Rooted in Care: Introduction to Perinatal Mental Health for Birthworkers Webinar Series

FREE webinar series open to all professionals in Washington State.

Perinatal Support Washington is offering a winter series of the key Perinatal Mental Health considerations for perinatal providers (doulas, case managers, home visitors, peer providers and more). Topics will include common challenges birthworkers may encounter.

Dates & Time: All sessions take place 10am-12pm PT

January 22nd: Intro to Perinatal Mental Health for Birthworkers (Presented by Marquita Straus, MSW, LICSW)
February 5th: Informed Doula Care for Families with Substance Use (Presented by Ash Woods)
February 12th: Supporting Families through Perinatal and Infant Loss (Presented by Marquita Straus, MSW, LICSW)
February 19th: Intro to The Impacts of Sexual Trauma on the Perinatal Period (Presented by Selena Shelley, MA, LMHC, CD, LCCE)
February 26th: How to Inquire and/or Respond to a Disclosure (Presented by Selena Shelley, MA, LMHC, CD, LCCE)

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Intro to Perinatal Mental Health for Birthworkers
Date: January 22nd
Presenter: Marquita Straus, MSW, LICSW

Perinatal mental health challenges affect individuals during pregnancy and the first year postpartum, yet they are often overlooked or misunderstood in birthwork. This session introduces birthworkers to the foundations of perinatal mental health, including the spectrum of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs), common risk factors, and their impact on families. Participants will explore how birthworkers can recognize signs, respond with compassion, and connect families with appropriate support while staying within their scope of practice.

Learning Objectives:

• Define perinatal mental health and describe the spectrum of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs).
• Identify common risk factors and cultural considerations that influence perinatal mental health.
• Recognize early signs and symptoms of perinatal mental health challenges in clients.
• Discuss the role of birthworkers in supporting families, including boundaries and referral pathways.
• Apply trauma-informed and culturally responsive approaches when engaging with clients experiencing perinatal mental health concerns.

Informed Doula Care for Families with Substance Use
Date: February 5th
Presenter: Ash Woods

Provide informed compassionate care for families with substance use in the perinatal period.

Learning Objectives:

• WA state programs to support pregnant and parenting people with substance use
• Birth, postpartum, and bereavement considerations
• Trauma aware and informed care
• Provider information on substance use in pregnancy, medications, and options
• Legal options, CPS/DCYF involvement, and safe care plans
• Harm reduction and naloxone training
• Setting boundaries and care for the doula

Supporting Families through Perinatal and Infant Loss
Date: February 12th
Presenter: Marquita Straus, MSW, LICSW

The loss of a baby during pregnancy, birth, or infancy is one of the most profoundly heartbreaking experiences a family can face. For birthworkers, supporting families through loss requires compassion, sensitivity, and an understanding of both the emotional and cultural dimensions of grief. This session provides an overview of perinatal and infant loss, including medical and social considerations, grief expressions, and the birthworker’s role in creating supportive, affirming care. Participants will gain tools for navigating difficult conversations, supporting memory-making, and connecting families to ongoing resources.

Learning Objectives:

• Define and differentiate types of perinatal and infant loss (miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal death, SIDS, etc.).
• Recognize the emotional, psychological, and cultural impacts of perinatal and infant loss on individuals and families.
• Identify common grief responses and understand how they may differ across cultural, spiritual, and familial contexts.
• Apply trauma-informed and culturally responsive strategies when working with grieving families, providing compassionate presence, memory-making support, and referrals to bereavement resources.

Intro to The Impacts of Sexual Trauma on the Perinatal Period
Date: February 19th
Presenter: Selena Shelley, MA, LMHC, CD, LCCE

Given the prevalence of childhood sexual abuse and sexual assault in this country/world and the impacts that sexual trauma has on the perinatal period, it is imperative that professionals working with pregnant, birthing, and postpartum people better understand how to support and work with trauma survivors. Join us to learn more about the potential impacts of sexual trauma on your clients, and how to ensure you are providing truly trauma-informed care in your practice.

Learning Objectives:

• Childhood Trauma & ACEs
• Childhood Sexual Abuse & Sexual Assault – Definitions & Prevalence
• Common Physical/Somatic Impacts of Sexual Trauma on the Perinatal Period
• Common Psychosocial Impacts of Sexual Trauma on the Perinatal Period
• Common Mental/Emotional Impacts of Sexual Trauma on the Perinatal Period
• How to Support Your Clients
• How to Support Your Self

How to Inquire and/or Respond to a Disclosure
Date: February 26th
Presenter: Selena Shelley, MA, LMHC, CD, LCCE

An important component of providing trauma-informed care to your clients is learning whether and how to inquire about their sexual trauma history, and how to respond to a client who discloses a history of sexual trauma to you. You may be surprised what you learn about the inquiry and disclosure process during this training and how that impacts your practice moving forward. In order to get the most out of this training, participants will ideally have attended the Impacts of Sexual Trauma on the Perinatal Period training offered on February 19th.

Learning Objectives:

• Listening to Your Intuition
• Why We Want to Know
• How Inquiry May Be Received by Clients
• We Can Do Better
• Responding to a Disclosure
• Role Play/Practice

REGISTER NOW

About the Presenters:

Marquita Straus, MSW, LICSW is a Perinatal Grief & Trauma Therapist, Death Doula, and founder of Imani’s Light Grief & Wellness Center. Marquita has over 15 years of serving BIPOC families. She has served as a full spectrum doula (birth, postpartum, and bereavement), breastfeeding peer counselor, childbirth educator, perinatal bereavement group facilitator, and is a trained midwife. She aims to inspire and empower people to show up authentically, while fiercely advocating for those navigating spaces that are not traditionally occupied by people of color.

Ash Woods (they/them) is a full spectrum doula practicing on Coast Salish lands in Seattle Washington. They view doula work as community work, and are dedicated to dismantling the stigmas associated with perinatal drug use. They helped form The Harm Reduction Doula Collective to meet the needs of pregnant people using drugs.

Selena Shelley, MA, LMHC, CD, LCCE is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, with a psychotherapy and consultation practice in the Seattle area. She specializes in working with pregnant and postpartum trauma survivors. In addition to her clinical work, Selena is the Executive Director and Lead Trainer for the When Survivors Give Birth organization. Selena was trained and mentored by Penny Simkin and Phyllis Klaus, authors of the groundbreaking book When Survivors Give Birth. She facilitates trainings for perinatal health and mental health professionals – including nurses, psychotherapists, doulas, midwives, social workers, doctors, and sexual assault advocates. Selena has been working with pregnant, birthing, and postpartum trauma survivors for over 25 years – first as a case manager with teen parents, then as a doula and childbirth educator, and for the past 14 years as a psychotherapist and trauma consultant. She taught a counseling course for the Department of Midwifery at Bastyr University, served on the Prevention and Treatment of Traumatic Childbirth (PATTCh) board, and helped develop and run the Birth Doula Services Program for Open Arms Perinatal Services in Seattle. In her personal and professional life, Selena has learned how transformative the right kind of support during someone’s pregnancy, birth, and postpartum experience can be. To that end, she believes training professionals how to work more easily and effectively with trauma survivors is some of the most important work in perinatal and public health, and is honored to be a When Survivors Give Birth trainer.

~Sponsored by UDS and DCYF~