Maternal Mental Health Month: Wellbeing Is a Family Affair

When Sarkis and Seakly Manukyan decided to start a family, they did what many couples do: They talked excitedly about the future, prepared financially and emotionally, and imagined what their life with a child might look like.

"We were really looking forward to it, discussing what kind of parents we'd be," Sarkis said. "But we hardly ever talked about how hard it was going to be."

Then the emotional challenges began.

The couple's first attempt to start a family ended in an ectopic pregnancy that required Seakly to have emergency surgery. The results of the procedure left the couple wondering if they would even be able to have a child.

But within the year, the Manukyans were elated to discover Seakly was pregnant again. During labor, however, the couple faced another frightening ordeal when complications led to an emergency cesarean section. After his birth in December of 2024, Masis, their son, had to spend 11 days in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Cedars-Sinai Guerin Children's (NICU).

After they brought their baby home, the couple worked on adjusting to the major changes in their lives. Sarkis said the emotional weight of the experience began affecting him.

"Two months later, these fears started surfacing: Am I doing enough to protect my family?" he said. "Are we doing everything we can to keep something bad from happening?"

Sarkis said the fearful thoughts increasingly consumed him, fueled by stress, sleep deprivation and the pressure he felt to protect his wife and child.

Experts say growing awareness around maternal mental health is widening the conversation to include the emotional wellbeing of the entire family-especially fathers-during pregnancy and the postpartum period.

"You can't predict the impact of having a new baby, especially after a difficult childbirth and time in the NICU," Sarkis said. "Sleep deprivation and everything else just begins piling up."

Seakly said she began noticing signs that her husband was struggling emotionally after the traumatic birth, as both parents devoted nearly all their energy to caring for their newborn son.

"I saw it pretty quickly, but I think I was in denial because all of our attention was on the baby," she said. "Sarkis lost a lot of weight after Masis was born, and a few months later, when he finally verbalized how he was feeling, it clicked for me that partners can be just as affected by birth trauma as mothers."

Drawing from her own positive experience of getting therapy during the ups and downs of their journey to become parents, Seakly, who is a registered nurse at Cedars-Sinai, encouraged Sarkis to seek professional support as well.

"I learned that taking care of ourselves and each other is vital to the physical, emotional and mental health of our child," she said. "Without Sarkis' support mentally and emotionally, the domino effect of all the negative things we experienced could have been detrimental to our family."

With his wife's encouragement, Sarkis sought support through the Reproductive Psychology Program at Cedars-Sinai.

Sarkis worked with therapist Ruth Maouda, PsyD, a postdoctoral fellow in the program. Maouda says new parents often experience self-doubt, anxiety and emotional overwhelm during the transition from pregnancy to postpartum-particularly after traumatic birth experiences or severe sleep deprivation.

"One of the most important things I tell first-time postpartum parents is that they are entering an experience of 'firsts,'" Maouda said. "Nothing can fully prepare you for becoming a parent and acknowledging that learning curve can help relieve some of the anxiety and pressure parents place on themselves."

Sarkis said that during his sessions with Dr. Maouda he also learned practical coping strategies such as breathwork and mindful meditation, techniques that have helped him manage anxiety and obsessive thinking during high-stress moments.

"Therapy helped me to show up better for my son because now I feel equipped," Sarkis said. "I have tools I can use every day."

Maouda said supporting a parent's mental health can have a positive ripple effect throughout the household.

"Raising a child takes a village," Maouda said. "Supporting a parent's mental health allows them to better support their partner and child. Protecting your own mental health helps prevent stress from rippling across the entire family system."

Sarkis believes that talk therapy and developing coping strategies helped him become more emotionally present and patient, allowing him to enjoy everyday moments with Masis and feel more connected to his family.

Eynav Accortt, PhD, director of the Cedars-Sinai Reproductive Psychology Program, said studies estimate paternal postpartum depression affects about 10% of fathers, and the risk doubles when mothers are also experiencing perinatal mood or anxiety disorders.

"If one or both parents are struggling with their mental health, it affects the entire family," said Accortt, a clinical psychologist who supervised Maouda's care of Sarkis. "Supporting the emotional wellbeing of both parents is essential to building strong family bonds during the transition to parenthood."

Sarkis believes seeing a therapist ultimately strengthened not only his mental health, but also the couple's communication and partnership.

"My husband's decision to get professional help was one of the most impactful acts of love-for himself and for our family," Seakly said. "It helped him become the father he wanted to be for Masis and the partner he wanted to be for me."

Sarkis hopes other fathers will recognize that they, too, may need support during the transition to parenthood.

"I think that having children is romanticized a lot. It's beautiful but it's also life-altering, It's OK to ask for help if you are struggling," he said. "That made all the difference for me and my family."

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