Please join us for the last CBT SIG of 2020 

SIG Topic: Postpartum Mood Disorders

Cultural and societal expectations, along with the glorification of babies and motherhood cause postpartum women to feel that they cannot express their true emotions about their new developmental stage in life. Thus, many women choose to suppress their negative emotions associated with their role as mothers and only express their positive ones, thinking that this way they will comply with the expectation of being the “ideal mother”. The suppression of those negative feelings may result in having inner emotional turmoil that may lead to the development of mood disorders. As a result, these disorders may be under detected by clinicians due to the fear of mothers to freely express the challenges they are facing. During this lecture, we will discuss the benefits of expressing negative emotions as shown in literature and consider how to assist new mothers to express their “forbidden” negative emotions associated with their new developmental stage.

About Adi Soffer

Adi Soffer is a Doctoral Practicum Intern at the Renewed Freedom Center. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Social Behavior from University of California, Irvine and she is currently a third-year graduate student in the Clinical Doctor of Psychology program at California School of Professional Psychology in Alliant International University with an emphasis in family, couples, and children. Her experience includes providing therapy at Star View Behavioral Health, where she worked with children in the foster care system and their families using trauma-focused therapy, the family system approach, and parent training. She also administered full batteries of psychological testing to children and adolescence in order to determine diagnoses and social and emotional functioning. She has worked as a behavioral therapist and provided Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) services to children with Autism and other developmental disorders. Finally, she conducted group therapy in a forensic setting at Gateways Hospital. Ms. Soffer is passionate about working with children, families, and adults, by educating and helping them with social and emotional competencies required for their cognitive psychological development.

Location:  The meeting will be held via Zoom platform.

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"The opinions of presenters at informal forums, such as Special Interest Groups (SIGs) or club meetings, and their approach to psychological issues and interventions do not represent a formal endorsement of any position by the Los Angeles County Psychological Association or its members.  The opinions, ideas, and concepts expressed are purely those of the presenter."