Dear mama, don’t suffer in silence.
Your emotional health matters.
You are NOT alone.
We are here to help you find the answers and support you need.
Support Line (call/text) 415-326-3623
Our Support Line is FREE and available to anyone, so you can share it with family and friends. Caring trained peers will listen, understand how your problem is affecting you, provide emotional support, share any resources that may be helpful, and connect you to local care if needed.
HOW DOES THE PPSC HELP?
WHO WE ARE
Postpartum Support Center (PPSC) uses an evidence-based peer model of care to connect expectant and new mothers (pregnancy through child’s third year) and their families with the resources needed to recognize, treat and recover from maternal mental health challenges.
As the first and only organization to provide peer-based mental health support in Marin and Sonoma counties, the PPSC has grown to play a critical role in our communities’ maternal and family health systems.
We believe in the power of the shared perinatal experience in helping women to overcome the challenges of pregnancy and new motherhood.
All our peer support services are free.
WHAT WE DO
The PPSC aims to help expectant and new parents navigate the perinatal period, reduce parental stress, and build effective support systems, particularly when confronted with considerable barriers to mental health treatment including long wait times and high costs.
Peer support reduces stigma, alienation, and
shame-based thinking, and it fosters hope,
baby-bonding, and overall well-being. All PPSC programs champion the critical role that peer support can provide to parents with perinatal mental health challenges.
PPSC focuses on eliminating stigmas surrounding postpartum struggles and building strong support teams so that families can flourish during and after a time of major transition.
WHY NEW PARENTS NEED SUPPORT?
Women face unique physiological demands from pregnancy, labor and delivery, and recovery, while also typically doing most of the child-rearing and housework. New mothers run an increased risk of developing Postpartum Depression and Anxiety through exposure to chronic stress, decreased social support, and the fast pace of modern life.
Many women enter motherhood without a support system in place.
Developmental scientists consider parenthood one of the biggest transitions in life—one that changes the brains, endocrine systems, behaviors, identities, and relationships. Without support, relationships can be strained to the brink, and depression and anxiety can set in.
The effects of Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders are wide-reaching. They affect the mother, partner, child, extended family, workplace, community, etc. Perinatal Mental Health Disorders can have a ripple effect on society in addition to their effects on the parent, who is often suffering in isolation and often without information, resources, understanding, or help. Some of the societal impacts of PMADs include:
-
Breakdowns in marriages/relationships
-
Family conflicts
-
Interruption of attachment between parent and child
Studies show that when a child is exposed to conflict in the home a range of issues can later develop, including drug/alcohol addiction, learning difficulties, mental illness, suicide, and delinquency.
Fatherhood is a time of major adjustment in many different ways: one's identity, responsibilities, routines, and relationships may all change. This adjustment period brings stress which, when it builds up, can put dad's mental health at risk.
Since partners don’t experience all the physical changes of pregnancy and childbirth, they may not begin to really feel like a parent until after the baby’s birth. This can be especially true if they are in a same-sex relationship, using a surrogate or adopting.
Often, partners feel like they don’t ‘fit in’ with the pregnancy experience, given that so much of the attention is focused on the pregnant woman. This can be a real struggle for partners, leaving some feeling left out of the experience.
