SARAH LIEBMAN, MFT
Post Partum and Pregnancy Support
Post Partum Mood and Anxiety Disorders and Pregnancy Support
Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMAD’s) are a part of most mothers’ transition to parenthood. Between the complete disruption of your life, to the rewriting of roles between partners, parents, friends and career, it makes sense that you might be struggling to integrate all of these parts, while adding a whole new facet to your world.
There are two tasks of early motherhood: to build your maternal identity, and to construct your maternal authority.
Maternal Identity is the integration of the new role as mother with the previous life you lived, your identity as daughter, partner, worker and friend now must all include “mother” and how that reshapes and disrupts the previous settled identity. Frankly, it’s a lot like middle school: awkward, exciting, confusing, full of weird bodily changes and all sorts of things you are not sure you are allowed to feel or ask questions about.
Maternal Authority is not like becoming some mythical magical mother. What it is is building your sense of knowing your child and knowing yourself as the mother. From knowing what their cries mean, to figuring out how to tell if they have a fever, or really nailing it with that smile/giggle combo, you and your child becoming a pair, a team, a love match.
When Post Partum Mood and Anxiety are present establishing maternal Identity and maternal authority can feel impossible.
If you would like more information, or would like to schedule a free 15 minute phone consultation, please email me at sarah@sarahliebmanmft.com