Postpartum Support International

⚠️ Trigger warning: This post discusses traumatic birth, postpartum depression and anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and suicidal ideation

Their babies were receiving intensive care. Their mothers were quietly falling apart.
Kelly Perakis, RN, had years of psychiatric and emergency nursing experience. Still, after a traumatic pregnancy and her son’s premature birth, she struggled with anxiety, depression, intrusive thoughts, and suicidal ideation without anyone asking if she was okay.

Melanie Paddock knew she needed help. She could not sleep. She physically shook when she tried to rest. She called multiple providers and talked to friends, and was told to breathe, relax, and focus on the fact that her baby was okay.

Both felt unsupported and invalidated, but determined to get well. Kelly found PSI and began making her mental health part of her care every day. Melanie was referred to a maternal mental health specialist and a psychiatrist who helped her form a treatment plan.

Both got better, but neither should have had to fight so hard to be heard.

📖 Read Kelly’s story: https://loom.ly/6xEOh94
📖 Read Melanie’s story: https://loom.ly/FKh03wg

If you need help or support:
🔵 Call or text the PSI HelpLine: 800-944-4773
🔵 Call or text the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline: 1-833-852-6262
🔵 Visit Postpartum.net for free resources & support
🔵 Join PSI's NICU Postpartum Parents Support Group: https://loom.ly/gxQTq8s
🔵 Connect with PSI's NICU Lived Experience Specialist: https://loom.ly/WtKGDfs

If your baby spent time in the NICU, who is the person you still remember?

Maybe it was the person who helped you feel like your baby's parent by helping you take part in their care, or who reassured you when everything felt frightening and unfamiliar.

On NICU Staff Appreciation Day, PSI honors every nurse, physician, respiratory therapist, social worker, lactation professional, technician, specialist, and staff member who helped NICU parents feel seen, supported, and less alone 💚

NICU parents, if you would like, finish this sentence:
“I’ll never forget when a NICU staff member __________.”

If you need help and support, you are not alone, and PSI is here 💙
🔵 Call or text the PSI HelpLine: 800-944-4773
🔵 Call or text the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline: 1-833-852-6262
🔵 Visit Postpartum.net for free resources & support programs
🔵 Join our NICU Postpartum Parents Support Group: https://loom.ly/gxQTq8s
🔵 Connect with our NICU Lived Experience Specialist: https://loom.ly/WtKGDfs

Have you noticed grandparents in your life or your work looking for support during the perinatal period...and not finding much made for them?

PSI is gathering input on resources for grandparents navigating this season alongside their children and grandchildren. Whether you're a grandparent yourself, a parent, or a perinatal professional, your perspective matters here.

📋 Share your input: https://loom.ly/Ygo7etQ

When a parent finally finds the courage to say, “I need help,” someone should be there to answer.

They may be navigating an unexpected NICU stay.
Grieving the loss of a baby.
Returning home and struggling with traumatic memories and flashbacks.

No two perinatal journeys are the same, and neither are the kinds of support families need.

PSI helps connect pregnant, postpartum, and post-loss families with free support, trusted information, specialized resources, and communities that understand what they are experiencing.

But as more parents reach out, our capacity to respond must grow with them.

Your donation helps PSI:
🔵 Reach more parents seeking support
🔵 Expand access to specialized programs and resources
🔵 Strengthen peer connection and education
🔵 Support families across different experiences, identities, and needs

In honor of NICU Giving Day, help PSI be there for the next parent who reaches out.

Your gift supports PSI’s overall mission and programs, including, but not limited to, support for NICU families.

🔗 Donate today: Postpartum.net/donate

A NICU stay doesn't end when parents leave the hospital. The emotional weight, anxiety, grief, hypervigilance, and relief all at once, often follows families long after discharge 💚

PSI's NICU Postpartum Parents support group provides a free, virtual, confidential space for parents of babies who are currently or formerly in the NICU, facilitated by trained PSI volunteers. The group is open to parents of babies up to two years old who experienced a NICU stay for any reason.

PSI Support Groups are online, confidential, and always free 💙

🔗 Register here: https://loom.ly/gxQTq8s

Your language is an asset, and PSI wants to help you build on it 🌎💙

This November, join our virtual live Spanish-language trainings and deepen your ability to provide culturally responsive perinatal mental health care.

🗓️ Trastornos del Estado de Ánimo Perinatales: Componentes de Cuidado (Perinatal Mood Disorders: Components of Care)
Noviembre 4 y 5, 2026 | Zoom webinar

🗓️ Psicoterapia Avanzada en Salud Mental Perinatal (Advanced Psychotherapy)
Noviembre 6, 2026 | Zoom webinar

When families receive care in their preferred language, it becomes easier for them to speak openly, ask questions, and feel understood.

Learn more and register today: Postpartum.net/en-espanol/entrenamientos/

Some of the smallest lives can leave the biggest imprint 💚

On NICU Remembrance Day, we honor the babies who are no longer here and the families who carry their love and memory forward.

Whether they were here for moments, days, weeks, or months:
They are loved.
They are remembered.

There is no right way to grieve and no timeline for missing your baby. To every NICU parent navigating loss: You are still your baby’s parent. Your love matters, your grief deserves support, and you are not alone.

PSI offers support groups, Lived Experience Specialists, information, and resources for NICU parents and families experiencing infant loss.

🕯️ Explore PSI’s Loss and Grief resources: https://loom.ly/40G29VA

If you feel comfortable, share your baby’s name or a memory you hold close. We would be honored to remember them with you 💙

📞 Is the PSI HelpLine the right resource for you?

If you're not quite sure where to start, or you know something feels off but you're not in crisis, try the HelpLine. The PSI HelpLine (800-944-4773) is a free, confidential way to reach a real person, not a chatbot or AI program, who will call or text you back with support and resources.

You don't need a diagnosis. You don't need to have it all figured out. You don't even have to call if you want to (texts are okay!). When you're ready for support, PSI is here 💙

Keep the conversation going about perinatal mental health 🩵 If you need help or support:
🔵 Call or text the PSI HelpLine: 800-944-4773 ( #1 #1 En Español or #2 English)
🔵 Call or text the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline: 1-833-852-6262
🔵 Visit Postpartum.net for free resources and support
🔵 Download the Connect by PSI App

"Andrea's sessions for yoga have always been amazing." 🧘

That's what one parent shared about our Yoga for Pregnant & Postpartum Parents support group, which is a free, virtual space for gentle movement, connection, and support throughout pregnancy and postpartum, led by a PSI facilitator trained in perinatal yoga. From alternative positioning to hands-on demonstrations for parents with babies in the room, this group is is great no matter where you are in the perinatal period.

This September, in recognition of National Yoga Month, we're spotlighting the parents finding comfort and community here every 1st and 3rd Wednesday.

🪷 Join us for mindful movement and focused breathing at https://loom.ly/yrXjYkI

Did you know?

PSI has reciprocal membership discounts with:
🔵 Anxiety and Depression Association of America
🔵 National Association of Perinatal Social Workers
🔵 National Perinatal Association
🔵 Newborn Care Specialist Association
🔵 Organization of Teratology Information Specialists (OTIS)

As a PSI member, you get access to peer consultation groups, members-only forums, training discounts, and more. Plus you become part of the safety net that helps PSI keep our support services free for the parents and families who need them most.

🔗 Ready to join the movement? Head to bit.ly/Join-PSI