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This page is for you if you’re living in Massachusetts or Rhode Island and you are:
“South Asian” covers many countries, languages, faiths, and family structures, and every family is different. So is every immigrant story. I won’t assume I know yours. I’d rather learn it from you.
You’re allowed to love your baby and still be struggling. Both can be true.
Every person’s experience is their own. These are some of the things parents tell me about, and that research on immigrant and South Asian parents also describes:
Many families have strong opinions about how to feed, hold, dress, and raise a baby, and about how a new mother should rest and recover. Sometimes that support is a gift. Sometimes it feels like you’ve lost your voice in your own home. Often it’s both. In a review of studies on South Asian women who migrated to high-income countries, the quality of relationships, especially with a partner, was one of the most common factors linked to postpartum depression symptoms (Nilaweera et al., 2014, Journal of Affective Disorders).
In therapy we can sort out what you want to keep, what you need to change, and how to say it without blowing up the relationships you rely on.
Many cultures, including many South Asian families, have postpartum traditions around rest, food, and staying home for a set period after birth (Goyal, 2016, MCN). For some parents these traditions feel like being cared for. For others they feel isolating or out of step with how they want to recover, or they simply aren’t possible when family is overseas. Research on postpartum confinement practices, mostly in Chinese communities, finds mixed effects on mood. Conflict with a mother-in-law, and the strain of balancing traditional and modern expectations, are among the factors that can make it harder rather than easier (Wong & Fisher, 2009, Journal of Affective Disorders).
There’s no right way to do this. We can work out what rest and support actually look like for you.
In some families, depression or anxiety isn’t talked about, or it gets called stress, weakness, or something to keep private. A UK study of Black and South Asian mothers found that self-identity, social expectations, and different ways of explaining distress could all hold people back from asking for help (Conneely et al., 2023, Frontiers in Psychiatry).
Reaching out isn’t a failure, and it isn’t disloyal to your family. Therapy is confidential, and you decide who knows you’re coming.
When your parents, siblings, or friends are in another country or another state, the “village” people talk about can feel very far away. Visiting family may come for a few months and then leave. A review of 24 studies found that postpartum depression symptoms were common among immigrant women, and that shorter time in the new country, lower social support, and money stress were among the related risk factors (Falah-Hassani et al., 2015, Journal of Psychiatric Research).
Some parents are dealing with visa timelines, a spouse’s work authorization, being far from home for the birth, or uncertainty about where the family will settle, all while caring for a newborn. That uncertainty can sit underneath everything else. I’m not an immigration attorney, but therapy can be a place to carry the emotional weight of it with someone.
Many first- and second-generation parents feel pulled between the way they were raised and the way they want to raise their child. Questions about language, religion, food, discipline, and identity can come up long before your baby can talk. Those questions deserve space, not quick answers.
Postpartum depression, postpartum anxiety, intrusive thoughts, birth trauma, sleep deprivation, grief about how birth or early parenthood went, and losing track of who you are. These can happen to anyone, in any culture, and they are treatable. My main postpartum depression therapy page goes into more detail on the signs and what treatment looks like.
Having family move in for weeks or months can mean real help with cooking, nights, and the baby. It can also mean less privacy, different ideas about how things should be done, and little room to say what you need. When grandparents fly in from abroad, there can be pressure to make every day count, and a hard goodbye when they leave. In therapy we can plan for the visit, sort out what help you actually want, and practice how to ask for space.
Breastfeeding or formula, how often, how much, what you should eat: feeding tends to draw the most advice. When comments come from several directions, it can start to feel like a test of whether you’re a good parent. Feeding decisions are yours to make with your baby’s doctor or a lactation consultant. Therapy is a place to work through the guilt, the comments, and how you want to respond.
In many South Asian families, the first 40 days or so after birth are set aside for rest, special foods, and family taking over the chores. Some of it may feel nurturing. Some may feel isolating or not fit your life here. You don’t have to choose all or nothing. We can look at which parts help you recover, which you’d like to adapt, and how to talk about that with family.
If you’re in crisis or thinking about harming yourself or your baby, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) or call 911.
Dads and partners go through this transition too. You may be back at work within days, worried about your partner, and trying to keep the peace between your spouse and your own parents, especially if they’re staying with you. In some families, men grow up hearing that their job is to provide and stay strong, which can make it hard to say you’re struggling. Dads and non-birthing partners can also have depression and anxiety after a baby arrives.
You’re welcome to book your own sessions. We can work on what you’re feeling, how to support your partner, and how to set limits with family without feeling disloyal.
If you’re in crisis or thinking about harming yourself, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) or call 911.
I’m a licensed independent clinical social worker (LICSW) in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. I’ve spent years doing focused work with new and expecting parents, alongside anxiety, depression, navigating cultural identities, and grief and loss.
As a South Asian woman and a mother, I know how becoming a parent can stir up big questions about family, culture, and who you are now. As a provider of color, I bring an understanding of how identity and family expectations shape this transition, and I hold that alongside the fact that your family and your story are your own. More about me.
In sessions, I draw from approaches I already use with perinatal clients, including CBT, ACT, attachment-informed, and trauma-informed work. I adapt them to your values and your family’s reality. That might look like:
Languages: I offer sessions in English and Hindi.
All sessions are by secure video, so you don’t need to get a newborn out the door. You can join from home on your phone, tablet, or laptop. I’m licensed in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, so you need to be in one of those states during sessions.
Babies are welcome during online sessions. Feed, rock, or hold your baby while we talk. You don’t need to arrange childcare to get support. Otherwise, sessions are just for you. Partners and family members don’t join, so this stays a private space that’s yours.
We’ll talk briefly about what’s going on, what you’re hoping for, and whether we’re a good fit. No pressure and no commitment. Book a free consultation.
I’m in-network with:
What you pay per session depends on your plan’s copay, coinsurance, and deductible. If you’re paying privately, it’s $200 per session. You’ll find more detail on Services & Pricing. If you live in Rhode Island or have a different plan, ask about your coverage during your free consultation. If you pay privately, you have the right to a Good Faith Estimate of costs.
If a perinatal mental health condition keeps you from working, you may be eligible for leave through Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave (Mass.gov).
Therapy is one piece. You may also find these helpful:
If you’re in crisis or thinking about harming yourself or your baby, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) or call 911. The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline is free, confidential, and open 24/7: call or text 1-833-852-6262 (TLC-MAMA). Interpreters are available in 60 languages (PSI). This practice is not an emergency service.
Book a free 15-minute consultation for online therapy across Massachusetts and Rhode Island, in English or Hindi, in-network with BCBS, Optum, Harvard Pilgrim, UnitedHealthcare, and Aetna.
