Maternal Mental Health

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During pregnancy, many individuals experience emotional, hormonal, relational, and sexual shifts that may lead to depression or anxiety.

• Globally, about 10% of pregnant women, and 13% of women after childbirth, experience a mental disorder—primarily depression.
   
• In the U.S., perinatal depression (which includes pregnancy and the first year postpartum) affects an estimated 10-20% of women.
   
• Anxiety disorders during the perinatal period are also common: one study found up to 11% of non-depressed pregnant/postpartum women screened positive for anxiety disorders.
   

What we do
We support you through screening, therapy (including emotion- and sexuality-focused work), mindfulness and relational approaches (for your partner or support system as well). We help you integrate your identity as a parent while maintaining your sexual self.

The months after childbirth can feel full of joy—and also vulnerability.

• In the U.S., roughly 1 in 8 women (≈ 12.5%) experience postpartum depression (PPD).
   
• More broadly, maternal mental health disorders impact up to 15-20% (or 1 in 5) of pregnant and postpartum women.
   
• Among studies that look beyond the first year postpartum, prevalence of depression ranged from about 6.6% up to 41.4%, depending on subgroup and timeframe.
   
• One large U.S. study found among women screening positive for maternal mental health conditions: ~26.5% had symptoms before pregnancy, ~33.4% emerged during pregnancy, and ~40.1% emerged postpartum.
   

Sexual-health and relational implications
Becoming a parent often brings changes in physical health, hormonal status, sleep patterns, body image, sexual desire and intimacy. These can interplay with mood, anxiety and relational satisfaction. In new fathers, for instance, research found the transition to fatherhood brought sexual life “to a crossroads.” 

How we help
We take a dual focus on mood/anxiety treatment and sexual & intimacy restoration (for you individually, the couple, and the family system). We normalize the shifts in desire, identity and pleasure that happen in early parenting rather than pathologize them.

Infertility (or fertility challenges) is deeply entwined with sexual health, identity, mental health and relational patterns.

• Approximately 20% of women reported having experienced infertility; among those women, there was an increased risk for dysthymia (low‐grade chronic depression)
   
• Research on infertile couples found decreased self-esteem, declines in sexual relationship satisfaction and the experience of “loss of spontaneous sexuality.”
   
• Couples undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART) reported emotional stressors that were significantly associated with both partners’ lower sexual desire, arousal, orgasm and satisfaction.
   

Why this matters?

Infertility doesn’t just impact whether you conceive—it changes how you relate to your body, your partner, your sexuality, your timeline. Sexual activity may feel mechanical (timed, monitored), pleasure may drop, and shame or grief may surface. Without space for sexuality separate from conception, the relational and sexual system can feel stuck.

Our approach
We provide a lens of sexual empowerment, letting you reclaim sexual pleasure, intimacy and identity beyond conception. We support couples in processing grief, trauma or disillusionment around fertility, and help rebuild connection, desire and joint meaning. We attend to how fertility stress intersects with identity, sexual self-esteem and relationship patterns.

• With 15 years of experience specializing in sex and sexuality from a systemic lens, we bring a unique perspective that bridges maternal mental health, sexual health and intimacy.
   
• Our work is rooted in the conviction that we are all sexual—even as we parent—and that sexual well-being is a core component of mental health.
   
• We create a safe, affirming, non-shame environment (yes, we can talk about sex toys, porn, power dynamics or kink if that’s part of your story) within a professional framework.
   
• Whether you’re navigating pregnancy, postpartum adjustment, infertility, evolving sexual identity or intimacy with your partner, we partner with you to reclaim empowerment, pleasure, connection, and systems alignment (you + partner + family system).
   

If you’re navigating the mental-health, sexual-health or relational shifts that come with parenthood, infertility or transitioning your sexual self into your role as a parent, let’s connect. Reach out for a free 20-minute consultation to explore how we can work together to support your journey toward sexual empowerment, mental wellness and relational resilience.