Resource Guide for Black Moms with Postpartum Depression and Anxiety

September is Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorder awareness month and at Doulas of PG County we want to talk about how this issue is important to black women.

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America “African Americans are 20% more likely to experience serious mental health problems than the general population.”

While 20% of women have symptoms of perinatal mood or anxiety disorder (PMAD), like anxiety, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder, the figure is 44% for black women, compared to 31% for white women.

According to author Rochaun Meadows-Fernandez in her article Postpartum Depression in Black Women is a Silent Epidemic, she says, “the black community has a history of emphasizing personal strength and self-sufficiency, which can decrease the chance that Black women seek assistance when their sadness becomes more than “the baby blues.”

Today we’d like to share a few local and online resources for our clients to access mental health support:

Akoma Counseling Concepts- Silver Spring, MD

Diversified Lifestyle Counseling Services

Sunflower Wellness, Lindsay Vick, hypnotherapy, reiki, Alexandria, VA

Therapy for Black Girls Directory

Black Women Birthing Justice

The Black Therapist Network

The Association of Black Psychologists

The Postpartum Stress Center