Black History Month and Maternal Mental Health in Palm Desert
Thoughts from your Therapist Palm Desert
Maternal Mental Health affects women of all cultures, races and economic backgrounds. Therapist Palm Desert, Lauren Fox, LCSW works with all women to support their mental health.
As we take the month of February to highlight and celebrate Black History Month, I wanted to also acknowledge the experience of Postpartum Depression in the African American community. This video is one that addresses what it might be like for someone in the African American community to recognize that they need help to deal with their postpartum mental health challenges. Cultural beliefs about seeking help or even being willing to examine why help may be beneficial can keep women and their families struggling unnecessarily. In the United States, we are continually alerted to the disparities that exist in health care, public policies and institutional practices that intentionally and unintentionally oppress members of the African American community. When addressing the mental health needs of pregnant and postpartum women, it is extremely important to educate women of all cultures of the prevalence of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders affecting one out of every five to seven women, regardless of their economic, social, cultural or racial identity. Does this number come as a surprise to you? That one in every five to seven women will be impacted by depression or anxiety during their pregnancy or postpartum period? When we fail to acknowledge the vast numbers of African American women who may be like the woman in the video above, we lose the chance to help her get the support and aid she deserves for herself, her infant and her family. In helping African American women connect to information about what they may be experiencing and showing her the myriad ways of providing support, we can work to improve the Maternal Mental Health outcomes for the wider community at large.
In the event you recognize yourself or someone you love in this blog or video, I am here to support you and explore ways to help you improve your mental health. Feel free to reach out to me or call me at 805-930-9355 for a free 15 minute phone consultation in Palm Desert. I’d be happy to hear about what is happening and help connect you with the right provider.If you are looking for help with pregnancy, postpartum, pregnancy loss, infertility, birth trauma or hypnotherapy, you can read more about how I can help within this website.
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