SERVICE DETAILS
Helping you to feel connected to yourself, your family and the things that matter most to you. These PANDAS wellbeing workshops cover a variety of topics that address some of the challenges of being a parent or parent to be. The workshops provide an opportunity to explore some of the difficulties that arise and to learn some and practice specific skills and strategies to overcome the challenges and be the person you want to be.
Each session runs for 1.5 – 2 hour and are facilitated by an experienced perinatal mental health therapist.
Each workshop is a standalone session so you can sign up for one session or as many as you feel are relevant to you. Every session will include useful materials such as worksheets and audio recordings.
The workshops are held over zoom and each session costs £40*
* We understand that many people will not be able to afford this price, so we are able to offer one complimentary place per workshop. Please do get in touch if you would like us to consider you. We are also accepting donations in kind for these workshops, so if you would kindly like to donate the cost of a workshop so that it can go to someone in need we’d be so grateful
The Workshop topics are as follows:
- Dealing with a Traumatic Birth
- Becoming Confident in your Parenting Decisions
- Pregnancy: Emotionally Preparing for Parenthood
- Relationship with Partners: The Changes and Challenges brought with Parenthood
- Being a Dad: The Challenges of Fatherhood
Dealing with a Traumatic Birth...
What is trauma? What makes a birth traumatic? The answer is – whatever your experience tells you. No matter what type of birth you had, if you found it traumatic then it was! This is a welcoming space for anyone who feels they had a difficult birth and would like to get some help.
This workshop offers an opportunity to understand the impact your birth has had on your life. We will review the psychological and physiological responses to traumatic events and discover ways to manage these responses so they have less impact on your day-to-day life.
We will practice some skills that you can use during every day activities to lessen the impact of the trauma and enable you to engage in the things that matter to you and your family and live your life more fully.
Date of next workshop - Saturday 25th February 2023, 9:30am.
Please note: This workshop is designed to be a safe, welcoming space to learn about trauma. We therefore do not discuss the details of each participant’s birth story or discuss information that may be distressing to others.
You do not need to talk about your birth, we will focus on the impact it is having on your life now and on developing skills that allow you to live your life how you would like to.
There is no exposure therapy in this session - it is an educational workshop.
Relationship with Partners: The Changes and Challenges Brought with Parenthood...
Becoming parents has a huge impact on the relationship between you and your partner. Life has changed for both of you but in very different ways and adapting to your new role as a parent can lead to conflict and difficulties in your relationship.
In this workshop we will explore the differences in parenting roles and the impact that has on your relationship. We will examine what is important in your relationship and explore ways to connect with the things that matter to you throughout the journey of parenthood.
We will identify ways in which you can nourish your relationship and find some common ground that enables you to parent together.
Date of next workshop - Saturday 25th March 2023, 9:30am.
Please note that this workshop is designed for individuals to attend. If partners did want to attend then they would need to sign up as individuals and have their own individual screens.
Pregnancy: Emotionally Preparing for Parenthood...
We spend a lot of time and energy preparing to care for our baby when it arrives – but what about caring for ourselves as we navigate this huge life change? The change in our lives when a baby arrives is monumental. It can be almost impossible to imagine all the different feelings that you will experience – some pleasant and some difficult.
This workshop provides a space to have honest conversations about parenthood – what are your worries? What might be the challenges? How will you cope?
We will explore skills and strategies that you can use throughout your whole journey of parenthood to deal with some of the more challenging thoughts and feelings. The activities that we will practice in the session will help you to stay connected with and care for yourself and your baby.
This workshop will help you prepare for the emotions of parenthood and set you up for a more balanced, connected start of your parenting journey.
Date of next workshop - Saturday 22nd April 2023, 9:30am.
Becoming Confident in your Parenting Decisions...
With so much parenting advice out there and so many opinions of friends and family how on earth do you know what is the right choice for you to make? How do you know which decision is best for you? How can you get through the doubt and self-criticism and decide what is right for you and your family?
It is so hard to feel confident as a parent and now more than ever we have so much access to conflicting information and advice. It is easy to feel lost, overwhelmed and anxious when facing any parenting decision.
In this workshop we will explore the ways in which we can connect with what matters to us as a parent. We will learn and practice strategies that will help us to unhook from those doubting thoughts and self-criticism. We will learn how to identify what actions we want to take and develop confidence in our own choices.
Date of next workshop - Saturday 4th February 2023, 9:30am.
Becoming Dad: The Challenges of Fatherhood...
Fatherhood comes with unique challenges. Often a father’s role can feel undefined and confusing. Becoming a dad is a huge life transition that brings changes to the relationship with your partner and to your self identity.
Whilst there is a lot of information and support available for mother’s it can often feel like the father just needs to adapt. Depending on the set up of the family there can be pressure for dads in terms of work expectations, learning to care for their babies / children, supporting their partner, trying to work out where they fit in with the new family dynamic and coping with the change of becoming a dad.
This workshop is a space to explore all of those challenges and talk about the experiences and pressures of fatherhood.
We will take some time to understand where these difficulties arise and then learn how to deal with them differently.
We will learn and practice skills and strategies to deal with difficult thoughts and feelings. Freeing you to focus on the kind of dad you want to be, helping you to find balance and meaning in your new role.
Date of next workshop - Wednesday 29th March 2023, 7:00pm.
For bookings and enquiries please contact kathryndivirgilio@pandasfoundation.org.uk.
