Psychotherapy for (in)fertility, pregnancy, and early parenthood
In-person in San Francisco. Virtual throughout California.
Libby Orrick, LMFT
Many of the women I work with tell me, at some point, that they feel like they’re failing.
They are used to being able to think, plan, perform, and push through most things in life. Fertility treatment, pregnancy, birth, and early motherhood are often the first times so much of what is happening isn’t in our control, and the tools and strategies you honed over your lifetime no longer hold. The systems you’ve relied on meet a stage of life shaped by uncertainty, physiology, and limits that cannot be thought through or optimized away.
Everything you’ve been carrying is still here: your history, coping patterns, relationships, work identity, and expectations for yourself. Layered onto that are cultural narratives about how this is supposed to feel, and the physiological reality of hormones, sleep disruption, recovery, and identity change. What is often presented as a singular, sacred experience is, in practice, everything you were already carrying, with this added layer that is deeply meaningful, physically, emotionally, relationally, and logistically demanding. It’s hard because it’s hard.
My work is to help you understand what is actually happening, separate what is yours from what has been imposed or assumed, and identify what can be shifted versus what needs to be met differently.
If this feels familiar, you can schedule a consultation below.
Specialty areas
Fertility & Family Building
Cyclical hope and grief, medical trauma layered with emotional trauma, and the strain it places on identity, partnership, and your sense of time. Fertility scrambles your life in ways most people around you won't fully see, making this often one of the lonelier experiences
Pregnancy & Postpartum
Anxiety, depression, intrusive thoughts, identity shifts, relationship strain, body changes, return to work transitions, and the persistent sense that you should be handling this better than you are. Symptoms can emerge up to a year after giving birth.
Birth Trauma & EMDR
Birth experiences don’t always line up with expectations. Birth trauma can show up as intrusive memories, rumination, avoidance, guilt or shame, feeling disconnected from your body. EMDR can help process what is stuck so it no longer feels present.
How we can work together
Location
In-person in Cow Hollow and Lower Pac Heights
Virtual throughout California
Walk-and-talk sessions in Golden Gate Park or the Presidio, when clinically appropriate
In-home sessions available for newly postpartum families in San Francisco and parts of Marin
Fees
Individual sessions: $250 (50 minutes)
Couples sessions: $325 (75 minutes)
Out-of-network with insurance. Superbills provided for potential reimbursement. HSA and FSA often applicable.
A limited number of reduced-fee spots are available.
Let’s connect
I offer free 15-minute consultation calls to see if we're a good fit. We'll talk about what's bringing you to therapy, I'll share more about my approach and what working together might look like, and you'll have time for questions. If I'm not the right fit, I'm happy to refer you to other excellent therapists in the Bay Area. Email me at connect@libbyorrick.com or click the link below to schedule a consultation.