a safe space for all your -
a safe space for all your -
a safe space for all your -
a safe space for all your -
Are you ready to reclaim your birth and yourself?
Birth is more than a medical event—it’s an emotional and transformative experience that stays with you long after delivery. Yet so many women leave the birth room feeling dismissed, disempowered, or even traumatized.
For many, those feelings don’t simply fade with time. They can stay with you weeks or even years postpartum, showing up as anxiety that won’t quiet, depression that feels hard to name, or a growing sense of overwhelm in motherhood that feels difficult to keep up with.
Unprocessed birth trauma can affect:
How you bond with your baby
Your mental and emotional well-being
Your relationships and sense of identity
Your confidence in future pregnancies and births
Your ability to feel present and grounded in motherhood
Here, your story matters. Your feelings are valid. And healing is possible.
Meet Dr. Rebecca Branda
I’m Dr. Branda, a licensed clinical psychologist and perinatal mental health certified clinician based in Santa Monica, California, specializing in perinatal mental health and birth trauma. My work combines clinical expertise with a deep understanding of the emotional complexity that surrounds pregnancy, birth, and postpartum.
My own journey into motherhood began with an emergency c-section, followed by a successful vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC). Experiencing both sides of that journey gave me profound insight into the importance of supportive guidance and the empowerment that comes from reclaiming your voice in birth. That personal experience fuels my commitment to helping other mothers feel seen, heard, and capable throughout their motherhood journey.
What I’ve Come to Understand
What I’ve come to understand—both personally and in my work—is that motherhood is not a single moment in time.
It is an ongoing psychological and emotional transition.
For many women, the challenges don’t end after birth. They can continue to show up as shifts in identity, emotional overwhelm, or a growing awareness that something feels harder than it used to.
How I Work With Mothers
In my practice, I support mothers not only in processing birth trauma, but also in navigating postpartum depression, anxiety, and the evolving demands of motherhood. This includes the mental load, emotional regulation, and, for some, the experience of ADHD in themselves or in their families.
Through individual therapy for mothers, including trauma-informed care and EMDR therapy, as well as birth coaching, I’ve supported countless women in healing from difficult birth experiences, navigating postpartum depression and anxiety, ADHD in parenthood, and making sense of the emotional and identity shifts that come with motherhood.
My role is to provide a safe, compassionate space where your feelings are validated, your story is honored, and your healing can begin.
You don’t have to navigate this alone.
Services
Birth Trauma Therapy & Birth Preparation
Heal from the past and move forward with confidence
Support in processing difficult or traumatic birth experiences, along with emotional and psychological preparation for future births, including VBAC support. Therapy may include trauma-informed care and EMDR to help you feel safer, more grounded, and more empowered.
Postpartum Depression & Anxiety Therapy
Find relief from anxiety and depression
and feel more like yourself again
Therapy for postpartum depression (PPD) and postpartum anxiety (PPA), helping you understand your emotional experience, reduce overwhelm, and reconnect with yourself in motherhood.
Support for focus, overwhelm, and balance
in the demands of everyday parenting
For mothers and parents navigating ADHD, whether newly recognized or long understood. Together we work on executive functioning, emotional regulation, and managing the mental load of parenting in a way that feels sustainable.
ADHD in Moms & Parenthood
Birth Feelings Where Healing Meets Understanding
Each week on my Substack, I write about the emotional and psychological layers of birth and motherhood — how it can heal us, hurt us, and change who we are.
These weekly reflections are for mothers navigating the tender terrain of postpartum life, including postpartum depression, postpartum anxiety, and the lasting impact of birth trauma — and for anyone who supports them.
You’ll find guidance on:
Postpartum emotions (anxiety, depression, and rage)
Birth trauma and how to begin healing
Attachment and bonding after birth
Choices in birth and what you can advocate for
Support in partnership and in community
High-risk, IVF, or complicated journeys
Reclaiming identity and trust in your body
The mental load of motherhood and emotional overwhelm
Every post blends clinical expertise with real-life honesty. Written by Dr. Rebecca Branda a psychologist and mother who’s lived it, studied it, and continues to grow through it. If you’re not ready to begin therapy yet, or you’re simply looking for a place to feel more understood, these weekly reflections can be a gentle place to start.
Subscribe to Birth Feelings on Substack to receive free weekly reflections every Thursday morning — stories, science, and solace for your mental health in motherhood delivered straight to your inbox.
The Birth Feelings
Difference
Compassionate & Trauma-Informed
You’ll never be dismissed, minimized, or told to “just move on.” Your experience—whether from birth, postpartum, or later in motherhood—is taken seriously and met with care.
Expert-Led
Our work is grounded in evidence-based perinatal mental health, with advanced training and certification (PMH-C) in perinatal mental health, supporting mothers through birth trauma, postpartum depression and anxiety, and the emotional complexities of motherhood.
Dr. Rebecca Branda is a Perinatal Mental Health Certified (PMH-C) clinician through Postpartum Support International (PSI).
Transformative
This isn’t just about talking, it’s about meaningful change in how you feel, think, and move through motherhood, including navigating overwhelm, identity shifts, and emotional regulation in motherhood.
Whole Person Support
Motherhood doesn’t exist in isolation. We consider your relationships, your mental load, and, for some, the impact of ADHD on your experience as a parent.
Advocacy-Driven
We are changing the conversation around motherhood—one story at a time—so women feel seen, supported, and empowered in their experiences.
This is a space for healing, understanding, and support at every stage of motherhood.
Book an
Appointment
Your birth story doesn’t just happen the day your baby was born. It ripples through your identity as a mother, your relationships, and your sense of self.
And for many women, the impact doesn’t end there. It can continue to show up in how you feel day to day—through anxiety, overwhelm, or a sense that something isn’t quite right.
By addressing your experience now, you open the door to deep healing for yourself, your family, and your future.
You deserve to feel whole, supported, and confident. Let’s begin.
GET YOUR FREE GUIDE
The Well-Mother Checklist is a starting point for understanding & healing, your experience of birth, postpartum, and motherhood.
you do not have to navigate this journey alone.
