Every woman deserves an emotionally healthy and rewarding pregnancy
Welcome to this educational resource backed by medical research & inspired by questions from hundreds of my past and current patients. You’ll find helpful info on mood, anxiety, depression, mental illness, hormones, treatments, and resources.
I’ve been honored to contribute to these outstanding institutions:
Postpartum Depression in Dads
Fathers are fifty percent of a couple, supplying half of the genetic material to create a baby, but when we talk about the postpartum period, they receive less than 10% of the attention. This means that as much as postpartum depression is missed or underdiagnosed in women, it is that much more so in men…
Breastfeeding: When Breast May Not Be Best
Breastfeeding your baby – an action so natural, yet not so easy. Many women struggle in the postpartum period with breastfeeding, whether it is your first baby or your third. There is often pressure to breastfeed because we hear so much about how it is the best option for a baby. I have seen many women develop significant anxiety about…
Baby Blues or Beyond? Recognizing Postpartum Depression
The majority of women, more than three-quarters, experience the baby blues immediately after childbirth. It is a feeling precipitated by the sudden change in hormones after delivery, coupled with sleep deprivation and fatigue. You might feel more tearful, overwhelmed, and emotionally fragile. Generally, this will start within the first couple of days after delivery, peak around one week, and taper off by…
When to Return to Work? Maternity Leave and Mental Health
Maternity leave is an invaluable period of bonding time for a new mom and her baby and a time of recuperation after delivery. But how long does it need to be? Patients and practitioners alike ask me about when the right time is to return to work from maternity leave. Does mental health suffer when a woman goes back too soon? Can postpartum depression worsen or…
How a Relationship Changes With Parenthood
The transition to parenthood is stressful, and the months after a first baby is born are unique in a couple’s life. There are physical changes, social adjustments, and psychological adaptations. One repeat finding in the research of parental relationships is that parents, immediately postpartum as well as a year or even several after childbirth, report a decrease in satisfaction in their marital relationship. This has been shown…
How to Move Forward After a Traumatic Birth Experience
When women think about childbirth, they often have many different hopes and plans. What happens when those dreams of a beautiful experience do not go as planned? What if, in fact, the experience was psychologically traumatic? If childbirth was a traumatic experience for you, you might remember feelings of fear, anxiety, pain, helplessness, and a loss of…
Intrusive Thoughts and OCD Postpartum
Intrusive thoughts postpartum are scary. I have had several patients describe their fears to me – fears that they might do something to harm their baby because these intrusive thoughts pop into their minds. The thought of dropping the baby, the thought of throwing the baby down the stairs or…
Light Therapy for Depression
Perinatal and postpartum depression affects many women, by some studies up to 10-20%. In my clinical practice, I also have many women who struggle with the decision about taking medications for treatment of this condition given the potential for side effects and exposure to the baby. Therefore, there is always a search for non-pharmacologic treatment options. Light therapy is…
Postpartum Mania & Bipolar Disorder
There is quite a bit of discussion these days of postpartum depression as the primary mental health condition that can afflict a new mom. However, there is also postpartum mania – much more rare but…
Postpartum Irritability
You may have read many articles already on postpartum depression, either this one on Mind Body Pregnancy or others. You may have even been prepared for the possibility of feeling depressed postpartum and had a plan for how to potentially address that feeling. But what if you do not feel particularly depressed? What if the primary emotion is irritation? A number of my patients have described feeling…
“Radiance” - Virtual Program for Postpartum Moms
Many postpartum women struggle with their new identity, new body, and how to resume fitness after having a baby. In my clinical practice, women have frequently asked me questions about when and how to resume physical activity postpartum. My experience has also been that so many postpartum moms have a negative view of their postpartum body and approach their bodies from a place of judgment and negative thinking. That fuels an unfortunate spiral, where that negativity impedes getting active postpartum. This, in turn, can fuel additional negativity because physical activity is known to have a positive impact on mood, mental health, sleep, energy, and more. This experience has led me to create Radiance, a unique…
Oxytocin and Postpartum Mood
Oxytocin is a neuropeptide made in the hypothalamus, a regulatory center in the brain. It is involved in labor and breastfeeding. It helps with uterine contractions and with milk letdown. It has been studied for its role in maternal child attachment and more generally social relationships in all mammals. Several studies have shown that…
Dr. Glezer began her training at Harvard and then transitioned to the University of California, San Francisco, where she has been a practicing physician, teacher, mentor, and is an associate professor. She is board certified in adult and forensic psychiatry, a member of the American Psychiatric Association, and the immediate past President of the Northern California Psychiatric Society.
She has worked with hundreds of women going through the emotional challenges of conception, pregnancy, loss, and postpartum. She has been interviewed for, and her written work has appeared on multiple leading sites, including Huffington Post, Fit Pregnancy, Health Line, Help Guide, and more.
She began her private practice to help women throughout the Bay Area access reproductive mental health services and is really passionate about helping as many women as possible.
