My Yoga Journey and How It Shapes the Way I Support Perinatal Mental Health
By Dr. Vanessa Vitiello, PsyD
There are things we carry into the therapy room that don't always show up on a resume. For me, one of them is yoga. I am writing this blog knowing that when you hear “yoga”, it might conjure a particular image. A certain kind of studio. A certain kind of body. A certain level of flexibility or stillness or calm that feels like it belongs to someone else. For a long time, that image kept me at arm's length from a practice that was actually helping me. It took years, and a shift in how I understood yoga, before I could carry it into my work with any confidence. Now, without always naming it, it is a key piece of the work I do when it comes to supporting mothers through pregnancy, postpartum, and everything in between.
I started practicing yoga in college, long before I had any clinical training, and long before I understood words like "nervous system regulation" or "somatic awareness." The real shift came once I was working in private practice, sitting with mothers every day who were exhausted, overwhelmed, and completely disconnected from their own bodies. Women who had poured everything into caring for everyone else and had lost the thread back to themselves. I started to see yoga not just as something I did for myself, but as a genuine framework for getting back into your body, especially during the seasons of life that ask the most of it. That led me to Breath for Change, a training program that brings yoga and mindfulness into educational settings as tools for social-emotional learning. I completed my 200-hour Certified Yoga Teacher training alongside their Social-Emotional Learning Facilitator Certification (SEL*F), and it fundamentally changed how I understood the practice. What I learned is that yoga doesn't have to look like anything in particular. It doesn't require a certain body, a certain level of flexibility, or an hour carved out of a schedule that's already running on empty. That deeper understanding — and that permission was something I had needed for a long time. And I quickly realized it was something the women I work with needed too.
Small practices count
One of the most meaningful things I took from my training was this: small practices count. As moms, the thought of finding time for ourselves can feel overwhelming and near impossible at times. This idea that no practice is too small really resonated with me. Not only because it makes the practice of yoga more accessible, but also because it helps to challenge the “all or nothing” thinking that the perfectionist women I tend to work have. A few conscious breaths while you feed your baby. A moment of stillness before you move onto the next thing. Noticing how your body feels when you sit down after a long day. These are not the "lite" version of yoga — they are yoga. And for most of us, especially those navigating the physical and emotional demands of pregnancy or the postpartum period, they're the version we can actually sustain.
The next time you feel overwhelmed, maybe in the middle of the witching hour, on hour three of no sleep, or just before the next thing on the list, pause for just three breaths. Not deep, performative breaths. Just three slow inhales and exhales.
That's it. Notice what shifts, even slightly. This is a practice. It counts.
How this shows up in my work
While I have begun to offer community building events such as my Mommy and Me Mindful Moments Workshops, yoga doesn't show up in my practice as a separate offering or an add-on… yet! It shows up in how I think about the experiences of the women I work with. As a perinatal mental health therapist, I work with women who are pregnant, postpartum, or somewhere in-between navigating motherhood. So much of what the women I work with are carrying lives in the body before it ever makes it into words. The postpartum anxiety that shows up as a tight chest at 2am. The pregnancy-related worry that won't quiet down no matter how much you try to logic your way out of it. The tension you feel after losing a negotiation with your three-nager. When we work together, you might notice that I pay attention to how emotions are felt in the body or what your breath is doing. The mind-body thread that runs through this work isn't incidental. It's central to how I help women cope through the emotional, mental, and physical challenges of motherhood.
So just to clarify once more, yoga-informed therapy doesn't mean we're rolling out mats or moving through poses in session. Mindfulness for mothers doesn't have to be a dedicated practice with a time slot carved out of an already impossible schedule. It can be the three breaths you take before you respond to your toddler's fourth meltdown of the morning. The moment you place a hand on your belly and just feel it rise and fall. The pause before you pick up your phone to check the Nanit app. These small anchors, practiced consistently, even imperfectly, build real capacity over time. They are not a workaround. They are the work.
If you're curious what a small, intentional practice actually feels like in a room full of mothers who get it, come join us! Our next Mommy & Me Mindful Moments is taking place on June 23rd at 11am. It’s a space to breathe, connect, and be present with your baby and yourself. No experience necessary. You can register through the QR code on the flyer linked above or sign up here.
And if what you're carrying feels like more than a breathing exercise can hold, that's okay too. That's exactly what therapy is for. If you've been feeling unlike yourself, overwhelmed in ways that are hard to explain, or like you're just surviving instead of actually living this season, I'd love to talk about what working together could look like. Reach out here to book a free 15 minute phone consultation.