Prenatal, Pregnancy, & Postpartum Counseling in Alpharetta, GA
The best way to find out if this approach is for you is to schedule a 15 minute consultation. Depending on your clinician’s availability, this consult may be held over the phone, via video, or in-person.
Meet Your Perinatal Mental Health Counselor
About Perinatal Counseling
Individuals and couples experience a multitude of emotions, stressors, and life changes as they prepare for and welcome a new baby into the world. There is often excitement and happiness along with fear and anxiety about the pregnancy, parenting roles, relationship changes, finances, and more. Many folks choose to engage in perinatal counseling and/or postpartum counseling to help build a toolbox of coping and support techniques to help them through.
Feeling Overwhelmed: A Common Experience
If you find yourself feeling overwhelmed by the changes that come with pregnancy and parenting, know that you’re not alone. These thoughts and feelings can occur as you adjust to new roles, responsibilities, and the emotional demands of parenting.
Our perinatal counseling services are designed to address these challenges, helping you to manage these emotions more effectively. You can explore and express your fears, anxieties, and concerns in a supportive, non-judgmental environment.
Prenatal Counseling: Support During Pregnancy
Pregnancy brings profound physical and emotional changes, and the mental health challenges that come with it are just as real as the physical ones. Prenatal anxiety, mood swings, fears about childbirth, body image concerns, and the stress of preparing for parenthood can all weigh heavily, especially if you’re also managing a high-risk pregnancy or complications.
Prenatal counseling gives you a space to process what you’re experiencing before the baby arrives. Our pregnancy therapist works with you to develop coping strategies for anxiety and stress management, strengthen your relationship and communication with your partner, and address any underlying mental health conditions that could intensify during or after pregnancy. Building these tools during the prenatal period means you’re better prepared for the postpartum transition that follows.
If you’ve experienced a difficult pregnancy, a previous loss, or are navigating fertility treatment, prenatal therapy can also provide the emotional support you need during a time that may feel more stressful than joyful. You deserve care that acknowledges the full scope of what you’re going through.
Postpartum Counseling: Healing After Birth
The postpartum period is one of the most emotionally complex times in a mother’s life. Hormonal shifts, sleep deprivation, the demands of caring for an infant, and the pressure to feel happy when you’re struggling can create a perfect storm for mental health difficulties.
Postpartum depression is one of the most well-known conditions, but it’s far from the only one. Postpartum anxiety can show up as constant worry, racing thoughts, or an inability to relax even when the baby is safe. Postpartum rage, irritability, and emotional numbness are also common and often go unrecognized. In rarer cases, postpartum OCD can cause intrusive, distressing thoughts about the baby’s safety that lead to compulsive checking or avoidance.
These conditions are treatable. Our perinatal therapist uses evidence-based approaches including cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and, when appropriate, coordination with your medical provider for medication management. Therapy during the postpartum period focuses on building coping skills, reducing symptom intensity, and helping you reconnect with yourself and your baby.
Counseling for Infertility and Pregnancy Loss
The path to parenthood doesn’t always go as planned. Infertility, miscarriage, stillbirth, and other forms of pregnancy loss can bring grief, sadness, anger, and a profound sense of isolation. These experiences deserve the same level of therapeutic support as any other mental health concern.
Our therapists provide infertility counseling for individuals and couples navigating the emotional toll of fertility treatments, failed cycles, and the uncertainty of not knowing what comes next. For those processing a loss, pregnancy loss counseling offers a safe space to grieve, make sense of complex emotions, and begin healing at your own pace.
Support for Partners and Co-Parents
Perinatal mental health challenges don’t happen in isolation. Partners and co-parents are affected too, whether they’re watching someone they love struggle, navigating their own adjustment to parenthood, or feeling uncertain about how to help.
Couples therapy during the perinatal period can strengthen communication, reduce conflict, and help both partners feel supported through the transition. Our therapists also work with individual partners who are processing their own stress, anxiety, or feelings of helplessness related to their family’s changing dynamic.
Parenthood is a shared journey, and therapy can help you navigate it together.
When Should You Seek Perinatal Counseling?
Here are some signs that perinatal counseling may help:
- During pregnancy, persistent anxiety that interferes with sleep or daily functioning, intense fear about childbirth or the baby’s health that doesn’t ease with reassurance, mood changes that feel disproportionate to what’s happening, difficulty enjoying the pregnancy, or a history of depression or anxiety that is intensifying.
- During the postpartum period, prolonged sadness or crying that lasts beyond the first two weeks after birth (sometimes called the “baby blues”), difficulty bonding with your baby, intrusive or frightening thoughts about your infant’s safety, feelings of rage or irritability that feel out of character, withdrawal from your partner or loved ones, panic attacks, trouble sleeping even when the baby is asleep, or a feeling of emotional numbness where you expected to feel connection.
- At any stage, if you’ve experienced a miscarriage, stillbirth, or infertility and the grief is affecting your daily life, your relationships, or your ability to move forward, counseling can provide the support you need.
You don’t need to be in crisis to benefit from therapy. If something feels off, that feeling is worth paying attention to. Our perinatal therapists are trained to recognize the full spectrum of maternal mental health concerns and can help you determine the right level of support.
Managing Mental Health Issues During Pregnancy and Postpartum
Navigating the journey from pregnancy through postpartum can stir a mix of emotions, and sometimes mental health issues may surface. These could range from mild worries and prenatal anxiety to more severe conditions like postpartum depression, postpartum anxiety, and even postpartum psychosis. You are not alone in this journey, and help is available.
At KMH, our trained mental health professionals can assist you through the complexities of these emotional transitions, empowering you to lead a more balanced life.
Understanding Your Thoughts and Feelings
Perinatal and postpartum stages can bring about significant changes in your thoughts and feelings. You may experience a shift in your self-identity, relationship dynamics, and even your view of the world. Recognizing and understanding these changing thoughts and feelings is crucial to your well-being during this period.
Our therapists help you decipher these changes, providing a better understanding of your emotions. This improved understanding can empower you to handle the ups and downs of this transformative life phase more confidently.
Reach out to our team today to schedule a complimentary consultation to discover if KMH is the right fit for you.
Our Perinatal Counseling Services
Perinatal counseling helps our clients to identify and build upon strengths, increase effective communication styles, practice healthy ways to manage stress, establish self-care strategies, and mobilize support systems to best prepare you for your parenting journey. Depression and anxiety can be very common in perinatal and postpartum parents. Conditions like postpartum depression and postpartum anxiety are completely natural and highly treatable with the right mental health support.
Perinatal Counseling Focus Areas
- Infertility
- Pregnancy complications
- Changes in mood – perinatal mood and anxiety disorders
- Medically complex infant
- Grief and loss
- Infant mental health
- Parenting
- Relationship challenges
- Role changes/life transitions
- Work stress
- Body image issues
Who Is Perinatal Counseling For?
KMH provides perinatal and postpartum counseling services to individuals and couples, with support group sessions also available. Expectant parents of both healthy and high-risk pregnancies find the support and guidance offered by our mental health professionals invaluable.
Infants are welcome if necessary and may be encouraged at times in the therapeutic process. Please keep in mind that our time together is for you. Please discuss with your therapist prior to your appointment.
Our Approach to Perinatal Therapy
Every mother, parent, and family comes to perinatal counseling with a different story. Our approach reflects that. Treatment is personalized to your specific circumstances, your symptoms, and your goals. Common therapeutic modalities we use for perinatal mental health include:
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) helps you identify and reframe the anxious or depressive thought patterns that often intensify during pregnancy and the postpartum period.
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) builds skills for emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness, all of which are especially valuable during the intensity of early parenthood.
- EMDR Therapy can help process traumatic experiences related to childbirth, pregnancy loss, or prior trauma that surfaces during the perinatal period. Learn more about EMDR therapy at KMH.
We offer both in-person sessions at our Alpharetta, GA office and virtual counseling throughout Georgia
Role of a Mental Health Professional in Perinatal Counseling
Our mental health professionals play a crucial role in providing perinatal counseling services. They offer you a safe, compassionate space to explore your thoughts and feelings around the challenges you may be experiencing.
Our experts employ evidence-based strategies to help you manage stress, improve communication, establish self-care routines, and build support systems. They also guide you through the diagnosis and treatment of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. Their goal is to equip you with the necessary tools and techniques to smoothly transition into your new role as a parent.
What to Expect in Perinatal Therapy Sessions
Your therapist will ask about your pregnancy or postpartum experience, your emotional and physical health, your relationship dynamics, your support system, and any history of mental health concerns. This isn’t a test. It’s a conversation designed to help your clinician understand what you’re going through so they can build a therapy plan that fits your specific situation.
From there, sessions are tailored to your needs. If you’re dealing with prenatal anxiety, you might work on stress management techniques, cognitive strategies for managing worry, and practical preparation for birth and the postpartum transition. If you’re navigating postpartum depression or anxiety, therapy may focus on coping skills, challenging negative thought patterns, rebuilding your sense of identity as a parent, and strengthening the bond with your baby.
Sessions are typically 45 or 60 minutes and can be held in person at our Alpharetta, GA office or via virtual counseling from anywhere in Georgia. Many perinatal clients find virtual sessions especially helpful during late pregnancy or the early postpartum period when
You Deserve Support Through Every Stage
Whether you’re expecting, newly postpartum, processing a loss, or supporting a partner through any of these experiences, your mental health matters. Perinatal counseling at Kellen Mental Health is designed to meet you exactly where you are and help you move forward with confidence, clarity, and the support you deserve.
Counseling
Individual Counseling Session Rates
Sessions are available in 45- or 60-minute formats and can be conducted either in person or via video. While 60-minute sessions are recommended—especially for the first appointment—they are not required unless deemed necessary by the clinician.
Initially, appointments are typically scheduled weekly or every other week. As symptoms improve and progress toward goals becomes more consistent, sessions can be spaced out to every 3–4 weeks.
45 minute appointments: $160 – $180 per session
60 minute appointments: $215 – $240 per session
Individual counseling rate varies per clinician. Please see clinician bios for more information regarding specialties and rates.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Do you accept my insurance?
Managed care companies were created to “manage” and contain escalating health care costs. Their bottom line is to reduce costs and raise profits; it is not to increase the quality…
How do I schedule an appointment?
There are a few different ways to schedule an appointment. Please choose the most convenient option for you. If you are a new client, you may schedule your consultation or…
What forms of payment do you accept? Can I use my HSA/FSA card?
Cash, credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express), and health savings (HSA) or flex spending account (FSA) cards that have a major credit card logo on it are all accepted…
What is your cancellation policy?
If you need to cancel or change your appointment, we ask you to inform your provider at least 24 hours in advance of your scheduled session start time. Your full…