Launching Beyond the Blues
Beyond the Blues is a group for pregnant and postpartum women with perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) that will be launching at Oaklawn’s Goshen location in September. The group came about through collaboration between members of the Building Strong Brains Maternal and Infant Health action team. Katy Carlson is a therapist at Oaklawn with training in PMADs, and learned of the need for this type of group therapy resource in the community. Marti Conrad is a social worker with Elkhart County Health Department’s Healthy Babies and also had a longstanding interest in establishing a PMAD support group. Through discussion between Katy and Marti, and also with Shin Yee Tan of The SOURCE, Beyond the Blues is being launched. The group will meet weekly and is open to pregnant and postpartum women and their babies. The group will include time for processing/sharing, as well as building skills for mental health such as self care, mindfulness, and assertiveness. The group will be co-facilitated by Katy and Marti. Katy will bring her therapy training and passion for working with moms and babies. Marti will bring her many years of experience working with this population and her extensive knowledge of community resources. We are excited about this partnership and hope that it can be a valuable resource for women who need it!
