Starting Here
Pregnancy and new parenthood are supposed to feel joyful, and sometimes they do—but they can also bring anxiety, grief, identity shifts, and exhaustion that catch people off guard.
Whether you're pregnant, newly postpartum, or navigating a difficult birth experience, perinatal therapy gives you a space to be honest about how this season actually feels.
This Can Look Like
Perinatal and postpartum struggles can look like:
- Anxiety or intrusive thoughts about your baby's safety or your ability to parent
- Persistent sadness, numbness, or disconnection during pregnancy or postpartum
- Grief or distress related to a difficult birth experience
- Rage, irritability, or overwhelm that feels out of character
- Guilt about not feeling the way you think you're “supposed” to feel
- A shaken sense of identity as you adjust to a new role
How Therapy Can Help
Therapy offers a space to process this transition honestly. We'll help you:
- Understand what's normal adjustment versus what warrants extra support
- Process a difficult pregnancy, birth, or postpartum experience
- Manage intrusive thoughts and anxiety without shame
- Rebuild a sense of identity alongside your new role
- Strengthen communication with your partner during this transition
Our Approach
Perinatal mental health is treated as its own specialized area, not a subset of general anxiety or depression. Your therapist understands the specific hormonal, identity, and relational shifts of pregnancy and postpartum, and will meet you without judgment about how you're feeling.
Therapeutic Approaches We May Use
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) — managing perinatal anxiety and intrusive thoughts
- Internal Family Systems (IFS) — navigating identity shifts into parenthood
- Somatic Experiencing — processing a difficult birth or medical experience
- Mindfulness-Based Therapy — building grounding tools for overwhelm
- EMDR or Brainspotting — when birth trauma is part of the picture
Who Might Benefit From Treatment
This kind of therapy may be a good fit if you're:
- Pregnant and experiencing anxiety, low mood, or overwhelm
- Newly postpartum and struggling more than you expected to
- Processing a difficult, traumatic, or medically complicated birth
- A partner supporting someone through pregnancy or postpartum changes
- Feeling guilty or ashamed about not feeling “happy enough”
What to Expect in Therapy
Your first session is a judgment-free space to talk about how pregnancy or postpartum is actually going, not how it's supposed to look on the outside.
Your therapist will help you build coping tools for this season while addressing any deeper anxiety, grief, or trauma connected to your experience.
Sessions are available in person at our Midtown Nashville office or online for clients throughout Tennessee.
FAQ
Is what I'm feeling “normal,” or should I be worried?
Many perinatal emotional shifts are common, but persistent anxiety, sadness, rage, or intrusive thoughts deserve support regardless of how common they are. A therapist can help you understand what you're experiencing and whether additional support, including medical evaluation, would help.
Can my partner come to sessions too?
Individual sessions focus on you, though your therapist can help you think through how to involve your partner in your care and communicate what you need during this transition.
Do you accept insurance?
Nashville Counseling Associates is out-of-network with insurance providers, so we don't bill insurance directly. Many clients use out-of-network benefits to get reimbursed, and we're happy to provide a superbill (an itemized receipt) for you to submit.
Session fees generally range from $130–$185 depending on the clinician, with $85 sessions available with our graduate-level interns and sliding-scale options based on financial need.
How do I get started?
Fill out our contact form or call (615) 281-9139. We'll ask a few questions about what you're looking for and help match you with a therapist whose experience fits this stage of pregnancy or postpartum life.
Sessions are available in person at our Midtown Nashville office or online for clients located anywhere in Tennessee.
Ready to begin counseling?
You don't have to keep carrying this on your own. Reach out to Nashville Counseling Associates, and we'll help connect you with a therapist whose training and approach fit how this season of pregnancy or new parenthood actually feels.
