Finding a therapist can feel overwhelming, especially when you're already carrying so much.

Maybe you're struggling with mom rage, postpartum anxiety, birth trauma, pregnancy loss, or simply feeling unlike yourself since becoming a mother. You know you need support, but now you're faced with another challenge: figuring out who can actually help.

The truth is that not all therapists have specialized training in maternal mental health. Just because someone works with anxiety or trauma doesn't necessarily mean they understand the unique emotional, physical, and relational challenges that can come with pregnancy, postpartum, and motherhood.

If you're looking for therapy support, here are seven questions worth asking before getting started.

You know that feeling where you are completely exhausted, yet the second your head hits the pillow, your brain starts racing? Or that sudden, intense spike of irritation when your partner asks a perfectly normal question, or the baby cries for the third time in an hour?

If you are constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop, feeling completely overstimulated, or operating on pure adrenaline just to get through the day, I want you to take a deep breath.

First: you are not a bad mom. Second: you aren't failing.

What you are experiencing is something incredibly common, yet rarely talked about in the pristine world of social media motherhood. You are living in survival mode. As a New York therapist working with moms every day—and as a mom who has been right there in the thick of it myself—I see how easily we slip into this state without even realizing it.

Let’s pull back the curtain on what survival mode actually does to your body, why it happens, and how you can finally start to breathe again.

If you’ve recently had a baby in New York—whether you were at a hospital in Rochester or a smaller birth center near Ithaca—you might be struggling to process how it all went down.

Maybe people keep telling you, "At least the baby is healthy," or "You’re both here, that’s what matters." While those things are true, they don't erase the fact that your birth experience felt scary, out of your control, or even life-threatening.

Many parents ask me, "What is birth trauma, exactly?" They worry that because they didn't have an emergency C-section or a NICU stay, they aren't "allowed" to call their experience traumatic.

Here is the truth: Birth trauma is defined by your experience of the event, not just the medical coding. If you felt a sense of horror, helplessness, or fear for your life (or your baby's), your body may be holding onto that trauma.

There’s something about summer—the slower pace, the longer days, the feeling of exhale after a long stretch of doing, doing, doing. Calendars open up a bit. The sun lingers into the evening. And for many, there's finally a little space to breathe.

While summer often gets filled with beach days, family trips, or time outdoors, it can also be a powerful time to turn inward. That natural pause you're feeling? It’s not just about rest—it's also a chance to reconnect with yourself. And for moms or moms-to-be navigating prenatal anxiety, birth trauma, loss, or depression, this season might be exactly the right moment to begin that healing process.

Bringing a baby into the world is life-changing, beautiful, and often, well, a little overwhelming. If you've ever thought about seeking support during pregnancy or after birth, you might also have run into some confusion or hesitation. It's totally normal to have questions about something unfamiliar, and sometimes, those questions can turn into myths that keep us from getting the help we truly deserve.

As a therapist specializing in prenatal and postpartum mental health, I often hear common assumptions that create misunderstandings about what postpartum therapy (and therapy for pregnant women) is really all about. Let's clear up some of that confusion!

Ah, summer. The season of sunshine, long days, and... maternity leave! It's painted as this idyllic time for rest, bonding with your new baby, and enjoying family fun. But if you're a new parent navigating the perinatal period in New York, you know the reality can be a lot messier. What's supposed to be relaxing can quickly turn into a pressure cooker, amplifying family stress during summer and making you feel more overwhelmed than ever.

As a perinatal mental health therapist, I see firsthand how this season, especially with a new baby in the mix, can inadvertently create unexpected tension and stress in families. You're not alone if you're feeling this blend of hope and dread.