Perinatal Mental Health & Support Resources
You deserve care, support, and space to be human through the transition to parenthood.
Pregnancy, fertility challenges, pregnancy loss, childbirth, and the postpartum period can bring significant emotional, physical, relational, and identity changes. These experiences can be meaningful, joyful, overwhelming, frightening, isolating, or several things at once.
There is often an expectation that pregnancy and new parenthood should be naturally fulfilling—that parents should instinctively know what to do, feel grateful, and adjust without too much difficulty. But the reality is more complicated. The physical and emotional labor of building a family and caring for a child can be immense, and the support available to parents does not always reflect the amount of care they need.
You may be navigating anxiety, depression, intrusive thoughts, grief, fertility stress, relationship changes, or a sense of losing touch with parts of your identity. You may love your child and still miss your independence. You may feel grateful and resentful, connected and overwhelmed, hopeful and afraid.
You do not have to minimize your experience, prove that you're struggling enough, or wait until you're in crisis to deserve support.
This page brings together free support groups, educational materials, self-reflection tools, and crisis resources for individuals and families navigating fertility, pregnancy, pregnancy loss, postpartum mental health, and the transition to parenthood.
Free Peer Support Groups & Community Resources
Sometimes it helps to connect with people who understand the experience without needing a lengthy explanation. Peer support can offer connection, validation, shared experiences, and reminders that you are not alone.
Postpartum Support International (PSI)
Postpartum Support International offers more than 50 free virtual peer support groups for pregnant and postpartum individuals, partners, and families. Groups are facilitated by trained peer supporters and cover a range of experiences.
Explore PSI's free online support groups:
Pregnancy & Postpartum Mood Support: Connect with others navigating anxiety, depression, emotional overwhelm, and adjustment to parenthood.
Perinatal OCD Support: Support for parents experiencing intrusive thoughts, obsessions, compulsions, and perinatal OCD symptoms.
Fertility Challenges: Peer support for individuals navigating difficulty conceiving and fertility treatment.
Pregnancy & Infant Loss: Support for miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant loss.
Birth Trauma: Connection with others processing difficult or traumatic birth experiences.
BIPOC Parent Support: Groups created for specific communities and experiences.
Queer & Trans Parent Support: Inclusive support for LGBTQIA+ individuals and families navigating pregnancy and parenthood.
Partners, Dads & Families: Support for partners and family members who are also navigating the emotional impact of perinatal mental health challenges.
Postpartum Psychosis Support: Specialized peer support for individuals who have experienced psychosis and families touched by postpartum psychosis.
All PSI online support groups are free. Group availability, eligibility, and meeting schedules vary, so check the current registration page.
Explore PSI's Free Online Support Groups
Additional PSI Support Options
PSI HelpLine: Confidential support, information, and referrals.
PSI Peer Mentor Program: Connect with a trained volunteer who has lived experience with perinatal mental health challenges.
PSI Support Navigators: Find help connecting with local providers and community resources.
Connect by PSI App: Free app with access to peer support, resources, and support groups.
Free Worksheets, Educational Materials & Self-Reflection Tools
The following resources can help you better understand perinatal mental health symptoms, prepare for conversations with healthcare providers, and identify areas where you may need additional support.
Postpartum Support International
Free downloadable educational materials, fact sheets, and informational resources in English and Spanish.
Perinatal Mental Health Discussion Tools
Tools to help track symptoms and prepare to discuss concerns with a medical or mental health provider.
Postpartum Psychosis Discussion Tool
A resource for loved ones and providers to recognize possible symptoms of postpartum psychosis and identify when additional care is needed. Available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG)
ACOG Patient Education & Perinatal Mental Health Resources
Free educational resources about:
Depression during pregnancy
Anxiety during pregnancy
Postpartum depression
Recognizing symptoms and seeking support
Talking with your healthcare provider about mental health
National Institutes of Health
Educational materials about recognizing symptoms, finding support, and understanding mental health during pregnancy and postpartum.
Understanding Postpartum Psychosis: Warning Signs & Immediate Support
Postpartum psychosis is a rare but serious perinatal mental health emergency. It can involve a significant change in someone's perception of reality, thinking, mood, and behavior. It is treatable, and immediate medical attention is essential.
Symptoms can develop rapidly and may include:
Hallucinations, such as hearing or seeing things that others do not.
Delusions or unusual beliefs that are not based in reality.
Paranoia or intense suspiciousness.
Severe confusion or difficulty communicating.
Significant agitation or unusually elevated energy.
Rapid mood changes.
A decreased need for sleep or an inability to sleep.
Severe depression or an unusual lack of emotional expression.
Postpartum psychosis is not the same as postpartum depression or anxiety. It requires urgent medical and psychiatric assessment.
If you suspect postpartum psychosis, do not wait for symptoms to resolve or rely on a peer support group or routine therapy appointment. Seek emergency medical care immediately.
If someone may be experiencing postpartum psychosis:
Call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department for immediate assessment.
Explain that you suspect postpartum psychosis so the medical team understands the urgency.
Stay with the individual and help ensure the safety of both the parent and child while emergency care is being arranged.
Do not leave the individual to manage the situation alone.
You do not need to have a confirmed diagnosis to seek emergency help.
For additional education and family support, visit PSI's Postpartum Psychosis Resource Center.
Free & Confidential Crisis Hotlines
If you or someone you love is experiencing a mental health crisis, you do not have to navigate it alone. The following resources offer free support.
National Maternal Mental Health Hotline
Call or text 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262)
Free, confidential, 24/7 support for pregnant and postpartum individuals. Trained counselors can listen, offer emotional support, and connect you with local resources and additional care. English and Spanish support and interpreter services are available.
Visit the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Call or text 988
Free, confidential, 24/7 support for people experiencing suicidal thoughts, emotional distress, or a mental health crisis.
Visit the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Crisis Text Line
Text HOME to 741741
Free, confidential crisis support through text messaging, available 24/7.
Postpartum Support International HelpLine
Call 1-800-944-4773
English: Text HELP to 800-944-4773.
Spanish: Text 971-203-7773.
PSI provides information, encouragement, and referrals to perinatal mental health resources. This is a non-emergency support line, not a crisis service. A trained volunteer will return your call or text.
Important: If someone is experiencing hallucinations, delusions, severe confusion, or other possible signs of postpartum psychosis, call 911 or seek emergency medical care rather than waiting for a hotline response.
A Reminder: You Deserve Support, Too
There is no single way to experience pregnancy, fertility challenges, loss, or parenthood. You can feel deeply connected to your child and still struggle with the transition. You can experience grief while feeling hopeful. You can need support even when everything appears to be going well from the outside.
Seeking help does not mean you are failing as a parent. It means you are recognizing that your well-being matters, too.
Whether you are looking for a place to talk, educational materials to better understand your experience, or professional support, you deserve to be listened to, taken seriously, and cared for.
You are not alone. You are not to blame. Support is available.
These links are provided for educational and informational purposes. Peer support groups and educational materials are not substitutes for individualized mental health treatment or emergency medical care. Integro Psychotherapy does not operate or monitor the external resources listed on this page. Availability and eligibility may change; please confirm details directly with each organization.