Room to unravel, understand, and begin again after the baby comes.

Therapy for new and postpartum parents in San Francisco, with room for partners and family. You don't have to carry the first year alone.

Send a message How a first session goes

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The first year asks a lot of a person.

I'm Dr. Lela Newsome, a licensed psychologist in California. I work with parents in the months after a baby arrives, by birth or by adoption, when sleep is short, the days blur and the person you were can feel far away.

In sessions we make room for all of it: the love, the worry, the grief for what you expected, and the questions you haven't said out loud. I draw on cognitive behavioral therapy and mindfulness-based practices, and we choose the ones that suit you.

Partners and family are welcome in this work too. You set the pace, and nobody is expected to be fine.

Licensed psychologist in California
Parents in the first year and beyond
In person, or by video for clients in California

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How we work

Nothing here is hurried. Three things shape every session.

Room to say it
The resentment, the fear, the grief for the birth you pictured. None of it is too much to say out loud here.
Your pace
Some weeks you need a plan, some weeks you need to talk. We follow what you can carry between feeds and naps.
The whole family
Partners, and sometimes grandparents, are part of the picture. We decide together who comes and when.

“I expected advice. Mostly I was listened to, at my own pace, and that was what I needed.”

Ayana C.

Sample reviews.

Where we can start

A first year looks different for everyone. These are some of the things parents bring.

Anxiety and overwhelm

Racing thoughts at 3 a.m., checking the baby's breathing again, a mind that won't settle. We work on calming the body and the thoughts, with cognitive behavioral and mindfulness-based practices.

A tall factory-style window and a white floor lamp in a room with wooden floorboards

Grief and loss

A pregnancy lost, a birth that didn't go as hoped, the life you had before, or someone who should be here to meet the baby. Grief doesn't keep a schedule, and we don't rush it.

A leather sofa, a rattan chair and a stool under a floor lamp in a wood-panelled room

Low mood and exhaustion

When everything feels heavy and joyless, and tired doesn't cover it. We take small steps and look at what keeps you stuck. Tell your doctor or midwife how you're feeling too.

Black chairs and a large arc floor lamp beside a wood-panelled wall and a plant

Your relationship

A baby changes a partnership: who does what, who sleeps, who feels seen. Sessions for you, and sometimes with your partner, to talk it through.

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Who you are now

Leaving work, going back to it, a body that has changed, a new name for yourself. Becoming a parent shifts identity, and the in-between can feel lonely.

A dark wood-panelled sitting room with a sofa, cushions and a glowing table lamp

See all services

If you are in crisis, call or text 988 (the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline), any time. In an emergency, call 911.

What the first weeks look like

A clear, human way into the work.

01
Step 1: A short call
We talk for a few minutes about what you're looking for and how I work, and we both decide whether we're a good fit.
02
Step 2: The first session
Fifty minutes to talk about the past months, your history and what you want from this time. You can bring the baby.
03
Step 3: Weekly sessions
We usually begin weekly, and I set the pace with you. There is no set number of sessions.
04
Step 4: Spacing out
As things steady, we meet less often. The door stays open if harder weeks return.

Words from parents

What it is like to sit in the room.

“From the first session I felt listened to. Nobody tried to hurry me toward feeling better.”
Hana T.
“I could say the things I'd been hiding from everyone, and the room stayed calm. I hadn't had that in months.”
Neel M.
“The sessions fit around the baby's schedule, and bringing her along was never a problem.”
Zoey B.
“My partner came to one session, and it opened up a conversation we had been avoiding.”
Santino P.
“It felt like the one hour a week that was only about me.”
Nicole G.