In this episode, we’re joined by Dr. Brooke Laufer, a clinical psychologist specializing in perinatal and reproductive mental health, including postpartum psychosis, perinatal trauma, infant loss, and maternal filicide. She provides therapy, consultation, and expert guidance to clinicians, attorneys, and medical professionals. Dr. Laufer is the author of the qualitative research paper It Shows You Your Fears, which explores the inner experience of postpartum psychosis, and has written extensively on maternal infanticide and filicide. She has also participated in advocacy efforts to include postpartum psychosis in the DSM.

In our conversation, we explore how we can make sense of these experiences, why certain themes—like religiosity—can emerge in psychotic content, and what the recovery journey can look like, from acute stabilization to long ...