There is a wealth of resources for pregnant and postpartum women and their families that can help you with understanding mood challenges and also support you and your family’s adjustment. Here are some suggested resources:
Support:
Pregnant2Parent Groups are time-limited emotional support groups offered by the Spring Project. These groups provide pregnant women the opportunity in a small group setting to connect and reflect on the experience of pregnancy and what lies ahead as a parent. The groups are led by experienced licensed mental health professionals. Themes to be explored include the experience of being pregnant, managing expectations, changing relationships, and the emerging identity as a mother.
For more information about the P2P groups:
New York City: CONTACT: Ferne Traeger, LCSW, MBA [email protected] or Heidi Knoll, LCSW hknollcsw@yahoo.
Washington, DC: CONTACT: Jennifer Grosman, PhD jengrosman@yahoo.com or Elizabeth Fritsch, PhD drelizabethfritsch@gmail.
Postpartum Support International provides extensive information about perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. Postpartum Support International is a membership organization that offers “tools for moms” such as support groups and an online book store.
A long-established resource for mothers support groups in the Washington, DC area is P.A.C.E. found at www.pacemoms.org
Recommended books:
Ann Dunnewold and Diane Sanford (2010). Life Will Never Be The Same: The Real Mom’s Postpartum Survival Guide
Karen Kleiman and Amy Wenzel (2014). Tokens of Affection: Reclaiming Your Marriage After Postpartum Depression
Karen Kleiman and Valerie Davis-Raskin (2013). This Isn’t What I Expected: Overcoming Postpartum Depression
Karen Kleiman and Amy Wenzel. (2011). Dropping the Baby and Other Scary Thoughts: Breaking the Cycle of Unwanted Thoughts in Motherhood.
Joan Raphael-Leff (1995). Pregnancy: The Inside Story.
Joan Raphael-Leff (2014). The Dark Side of the Womb: Pregnancy, Parenting and Persecutory Anxieties.
Brooke Shields (2006). Down Came the Rain: My Journey through Postpartum Depression.