Psychology, in general, is responsible in its applied variant for offering professional advice to individuals, couples, families and organizations, intervening in any psychological alteration that people may present in the various periods of their development, from childhood to adulthood. or to provide support to people with needs associated with personal and/or professional development. Now, within this discipline there are several sub-branches aimed at more specific areas of intervention.
Perinatal therapy is the part of applied psychology that is responsible for studying and addressing the psychological needs of parents from before conception until the birth of the baby and the immediately subsequent stages of fatherhood and motherhood. If you want to know more, keep reading. Here we will explain What is perinatal therapy and the problems it addresses.
What are the main functions of perinatal psychology?
Perinatal psychology professionals are experts in identifying, diagnosing and intervening in a wide variety of psychological problems and alterations both in the mother who decides to become pregnant and in the father, who also tend to present symptoms of all kinds on many occasions.
Besides that, perinatal intervention addresses both emotional and cognitive or behavioral aspects In short, any element that may interfere with the parents’ normal daily life and their mental health.
Although for most couples becoming parents is a very normal process full of happiness, some often present problems that must be treated by a specialist.
What problems does it intervene in?
Below we summarize the main functions performed by a perinatal psychology professional.
1. Abortion cases
Miscarriage is one of the most traumatic experiences that parents who wish to become pregnant may go through, even more so if the pregnancy is complicated or has been related to psychological problems of all kinds.
Depending on the type of abortion, a specific therapy modality or another must be performed, this means that the intervention in a couple who loses a baby after a few weeks will be different from that of an abortion in the last weeks or at birth.
The perinatal psychology professional must, in each case, adapt his intervention to the needs of the couple and satisfy their needs at all times.
2. Fertility problems
Intervention in fertility problems is another of the functions that perinatal psychology is responsible for, a problem that affects millions of people around the world and that has a great impact on the psychological health of those who want to be fathers and mothers affecting both their personal projects and their self-esteem, in many cases.
Although each couple can experience it differently, fertility problems in couples usually cause cases of anxiety, stress, low self-esteem, feelings of guilt, arguments within the couple and a feeling of loss or lack of direction when perceiving a future. uncertain.
The therapist’s job in these cases is to provide psychological care to each member of the couple who is suffering or to both in a coordinated manner and to provide them with tools to overcome their emotional problems and to avoid arguments and even a breakup.
Pregnancy is a stage of physiological and biological changes that affect women although some symptoms may also occur in the father.
The main sources of emotional discomfort during pregnancy for women have to do with the physical changes experienced during the process and in men they tend to be mostly emotional or psychological.
Some of the most frequent symptoms that women experience related to emotional distress are non-acceptance of one’s own body or the feeling of not recognizing the changing body as one’s own.
4. Problems related to childbirth (and expectations of childbirth)
For most parents, The moment of future birth generates a lot of fears, insecurities and fears of all kinds, mainly due to the fear that something will go wrong or that the birth will not go as expected.
These types of fears occur in both the mother and the father and must be treated in therapy by a perinatal psychology professional who provides answers to all the questions that the parents may have.
Besides that, Another task is to reassure both fathers and mothers at all times and get them to overcome all their fears related to childbirth.
5. Problems with breastfeeding
Breastfeeding is another of the fundamental issues during motherhood and one that generates the greatest doubts, fears and insecurities in first-time parents.
It is common for both mothers and fathers to find themselves lost when faced with an issue as important as breastfeeding and the correct development of the newborn, which is why They need someone to provide them with psychological support and provide them with all the information they need about this aspect of pregnancy and the psychological management of this experience.
This is the work of perinatal psychology professionals, expert therapists in solving any problem or doubt about breastfeeding.
You may be interested: “What are the changes in the brain during motherhood?”
6. Relationship with the baby and attachments
Although the relationship with the baby and its parents begins with the baby’s pregnancy, it is of great importance for any parent. develop a healthy relationship and proper attachment with the newborn.
Attachment is established in the first weeks after the baby is born and both fathers and mothers have a great variety of doubts and fears regarding this period, which will be resolved and mitigated by psychologists who are experts in perinatal therapy.
Are you looking for professional psychological support?
If you want to have professional psychological support in perinatal psychology or in another area of ​​applied psychology, contact us.
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