The Postpartum Anxiety
Cheat Sheet

Plot twist: nobody warned you about this part.

You did everything right. You read the books, took the classes, built the registry. You were ready. And then the baby arrived and so did something nobody put in the birth plan: the anxiety. The racing thoughts at 2am. The intrusive "what ifs" that won't shut up. The panic attacks that show up completely uninvited, like that one relative at Thanksgiving. The inability to sleep even when the baby — miracle of miracles — actually does.

A survival guide that actually fits in your life.

The Postpartum Anxiety Cheat Sheet: Because You've Got 2 Minutes and a Baby on Your Hip! is the no-fluff, no-judgment, bathroom-break-sized guide for moms who love their babies and are also quietly losing their minds. Written by a mom who felt skinned alive and walked through the daily toxic mud of mothering anyway — armed with TED talks during the loneliest hours of the afternoon and the kind of survival instinct you didn't know you had — this book meets you exactly where you are. Which is probably the floor.

No 300-page commitment. No clinical jargon. No "have you tried meditating?" Just practical, compassionate, laugh-so-you-don't-cry tools that work in the moment — even from the Target parking lot.

Hi, I'm Katie. I've been that mom — and I wrote the book about it.

I'm an award-winning journalist, content creator, and proud contributor to Parents.com. I'm also the mom who white-knuckled through the newborn stage with a smile plastered on her face while a full-blown internal storm raged underneath. Spoiler: I looked fine. I was not fine.

After 5 years of infertility, I finally got my baby — my actual miracle baby. And postpartum anxiety showed up anyway. Because life is hilarious like that. I felt skinned and walking through toxic mud. I listened to TED talks while breastfeeding in the middle of the day — when the silence was loudest and I felt most alone. And somehow — not gracefully, not on a schedule — I made it out the other side.

Today I volunteer and lead postpartum mental health support groups — because I know exactly what it feels like to desperately need one. And now I'm writing the book I wish someone had shoved into my hands in those early, terrifying, nobody-told-me-it-would-be-like-this weeks.

I have 14+ years of storytelling experience and a degree in Drama and Cinema Studies from The Colorado College — which is essentially a degree in storytelling, and it turns out to be extremely useful when you're trying to write in someone else's voice. My acting background gives me an unfair advantage: I know how to step inside someone's shoes and write in their voice. Right now, I'm stepping into yours. And I promise I'll wipe my feet first.

🏆 SoCal Journalism Award Winner 2024 ✍️ Parents.com Contributor 📰 HuffPost, Emmy, Produced By 💬 Mom Support Group Leader 🎭 Former Actress 📚 Top Writer in Parenting, Medium

Postpartum anxiety by the numbers

More common than postpartum depression. More underdiagnosed. More underdiscussed. Here's what the research actually shows — because the numbers are kind of a big deal.

I'm raising $25,000 — and I'm not going to pretend that's not a lot

I'm a one-woman show working with Bedside Reading, the hybrid indie publishing house founded by Jane Ubell (bedsidereading.com). This means I retain full ownership and creative control — no traditional publisher, no middleman, no compromise on the message — while getting expert guidance every step of the way.

Publishing a book properly — one that doesn't look like it was designed in 2003 and edited by no one — costs real money. The range runs $20,000–$50,000. I'm starting with $25,000 to cover the non-negotiables:

The dream team making it real

I'm a one-woman show — but even one-woman shows need a killer crew. Here's mine: