Hey there, new and expectant parents. Let's talk about something that often gets overshadowed by its more well-known cousin, postpartum depression: postpartum anxiety (PPA). While PPD rightly gets a lot of attention, PPA is incredibly common, and honestly, sometimes it feels even more relentless.

If you're reading this, chances are you've been feeling it – that constant hum of worry, the racing thoughts, the feeling that you can't quite relax. You might be googling "postpartum anxiety symptoms" or "new mom anxiety," desperately trying to figure out if what you're experiencing is "normal" or if something's genuinely off.

As a perinatal mental health therapist, one of the most powerful shifts I've witnessed in our field is the growing embrace of trauma-informed care. This isn't just a buzzword; it's a fundamental change in how we approach support for expecting and new parents, moving away from the often-blaming question of "What's wrong with you?" to the deeply compassionate and insightful "What happened to you?"