Maternal Health Niagara

Maternal Health Niagara A collaborative of regulated health providers. Supporting families during the reproductive period and beyond. Virtual Services are available in Ontario.

For the Ones Who Had to Grow Up Too SoonIf you learned to read a room before you could even read a book…If you knew how ...
11/06/2025

For the Ones Who Had to Grow Up Too Soon

If you learned to read a room before you could even read a book…

If you knew how to soothe, fix, or manage everyone else’s feelings just to stay safe…
If you carried the weight of responsibility that never should have been yours —this was not your fault.

You were a child doing your best to survive in a world that asked too much, too early.
You didn’t choose to be the strong one — you learned that strength was how you stayed loved, needed, or safe.

And maybe now, as an adult, you still feel that pull — to overextend, to please, to keep the peace, to hold it all together — even when you’re exhausted.

It’s okay to start putting that weight down.
It’s okay to learn what it means to be cared for, not just care about.

Healing doesn’t mean rejecting who you were — it means honoring that child who carried too much and reminding them:
You don’t have to do that anymore.

You haven’t lost yourself — you’ve grown through what changed you.It’s easy to mistake transformation for disappearance....
11/06/2025

You haven’t lost yourself — you’ve grown through what changed you.

It’s easy to mistake transformation for disappearance.
To look back and wonder where the old version of you went.

But you’re still here — just shaped by experience, softened in some places, strengthened in others.
Who you are now holds the wisdom of everything you’ve walked through.

You don’t need to go back to who you were to feel whole again.
You can learn who you are now.

Growth isn’t about reclaiming the past —
it’s about meeting yourself with understanding in the present.

You’re allowed to evolve.
You’re allowed to keep becoming.
And you’re allowed to feel proud of who you’ve become, even if she looks different than before. 🤍

We Were All Once a ChildEvery adult carries the echoes of who they once were — the curious, cautious, creative, or caref...
11/03/2025

We Were All Once a Child

Every adult carries the echoes of who they once were — the curious, cautious, creative, or careful child still living inside.

The child who wanted to be seen.
Who learned when it was safe to speak and when it was better to stay quiet.
Who figured out how to keep the peace, be strong, or disappear just enough to belong.

That child didn’t vanish with time — they simply grew up, learned new roles, and found ways to keep going.
But when we pause and listen closely, we can still feel their presence — in our fears, our boundaries, our tenderness, our need for safety and love.

🌿 Healing often begins when we stop judging that younger part of ourselves and start asking, “What did you need back then that you didn’t receive?”

At Maternal Health Niagara, we hold space for that inner child — for the parts of you that are still longing to feel understood, safe, and enough.

Because no matter how grown we are, we are all still learning how to care for the child within.

When You Feel LowThere are days when the weight feels heavier — when even small things feel like too much.On those days,...
11/02/2025

When You Feel Low

There are days when the weight feels heavier — when even small things feel like too much.

On those days, lifting yourself up might not look like motivation or optimism.
It might look like moving slowly.
Letting the dishes sit.
Choosing quiet instead of forcing cheer.
Doing one small thing that reminds you you’re still here.

Sometimes caring for yourself isn’t about feeling better —
it’s about giving yourself permission to simply be, exactly as you are.

You don’t have to turn every hard moment into a lesson or a comeback.
Some days are just meant to be carried gently.

You’ve made it through every heavy day before this one —
and that strength is still yours, even when it doesn’t feel like it. 🤍

Parenting doesn’t happen in a vacuum — it happens in real life, where you’re juggling work, stress, relationships, and y...
10/30/2025

Parenting doesn’t happen in a vacuum — it happens in real life, where you’re juggling work, stress, relationships, and your own emotions.

There are days when your patience feels thin, when your child’s big feelings feel like too much, or when you hear your own anxiety echo in theirs.
You’re not doing it wrong — you’re human.

Sometimes the best thing you can do for your child is to tend to your own nervous system.
Deep breaths. A moment of pause. Reaching for your own support.

Michelle, our virtual therapist, works with parents, too — helping them find compassion for themselves while learning new ways to co-regulate with their kids.

Because healing often starts with how we care for ourselves.

The Question That Can Hurt More Than You RealizeNot everyone’s path to parenthood is simple — or even possible.For those...
10/29/2025

The Question That Can Hurt More Than You Realize

Not everyone’s path to parenthood is simple — or even possible.

For those navigating fertility challenges, pregnancy loss, or infant loss, this question can reopen a wound they carry quietly every day.

It’s rarely asked with harm in mind — but it can leave someone searching for words, holding back tears, or pretending to smile to keep the moment from getting awkward.

When we ask about children, we often forget we’re touching the most personal part of someone’s story — their grief, their longing, their medical history, their heartbreak.

🌿 Not everyone is able to conceive.
Not everyone gets to carry a pregnancy to term.
And not everyone who hoped to be a parent becomes one.

There are so many paths, and all deserve gentleness.

Sometimes the most compassionate thing we can do is not assume — and instead ask questions that open space, like:

“Tell me about your family.”
or
“Who’s important in your life?”

At Maternal Health Niagara, we hold space for the complexities of fertility and perinatal grief — the silent losses, the invisible milestones, and the stories that deserve to be spoken without shame.

You are not alone in this.

All day, kids and teens move through spaces that ask them to hold it together — to sit still, follow rules, manage big f...
10/28/2025

All day, kids and teens move through spaces that ask them to hold it together — to sit still, follow rules, manage big feelings, and fit into expectations that don’t always leave room for who they are.

By the time they get home, they’re done holding it in.
The tears, the snapping, the silence — it’s their body’s way of saying, “I’m safe now. I can finally let go.”

Not only is it hard to see your child have such big feelings — it can also be draining.
Many parents find themselves walking on edge, anxious about what might unfold when the backpack drops at the door.
You’re not failing for feeling that way. It’s human. You’re holding a lot, too.

As parents, it can be painful to be the place where everything unravels — especially when your own nervous system is already tired.
But it’s also a reflection of trust. Home is where kids can fall apart because they know you’ll help them find their way back to calm.

🌿
At Maternal Health Niagara, Michelle, MSW, RSW, understands this balance.
Her experience supporting children and youth within the school system has given her a deep understanding of how much pressure young people carry — and how connection, not correction, helps them regulate and rebuild.

She supports kids (8+), youth, and parents in exploring new ways to understand and respond to these hard moments — with compassion, attunement, and tools that meet each child (and parent) where they are.

💻 Virtual sessions available across Ontario.

You’re not alone in this. The meltdowns, the distance, the anxiety — they’re part of a story that can soften with understanding and support.

Lisa Marie has an opening for tomorrow, Tuesday October 28th at 2pm*Existing clients only. Log into to your Jane portal ...
10/28/2025

Lisa Marie has an opening for tomorrow, Tuesday October 28th at 2pm*
Existing clients only. Log into to your Jane portal to book!

Shannon has an opening for tomorrow at 1PM! :) She is also accepting new referrals for in-person on Tuesdays!
10/28/2025

Shannon has an opening for tomorrow at 1PM! :)

She is also accepting new referrals for in-person on Tuesdays!

When someone you love is nearing the end of their life, time can start to feel different.You find yourself holding momen...
10/27/2025

When someone you love is nearing the end of their life, time can start to feel different.
You find yourself holding moments more tightly — even the small ones — while quietly bracing for what’s coming.

This space between knowing and losing carries its own kind of heartbreak.
It’s the ache of watching, waiting, hoping, and preparing all at once.

Anticipatory grief can feel like:
• waves of sadness before loss
• guilt for moments of relief or distraction
• anger that life keeps moving
• anxiety about what’s next
• deep love mixed with deep fear

There is no right way to feel. Grief before loss is still grief.

It’s the heart’s way of slowly making room for what it knows is coming — while trying to hold onto what still is.

Anxiety doesn’t always show up as trembling hands or racing thoughts.Sometimes it hides behind being too responsible, to...
10/26/2025

Anxiety doesn’t always show up as trembling hands or racing thoughts.
Sometimes it hides behind being too responsible, too accommodating, too hard on yourself, or too tired to try anymore.

It can look like:
• needing things to go a certain way
• irritation or snapping over small changes
• overthinking every decision
• avoiding what feels too uncertain
• appearing calm on the outside while your body hums with tension underneath

It can live quietly in kids who want to please everyone, in teens who seem distant or withdrawn, and in adults who carry the weight of keeping everything together.

🌿 Anxiety often grows in the spaces where safety once felt uncertain.
The goal isn’t to erase it — it’s to understand what it’s trying to protect you from.

The school year can bring big emotions — new routines, shifting friendships, academic pressure, or just the daily stress...
10/24/2025

The school year can bring big emotions — new routines, shifting friendships, academic pressure, or just the daily stress of keeping up.

Some kids adjust easily, while others might show it through headaches, stomach aches, irritability, tears, or withdrawal. These can all be signs of anxiety, overwhelm, or adjustment stress.

Michelle, MSW, RSW, is a therapist experienced in the school system who understands how tricky these transitions can be — for both kids and parents.

🌱 She offers virtual therapy for kids (8+), youth, and parents across Ontario, helping families:
• Build confidence and emotional regulation
• Manage school-related stress and anxiety
• Strengthen coping, communication, and connection at home

💻 Michelle is now accepting new virtual clients.

Address

Saint Catharines, ON

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 8pm
Tuesday 9am - 8pm
Wednesday 9am - 8pm
Thursday 9am - 8pm
Friday 9am - 8pm
Saturday 9am - 2pm
Sunday 9am - 12pm

Website

https://emilypollak.janeapp.com/#/staff_member/43/treatment/280

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