thoughts, irritability, overwhelm, relationship stress, or difficulty adjusting to parenthood begins interfering with your ability to enjoy or manage everyday life—or simply when you recognize that you would benefit from having more support.

You don't need to prove that things are “bad enough.”

And you don't need to have everything figured out before scheduling your first appointment.

You Can Love Your Baby and Still Need Support

Maybe you've been telling yourself that things will get easier when the baby sleeps better, when you return to work, when you stop working, when you establish a routine, or when you finally figure out how everyone else seems to be managing this.

You don't have to keep waiting.

Pregnancy, postpartum life, and becoming a parent can bring tremendous change. Having support for you matters too.

If you're experiencing postpartum depression, postpartum anxiety, intrusive thoughts, perinatal OCD, or simply feeling overwhelmed by the transition into parenthood, we're here to help.

Schedule an online therapy appointment and take the next step toward feeling more supported, grounded, and like yourself again. https://truepeace.clientsecure.me/

If You Need Immediate Support

True Peace Therapy is not a crisis-response service, and messages or appointment requests may not be reviewed immediately.

If you or someone you care about is in immediate danger, may harm themselves or someone else, or is experiencing a medical or psychiatric emergency—including possible postpartum psychosis—call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline

For immediate emotional or crisis support, call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org to chat with a trained crisis counselor. The 988 Lifeline is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week throughout the United States and its territories. You do not have to be suicidal to contact 988.

National Maternal Mental Health Hotline

Pregnant and postpartum individuals, their partners, and family members can call or text 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262) for free, confidential support. The hotline is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in the United States, with interpreter services available in 60 languages.

Postpartum Support International HelpLine

For non-emergency perinatal mental health support, information, and connections to local resources, contact the PSI HelpLine:

• Call 1-800-944-4773 and press 1 for Spanish or 2 for English

• Text HELP to 800-944-4773 for support in English

• Text 971-203-7773 for support in Spanish

The PSI HelpLine is a support and resource line—not a crisis hotline—and does not provide emergency services. A trained volunteer will respond to your confidential message.

These resources are available independently of True Peace Therapy. Including them on this website does not create a therapist-client relationship or replace emergency medical or mental health care.