Earlier this month, Thrive Wellness’s perinatal mental health team was given the honor to speak at the 35th annual Postpartum Support International (PSI) Conference in New Orleans – an influential industry event in the perinatal mental health field. The team presented on Thrive’s “It Takes A Village” Day Program , which was piloted at the Thrive Wellness Reno location and has since been implemented at Thrive Wellness Sacramento and Thrive Wellness Waco . The program offers interdisciplinary care to parents struggling with perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) and aims to nurture parents as they navigate pregnancy and parenthood. Find out more about their experience, highlights, and insights in this Q&A with the presenters:

Lauren: Our presentation was called, “Exploring an Interdisciplinary Team Approach to Perinatal Mental Health at the Intensive Outpatient Level of Care.” It was very exciting to share about the model of Thrive Wellness “It Takes A Village” program, which is one of less than 30 (that we know of) higher level of care programs for perinatal mental health in the country! We hoped it would inspire other professionals in our field to consider how working as an interdisciplinary team to streamline care, as well as creating programs specially tailored to pregnant and newly parenting folks, is important.

Andrea: From my lens, it was incredibly validating to share our program experiences as a collaborative team, which is the real foundation of our program. It felt invigorating to be back in person, at a conference of like-minded people who are trying to move the needle in parental mental health. We received wonderful initial feedback on our content and what we are doing here in Nevada to support the mental health of our community. It felt great to know that others across the country wanted to learn from our experiences and implement similar programming in their own communities. I could really feel the ripple effect we were having in our professional community.

Amanda: I was amazed by the amount of interest in our “It Takes A Village” program. There were so many people engaged in the presentation. After the presentation, quite a few participants shared their gratitude and their own dreams of developing a similar program. Another highlight was watching my team flourish when talking about the “It Takes A Village” program and the passion that helps fuel it. Discussing the program that we pour our hearts and souls into on a daily basis was beautiful and inspiring. For the rest of the weekend, people stopped us to applaud our efforts in perinatal mental health.

Lauren: It was very exciting to meet other professionals in our field who want to share about their own programs similar to our “It Takes A Village” program, or who are hopeful about starting something similar in their own community. It was also amazing to see other innovative programs being piloted across the country, and how different kinds of professionals (therapists, OBGYNs, midwives, doulas, home visiting staff, etc.) are coming together to collaborate. 

Andrea: The overall conference was incredibly empowering, thought-provoking and also reassuring that the care we are providing to our clients is not only evidence-based but thoughtful in its approach. I am feeling inspired and excited to begin initiatives that may help to even further support our community in ways that we may not have thought of before.

Lauren: I gained insight into innovative programs across the country focused on using peer specialists, reaching parents via home visits, and closing gaps in health care . Peer specialists are individuals with lived experience of PMADs who receive specialized training to offer mentorship and support to other folks in a community needing care for similar issues. The Thrive Wellness team has been dreaming of incorporating certified peer specialists into our “It Takes A Village” program since its origin. I am feeling particularly inspired to find a way to make this happen in the future!

Amanda: I was energized by my team’s excitement for growing and evolving the “It Takes A Village” program. Throughout the conference, we each attended different training sessions. At the end of the day, we would share what we learned and discuss implementing new ideas into our program. One of the keynote speakers was a father who had experienced a PMAD. He emphasized the importance of broadening perinatal mental health messaging to include fathers, something that has been on our radar for a while and quickly became a main priority after hearing his presentation. 

If I could sum up the experience, I would say it was inspiring and cup-filling. Everyone was so inviting, encouraging, and interested. The opportunity to learn and connect with others in the perinatal mental health space was pretty magical. 

Andrea: I am very grateful for this experience. It was great to learn from others in the space, explore New Orleans, and connect with the Thrive Wellness perinatal team.

Lauren: After keeping things very close to home throughout the pandemic, it was really amazing to get a feel for our national community of perinatal workers. There is so much heart and spirit in this field, and I left feeling recharged and recentered. I’m so grateful to work with a team of people I respect and admire while doing work that is so fulfilling!

Amanda: When we shared that Thrive Wellness has locations in Texas and California in addition to our Nevada clinics , people actually cheered and clapped. The excitement was palpable.

Thrive Wellness believes it takes a village to raise children, so we involve a multifaceted team of clinical specialists and cultivate a deep-rooted sense of community into our therapeutic programming for perinatal mental health . With the intention of fostering comprehensive healing from perinatal concerns and nurturing parenthood journeys, our “It Takes A Village” program offers physical, mental, and behavioral health care to expecting and new parents. Reach out to learn more. 

While all Thrive Wellness locations offer interdisciplinary clinical teams who collaborate to treat eating disorders, perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs), and additional mental and behavioral health conditions, programs and services may vary by location.

Andrea Thompson, APRN, FNP-C, PMHNP-BC is a nurse practitioner whose background has stemmed in primary care, primarily working with under-served and under-insured populations. After several years in family practice, she completed a post-master’s certification as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. In early 2019, she started a program the first of its kind in Northern Nevada to integrate mental health services into a women’s health/OBGYN practice where she had a focus on perinatal mood and anxiety disorder (PMAD) diagnosis and treatment which solidified her passion for perinatal/reproductive psychiatry. She has also completed a perinatal mental health certification through Postpartum Support International to even better serve her clients. As a postpartum depression survivor herself, she has a passion for helping other women throughout their journey to mental wellness. She and her husband moved to the Reno area several years ago from Seattle, WA to settle into a place to raise their family; they have three children. Aside from spending time with her family outdoors, Andrea is also active in the efforts to improve the sexual health education offered to the youth in our community as well as advocating at the state level to support nurse practitioner autonomy and maternal mental health.

Amanda Boe earned her master’s degree in counseling from the University of Nevada, Reno. She has over nine years of experience working with children, individuals, and families who have experienced trauma. Her experience also includes working with clients who struggle with perinatal mood disorders, anxiety, and depression. Amanda is passionate about healing relationships among families and unresolved trauma using evidence-based practices. She is certified in Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP). Amanda offers individual, couples, and family therapy.

Lauren Kalogridis, LMSW, PMH-C, C (DTI), earned her Bachelor of Social Work from New York University, and her Master of Social Work from Smith College School for Social Work. Lauren’s clinical approach is grounded in relational psychodynamic therapy, and incorporates elements from somatic, trauma-informed and cognitive-behavioral modalities. Her clinical experience has ranged from working with teens to older adults on issues including depression, anxiety, psychosis, trauma-related symptoms, relationship challenges, and issues related to identity and oppression. Lauren is passionate about working with teens and young people, as well as LGBTQIA+ identified folks. She is also actively practicing as a labor and postpartum doula, which has informed and deepened her commitment to working with individuals during the perinatal period. Lauren recognizes all humans have an intrinsic need to feel safe, to connect, and to belong. She believes in collaboratively building a trusting therapeutic relationship, which serves as a foundation for gaining new insight and accessing healing. You can expect her to bring warmth, humor and intention to your work together, as she supports you in envisioning new possibilities for your life and relationships.

The post Thrive Wellness’s Perinatal Mental Health Team Reflects on Their Experience Presenting at the 2022 Postpartum Support International (PSI) Conference first appeared on Thrive Wellness.