More Classes based on the New Child Project material
For Couples who are delivering at Beth Israel Deconess Medical Center (BIDMC)
A shortened, 1.5 hour, workshop based on the New Child Project material, covers the realities of living with a newborn and strategies for managing the 4th trimester as a couple. The workshop provides couples the opportunity to discuss who does what after baby is born, to reflect on their own experience of being parented and what they would like to incorporate into their own parenting style. The workshop is limited to couples who are delivering at BIDMC.
For more information
Contact:
Christine Sweeney, LICSW
Program Manager, Parent Connection
Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
330 Brookline Avenue
Boston, MA 02215
617/667-2229 phone
617/6671459 fax
For Couples who are delivering in the Harvard Vanguard system
A number of childbirth educators in the Harvard Vanguard system have been trained to teach New Child Project material about supporting your relationship during the transition to parenthood. They incorporate some of that material into selected childbirth classes.
Please contact Carol Tobias, Coordinator Health Education, Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, Atrius Health for more information.
Phone: 617-774-0835
Other Workshops & Classes
Bringing Baby Home™ Program workshops based on the research of John Gottman are excellent and are given throughout the U.S. by Certified Gottman Educators.
Bringing Baby Home™ workshops can be found online at www.gottman.com. That website recently posted the following:
“Formerly sponsored by the Relationship Research Institute, which is in transition as of early 2012 due to grant funding, the Bringing Baby Home program has been moved over to The Gottman Institute (TGI). For questions regarding BBH please watch this page, or contact alan@gottman.com ”
PREP (the Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program), created by Howard J. Markman and his colleagues. You can find workshops at www.prepinc.com
Mark Feinberg. Family Foundations is a series of 8 classes, four pre-birth, four after the baby is born, designed specifically for couples with new children. The workshop is not currently available to the public, but a DVD will be coming out so the course can be taken at home or on line. It is currently being tested, and it may be possible to enroll in the study. Information on the website: www.famfound.net .
Pam Jordan. Becoming Parents Program. This workshop is also designed for new parents and is based on the principles of the PREP program above.
This workshop is now given only in Seattle, but it may eventually be given in other locations. You can learn more at www.becomingparents.com .
Diana Barnes, Psy.D. who runs the The Center for Postpartum Health (see below) also gives a class on the Transition to Parenthood at Providence Tarzana Hospital, Tarzana, CA. These classes are open to all parents.
Couple and Individual Therapists and other mental health resources
In the Los Angeles area.
The Los Angeles County Psychological Association
17277 Ventura Boulevard, Suite 202
Encino, CA 91316
Tel: 818 905-0410; fax: 818 906-3845
Administrator: Carol Torcello
Call the number above or check online. On the website, click on Online Directory for a list of therapists by name or by location. Each profile covers the kinds of treatment and specialties provided by the member.
You can also call
Nancy K. Gardner, Ph.D.
370 N. Westlake Blvd. Suite 220
Westlake Village, CA 91362
Tel: 805 496-3475
Nancy chairs the Couples therapy Interest Group for the LA Psychologcial Association and is another good resource for couples’ therapy referrals.
Your own physician or your pediatrician is also likely to have a list of names of mental health practitioners he/she can recommend.
Perinatal Mental Health Task Force of Los Angeles
http://laperinatalmentalhealth.com
For information about post partum depression, there is a lot of information and links to other resources on this website.
or contact:
Diana Barnes, Psy.D.
The Center for Postpartum Health
20700 Ventura Blvd, Ste 203
Woodland Hills, California 91364
Additional Office
18719 Calvert St
Tarzana, California 91335
phone: (213) 260-4868
In the Boston Area:
The Guidance Center/Riverside Community Care
Cambridge/Somerville Early Childhood Services (Early Intervention and Early Intervention Partnerships Program)
617-629-3919
http://www.gcinc.org/index.asp
Guidance Center and Early Intervention programs include:
Home based programs for families starting in pregnancy until the child turns 3. Services can start during pregnancy for women who have certain medical risk factors (e.g., stress, previous miscarriage, high blood pressure, previous difficult birth, diabetes, mental health concerns or a history of postpartum depression) and/or social risk factors (e.g., housing difficulties, basic needs issues, violence in the home). Services can also start after a baby is born if there are any concerns about how the child is developing and or a family is experiencing significant stress which may affect the development of the child. Our early childhood services are part of a continuum of services at the Guidance Center that focus on prevention, intervention and family support.
Contact person at the Guidance Center.
Megan Postal, LICSW, MPH, Program Coordinator
The Guidance Center’s Somerville Office
61 Medford Street
Somerville, MA 02143
Tel: 617.629.3919 x190
Fax: 617.629.4644
e-mail: MPostal@riversidecc.org
Megan is familiar both with the Guidance Center services and with the New Child Project material. She can help with resources and referrals.
The Family Center, Somerville (617) 628-8815
366 Somerville Avenue
Somerville, MA 02143-2919
http://thefamilycenterinc.org/
Jewish Family and Children Services (781) 647-5327
1430 Main Street ,Waltham, MA 02451
Phone: 781-647-JFCS (5327)
You can also find a therapist by calling the Massachusetts Psychological Association at (781) 263-0080, or by going on line to www.masspsych.org . Click on Public Resources, when that page comes up, on the list on the left put the cursor on Public, then click on Find a Psychologist and follow the link. Remember that if you have medical insurance with psychotherapy benefits, you may be limited to specific therapists that work with your particular policy. If so, your insurance company should have its own website with a list of approved therapists.
The National Association of Social Workers Massachusetts has a Social Work Therapy Referral Service which can be reached at (617) 720-2828 or (800) 242-9794. You can view the referral site online at www.therapymatcher.org/ or the main website at www.naswma.org ; they will send you back to the telephone number for referral help. Remember again to check that your insurance covers any therapist you may select.
800-242-9794
Readings
Diana Barnes, Psy.D. and Leigh G. Balber. The Journey to Parenthood: Myths, Reality and What Really Matters. Radcliffe Publishing, Oxford, New York, 2007.
Gary Chapman. The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts. Northfield Publishing, Chicago, 1992.
Gary Chapman, Jennifer Thomas. The Five Languages of Apology: How to Experience Healing in All Your Relationships. Northfield Publishing, Chicago, 2006.
Carolyn Pape Cowan and Philip A. Cowan. When Partners Become Parents: The Big Life Change for Couples. 1992. Basic Books
This is the classic in the field, one of the first books to focus on the transition to parenthood and to present research. It is written primarily for clinicians and researchers, but is so well written that it is also good reading for parents.
John Gottman, Ph.D. and Julie Schwartz Gottman, Ph.D. And Baby Makes Three. Crown Publishing, Random House, New York, 2007.
This is an excellent, fun to read book which covers much of the material in these classes and adds more. There are also good exercises. Highly recommended. Available on Amazon.
Jonathan Haidt. The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Widsom. Basic Books, New York, 2006.
Howard J. Markman, Scott M. Stanley, Susan L. Blumberg. Fighting for your Marriage, 3d Ed. Jossey Bass, 2010
Markman developed a well-know marriage program called PREP (the Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program). The books comes with a DVD for couples.
Howard J. Markman, Scott M. Stanley, Susan L Blumberg, Natalie H. Jenkins, Carol Whitely, 12 Hours to a Great Marriage, A Step-by-Step Guide for Making Love Last. Jossey-Bass, 2004
Carolyn Pirak, LCSW and John Gottman, Ph.D. “The Transition to Parenthood”. Booklet published by The Bringing Baby Home program. Can be purchased at www.bbhonline.org
Shapiro, A.F., Gottman, J.M. & Carriere, S. (2000) “The Baby and the Marriage: Identifying factors that buffer against decline in marital satisfaction after the first baby arrives”. Journal of Family Psychology, 14, 59-70