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Postpartum Professionals
Consultation services and resources for postpartum professionals to better support their clients’ mental health
Are you a Newborn Care Specialist, Postpartum Doula, Sleep Consultant, or other postpartum professional looking to elevate the care you offer to the families you work with by better supporting their mental health?
Maybe you’ve already taken some basic training in postpartum mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) but are wanting to learn more to promote your professional development.
Maybe you’re working with a family right now who is experiencing mental health challenges and you’re struggling to figure out how to best support them or get them connected to other resources or professional treatment.
Maybe your current client is already receiving treatment for a postpartum mood or anxiety disorder, but their mental or emotional struggles are still creating obstacles that are preventing you from effectively doing your job to help the family meet their goals for their baby’s sleep.
My name is Tara Dakin Sauer.
I am a Newborn Care Specialist and Infant Sleep Consultant. I’m also a Perinatal Psychotherapist. I am passionate about combining my knowledge and skill set related to both perinatal mental health and infant sleep to help other sleep-based postpartum professionals better support their clients’ mental and emotional well-being.
I offer education and collaborative care services to support you and the families you serve - together we can more holistically promote the physical and emotional wellness of both babies and parents!
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COLLABORATIVE
CARE SERVICES
MENTAL HEALTH CONSULTATIONS
Mental Health Consultations connect your clients to an experienced consultant (me) to discuss their concerns, help them identify resources to support their needs, and if indicated, refer them to appropriate providers for treatment.
Why should I recommend a mental health consultation to my clients?
If needed, you would refer a family to an IBCLC for an evaluation to address any feeding concerns - this helps the family to achieve their feeding goals, but it also helps support the work you are doing - addressing any problems with milk transfer, oral ties, etc. allows you to better assist the family in meeting their goals for sleep.
A mental health consultation is designed to function in the same way - it allows the family to receive expert evaluation and support to address any mental health concerns, but it also supports the work you are doing - addressing mental health issues allows you to better assist the family in meeting their goals for sleep. For example, you might be working with a parent who is unable to relax and fall asleep while you are on-duty as a NCS or postpartum doula, and is instead obsessively watching the monitor or checking on the baby throughout your shift. Or you could be working with a parent with such a low tolerance for crying that they are unable to effectively follow the plan you have provided them as their Sleep Consultant.
Provides an overall assessment of the parent’s mental state to determine if they are currently experiencing or are at increased risk for experiencing postpartum mood issues
Helps clarify for the parent if what they are experiencing is a normal part of postpartum adjustment or something more serious, and if it would be best addressed through self-management strategies or professionally guided treatment
May include instruction in coping strategies to address a specific problem (i.e. low tolerance for crying)
Can serve as a “bridge” for a parent who is struggling to acknowledge their need for additional help, is nervous about starting therapy, and/or is unsure about medication and hesitating to contact their doctor - the parent is given space to explore these hesitations and can receive guidance to empower them to feel ready to seek help and to know what kind of help they need
What kinds of concerns can be effectively addressed in a mental health consultation?
- General postpartum adjustment difficulties
These Mental Health Consultations are available for postpartum families only by direct referral from YOU, the professional who is currently supporting them. Please direct your client to book their call at this link:
A Mental Health Consultation is 60 minutes in length, and the fee is $250. Depending on the family’s preference, the consultation can be scheduled so that you, as the postpartum professional, can participate in some or all of the discussion. Families can also elect to have their NCS/doula/sleep consultant be sent a summary of the consultation with recommendations for how best to continue supporting the parents’ mental health.
- General mood-related concerns
- Mood concerns related to trauma
- Mood concerns related to newborn care
- Insomnia or other sleep difficulties
- Communication and conflict resolution skills
- Social and relational concerns
- Hesitations regarding engaging in therapy or other mental health services
- Self-care and self-management goals
CASE CONSULTATIONS
A Case Consultation can help you to better understand and support the emotional well-being of the families in your care, including families where one or both parents may be struggling with postpartum mood issues. These consultations also promote your ongoing professional growth and development.
The purpose of this consultation is to help you problem solve a specific mental-health related issue you are having with a client and/or to provide you with the insights and skills that will enhance your future functioning in dealing with interactions that are impacted by the client’s mental health issue.
This type of consultation is considered “consultee-centered” (rather than client-centered), meaning the focus is on addressing your needs as the consultee, rather than directly addressing the problems of your client.
What kinds of problems can be addressed in a case consultation?
- addressing your own "imposter syndrome" about effectively supporting parents dealing with PMADs
These Case Consultations are available to professionals offering both in-home and virtual services.
Case Consultations are 30 minutes in length, and the fee is $75.
- clients who are giving you conflicting messages, i.e. their stated goals do not match up to how they are actually approaching feedings, soothing, sleep, etc.
- clients dealing with PMADs that already have a health team, but certain problems affecting your work are still not being adequately addressed by their treatment
- clients that are rude, combative, etc. or any situation in which you feel you are being misunderstood or mistreated
- preparing for difficult conversations with clients, such as needing to address boundary issues, safety concerns, or ultimately terminate a contract early
Education & Resources
I have a variety of resources available to further your education and elevate the support you are able to offer to the families you work with, including recommended reading, online classes, podcast episodes, and additional tools you can use or share with your clients.
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
I started as a full-time infant nanny in 2011, and transitioned to working overnights as a NCS in 2015 while in graduate school. I continued to work overnights after graduating in 2017, and even since launching my private therapy practice in 2019 because I love it so much! I began offering virtual sleep consulting in 2021.
I have a bachelor’s degree in psychology and sociology. I have a master’s degree in marriage and family therapy and am a licensed therapist in Colorado and Georgia.
I am a Certified Perinatal Mental Health Professional through Postpartum Support International, and a Certified Pediatric Sleep Consultant through the Center for Pediatric Sleep Management. I received my foundational newborn care specialist training from Gentle Ventures and advanced training from Newborn Care Solutions. I am also trained as a “Happiest Baby” Educator and as a Gottman “Bringing Baby Home” Educator.
You can read more about my journey working in this field here!
The services and resources I offer are designed to best support sleep-based, non-clinical postpartum professionals, including postpartum doulas, newborn care specialists, infant nannies, and sleep consultants. Additional professionals who may also benefit include birth doulas, childbirth educators, lactation consultants, and new parent coaches, as well as other clinical providers who do not focus directly on mental health, including midwives, pelvic floor physical therapists, pediatric physical therapists, etc.
No, a mental health consultation is not therapy. While I am a licensed therapist, my role as a mental health consultant is to function as an integrated member of a family’s existing support team, allowing immediate access to evaluation and support for both the family member and their care provider(s). I will meet with the parent who is experiencing postpartum mental health issues, alongside their partner and/or care provider as requested and appropriate. I will explore the parent’s concerns, offer clarity around what kinds of symptoms the parent reports experiencing, and provide solution-focused interventions for specific issues. I do not provide a formal diagnosis, but I collaborate with the partner and/or care provider to create an appropriate plan to further support or address the identified concerns. This plan may include referrals for therapy services.
A case consultation is also not therapy. It is designed to provide you with specific tools to address a current problem you are experiencing with one of your clients. It does not address any deeper, underlying mental or emotional issues you may have that could be contributing to the present problem for which the consultation is intended to solve. If I believe you would benefit from therapeutic support, I will provide referrals and help get you connected to an appropriate provider in your state.
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