Maternal Mental Health Collective

If you’re a mom or mom-to-be in British Columbia and you’re looking for support, you’re in the right place!

I run a video-based counselling practice that focuses entirely on challenges that are specific to motherhood. From fertility journeys, pregnancy mental health, birth trauma, postpartum adjustment, relationship ups and downs, renegotiating career and motherhood, and finding yourself through the many demands of motherhood, we are here to help you feel ease and balance through it all. 

My practice is constantly expanding to meet the demand for maternal mental health specialists in BC and across Canada. You deserve to be supported by professionals who truly see your unique situation and are trained to identify and treat specific challenges related to motherhood. It is my goal to invite the most compassionate, understanding and effective therapists to join my team so that you can find your stride and get back to feeling like YOU. 

Scroll down to learn more about my team and book your session! 

I look forward to supporting you!

Kate

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If you live in a province outside of BC, then stay tuned as I will be expanding my practice across Canada shortly. 

For anyone looking for a therapist outside of BC, I recommend you read through the directory at Postpartum Support International. This is a leading maternal mental health organization in the USA, and they list practitioners who specialize in supporting moms globally.

Maybe you found me by chance, maybe you’re here from a friend’s referral or you saw me on social media … but whatever path you took to get here, I am so glad you took this first step.

Here’s what I know for sure:

Motherhood is hard, quite possibly the hardest transition you’ll go through. So if you’re suffering, just know that you are far from alone. You’re told that becoming a mom is supposed to be natural, easy, intuitive, and blissful, but often this just isn’t the case.

I also know that we all need support.

Our cultural push to be-all-the-things and manage everything seamlessly is so unrealistic and causes a lot of pain. As a mom, you are under incredible pressure to meet society’s standards, and you own values and ideals can get lost. I’m here to help you figure out what matters most.

And lastly, I know that you don’t have to just accept the struggle. Yes, there are many hard parts about being a mom, but there’s also a lot that you can do to completely transform how this experience feels.

I know because I’ve done it. 

I’m a mom of two daughters, just 16 months apart. Having experienced postpartum anxiety and depression myself, I have a glimpse of how painful and disorienting those years can be. The hardest part for me was that I didn’t ask for help. I didn’t reach out, I didn’t allow myself to be supported. And this is why I do this work today, and I am honoured to be by your side and help you find a little more ease, compassion, and the ability to truly care for yourself.

I’m so glad you’re here!  You can learn more about me here. 

xox

Kate

**I am currently accepting a waitlist for my counselling practice. Click here to add your name to the list. I invite you to scroll down to view Melissa Medjuck’s profile (she’s an associate therapist in my practice), and book in with her for more near-term support. 

• Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC) with BCACC (British Columbia Association of Clinical Counsellors)
• Master of Arts In Counselling Psychology (University of Victoria, Victoria BC)
• Maternal Mental Health Certificate (Postpartum Support International)
• Online Counselling Certificate (Therapy Online + University of Toronto)
• Mindful Self-Compassion Core SkillsTraining (Center for Mindful Self-Compassion)
• Bachelor of Arts in Psychology (Whitman College, Walla Walla Washington)

If you find yourself extremely distressed, need urgent support, or are having intense thoughts of self-harm or suicide, please contact a crisis line or call 911 right away.

Hi, I’m Melissa. I am so glad you’re here. I’m a registered social worker and a mom to three-year-old twins. I’m also a certified birth doula, postpartum doula and yoga teacher. I’ve spent over 15 years specializing in women’s mental health, providing connection and meaningful support to diverse groups of women.

In my pre-mom life, I was an adjunct professor with the School of Social Work at the University of British Columbia and currently work at BC Women’s Hospital. I am so happy to be joining Kate’s team.

It is my honour to walk alongside people through big life transitions. Fertility, pregnancy, birth or parenthood impacts every member of a family and changes us indefinitely. We navigate new terrain at every stage—from pre-pregnancy to prenatal; postpartum to early parenthood, which can be an emotional journey that is both intensely joyful and immensely overwhelming (and lonely!). Venturing down this unchartered, emotional road requires a village to march along with you. In fact, isolation and lack of support is a leading cause of perinatal mood disorders, which is why I believe that receiving support is essential. It certainly was for me! Through my own experience of struggling with miscarriages, becoming a mother and realizing how intense those early years can be, I can attest to the ups and downs as well as the transformative power of seeking professional support.

I believe in the power of connection and relationships. My goal is to help you feel empowered, informed, seen and heard. I will provide a safe space for you to explore your thoughts and feelings so that you may come to discover what is really going on and develop a deeper understanding about how to manage life with more ease and compassion. It takes a lot of courage and vulnerability to seek help and to be open to change and growth. My clients are my heroes. You are the expert of your own experience; I will meet you wherever you are at and consider your voice every step of the way. Depending on your needs, this might include learning practical tools to manage issues such as anxiety, depression, grief and loss, identity and relationships.

When I’m not working, you can find me trying to practice yoga with two monkeys—aka toddlers—climbing all over me, planning my next meal with my partner, reading endlessly, enjoying some deep belly laughs with my girlfriends, and daydreaming about traveling.

I am grateful to live and work as an uninvited settler on the unceded territory of the Coast Salish peoples, including the territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh
(Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.