Online Therapy for Colorado & Illinois
Anxiety & Depression
During Pregnancy
You’re pregnant! You may feel excited, and you also may be experiencing an array of other emotions - anxiety, irritability, low mood, and/or trepidation. Guilt can set in - this is supposed to be one of the most exciting times in your life, right? Society can make you feel like you “should” just feel happy.
How can pregnancy lead to anxiety and depression?
Pregnancy leads to so many changes in our bodies and hormones that can impact mood. It’s also a huge adjustment to think about the changes in your life that you’re about to experience with becoming a parent, so it is quite common to experience an array of emotions during pregnancy.
How do I know if I have anxiety or depression during pregnancy? A pregnancy therapist can help.
If you have anxiety or depression during pregnancy, you may experience:
Worry that’s hard to manage or shut off (e.g., Have I felt my baby move today? What if something is wrong?; What if something happens when I’m giving birth; What if I have another miscarriage?)
Panic (e.g., heart racing, trouble breathing, feeling sweaty) that seems to come out of the blue
Irritability or feeling on edge
Depressed or low mood
Difficulty enjoying things you usually do (which is different from the inability to do things you usually like to do due to something like being on bedrest or the physical symptoms that can come along with being pregnant)
What happens if I don’t treat my anxiety and depression during pregnancy?
Not treating anxiety and depression during pregnancy can make it hard to live the life that you want. It can impact your relationships. It can also make it hard to care for yourself and your growing baby.
Anxiety and depression interfere so much because symptoms of these conditions often make it hard to get out of bed. They can lead you to do things that might feel helpful in the moment, but aren’t helpful in the long-run (e.g., spending time on Google or repeatedly seeking reassurance from friends, family, or your medical providers that everything is OK). They can lead you to completely avoid doing things out of fear of experiencing more anxiety, worry, or panic (e.g., I don’t want to go to my follow-up appointment because I’m afraid of what I may find out when I’m there). To cope with anxiety and depression, some people may also turn to coping strategies that aren’t healthy during pregnancy (e.g., drinking alcohol, smoking marijuana). Without treatment, symptoms of anxiety and depression are likely to continue into the postpartum period as well.
My approach to counseling as a pregnancy therapist
My approach to counseling during pregnancy includes a lot of education - helping you to understand signs and symptoms of perinatal anxiety and depression since these can sometimes show up differently than anxiety and depression do during other periods of our lives. We may discuss your relationships and work on communication skills to help you to get the support that you need. We may also work on strategies to help you get more distance from your thoughts, decrease the intensity of your emotions, and to help you be more present-focused, which can help you to engage in things that are important to you.
Working with a pregnancy therapist can help you…
Feel supported in your relationships
Slow down and savor important moments
Keep anxiety and depression symptoms from going haywire and taking over
Learn how to let go of and get distance from bothersome thoughts
Improve your sleep
You don’t have to do this alone.
Mindful Health Psychology provides mindful, compassionate online therapy for pregnant people in Denver, Colorado & Chicago, Illinois
Other services offered at Mindful Health Psychology:
Mindful Health Psychology is a practice offering online therapy for Denver, CO, Chicago, IL and beyond in the states of Colorado and Illinois. We specialize in therapy for anxiety, depression, postpartum anxiety and depression, coping with miscarriage and pregnancy loss, PMDD, coping with fertility-related stressors, birth trauma, coping with a chronic medical condition, insomnia, nightmares, circadian rhythm disorders, and hypersomnia disorders. We provide online therapy, making treatment more accessible, which means you can be located in Denver, Chicago, or another city in Colorado or Illinois to receive services.