Pregnancy Therapy in Whitefish Bay, WI
We’re told that pregnancy is supposed to be a magical time, but what happens when it’s not? Pregnancy can be full of a wide range of emotions, physical experiences both positive and negative, and a whole lot of unknown.
You wonder if you’ll be a good parent.
You worry that you’re not ready.
You worry that your partner isn’t ready.
You’re anxious over all that could go wrong during labor and delivery.
You’re not alone.
Whether you’re experiencing the challenges of an unexpected pregnancy, the highs and lows after difficulty conceiving, or simply the everyday rollercoaster that pregnancy brings, we can help.
This can be an exciting time, but it can also be full of fear, anxiety, and altered perceptions of self. And it’s not uncommon to experience all of these in the same day.
Growing a human is hard work—not just physically. Our clinicians understand that there is a lot more to pregnancy than the physical symptoms, and we are here to offer you the emotional support you need to make it through this pivotal time in your life.
With so much out of your control right now, you deserve to have your fears heard and to learn specific tools to maintain your happiness and calm. No matter what you’re feeling about your pregnancy—joy, fear, worry—we’re here to listen and help.
Our clinicians can work with you alone or with both parenting partners. We welcome families of all kinds—there’s no judgment here and all families are welcome.
ERA is based in Whitefish Bay, WI but we are able to work with people across the state of Wisconsin online. We can work together to help you cope with how hard things are right now, and navigate whatever comes next.
If you’d like to see if one of our therapists are a good fit for you, click the button below to schedule a new client consultation.
FAQs About Mental Health & Therapy During Pregnancy
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Perintatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders. It’s basically just an acronym that encompasses ALL of the possible mental health stuff that can come up in trying to conceive, infertility, pregnancy, birth, and postpartum. It includes depression, anxiety, panic, OCD, trauma, bipolar disorder, PTSD, psychosis, and more.
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Symptoms can vary somewhat person to person and appear up to the first year following the birth or additional of a child into your family. Up to 15% of postpartum people experience significant depression.
Some common symptoms include:
Feelings of anger or irritability
Lack of interest in the baby
Appetite and sleep disturbance
Crying and sadness
Feelings of guilt, shame or hopelessness
Loss of interest, joy or pleasure in things you used to enjoy
Possible thoughts of harming the baby or yourself
Information from Postpartum Support International
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Around 6% of pregnant people and 10% of postpartum people experience anxiety. Anxiety diagnoses can include panic and OCD.
Constant worry
Feeling that something bad is going to happen
Racing thoughts
Disturbances of sleep and appetite
Inability to sit still
Physical symptoms like dizziness, hot flashes, and nausea
Information from Postpartum Support International
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Basically, OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) that occurs in the postpartum period.
Some common symptoms include:
Obsessions, also called intrusive thoughts, which are persistent, repetitive thoughts or mental images related to the baby. These thoughts are very upsetting and not something the woman has ever experienced before.
Compulsions, where the mom may do certain things over and over again to reduce her fears and obsessions. This may include things like needing to clean constantly, check things many times, count or reorder things.
A sense of horror about the obsessions
Fear of being left alone with the infant
Hypervigilance in protecting the infant
Moms with postpartum OCD know that their thoughts are bizarre and are very unlikely to ever act on them.
Information from Postpartum Support International
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Several ways. Since you’ve found us, that’s an option. You can schedule a consultation with one of our therapists here.
Postpartum Support International also has coordinators that are able to connect with individuals and families in need and help them find resources. You can call or text the PSI Helpline at 1-800-944-4773 or fill out this form to be contacted by a volunteer. PSI has a whole bunch of helpful resources, including free online support groups.
If you aren’t interested in seeing one of our therapists, you can also search the PSI provider directory for a clinician that fits your needs.
If you are in the Milwaukee area, Moms Mental Health Initiative is also a great resource with a trusted provider list.
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Basically, if you’re here reading about it and wondering if maybe you should…. you probably should.
In general, most people wait longer than necessary before they seek help for any mental health concern. We’re big advocates of early help, but see people from “Hey I think I might struggle when I do try to get pregnant” all the way through “My kid is 12 and I’m not ok”.
It’s never too early, it’s never too late.
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It happens. Asking for help is HARD. Finding a therapist you click with and gets you and what you’re going through is even harder.
But there is help out there. You deserve to feel better. We get that it’s hard to decide to come to therapy, and SUPER hard to actually show up. Even searching for somebody online is a big first step. We’re here to walk you through all the other steps.
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Yep, absolutely. Up to 10% of non birthing partners will have clinically significant mental health symptoms following the birth or addition of a child into their family.
We absolutely work with partners, too!
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Yep. While some providers wouldn’t label that “perinatal”, your story and losses matter. Those losses and the grief that comes with them may include actual pregnancy, embryo, or child losses, but also the loss of the family story or journey that you thought you and your partner would have.
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First off - your story matters, and it is safe to tell your story here.
We have therapists that are supportive and validating of people who have had to terminate a pregnancy, no matter the story or reason behind it.
Emily also has experience and knowledge providing support to people currently making a decision to terminate (either for medical reasons, called TFMR, or otherwise) or awaiting a procedure. If you are in immediate need of support in this area, please reach out to her directly at 414-301-3411 or emily@erawellnesstherapy.com. Please note that our voicemail and email systems are confidential, but you may want to be cautious about the information you leave on either. You may indicate this need for urgency and confidentiality by using the phrase “I am looking for resources for stress management”.
If we need to return your call or email, we will not identify the reason that we are contacting you, just “Emily from ERA Wellness returning your call”.
Mental Health Resources for Pregnancy
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Postpartum Plan
Download our free postpartum plan. Use these questions to initiate conversations with your co-parent or other supports.
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Managing Pregnancy Anxiety
Anxious about your pregnancy? It can be one of the most stressful times in our lives. Learn more about why it happens and how to help from Gabrielle Trecek, LCSW.
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Perinatal Mental Health: Questions and Answers About PMADs
There are a lot of misconceptions about PMADs, so let’s dive in to the most common questions we get about PMADs, some symptoms and risk factors, and where to go to get help.