The Balanced Mama Counseling Services

11/21/2025

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11/18/2025

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11/08/2025

Year 2 of the Thibodeauxville Fall Festival! 🍁

Come out and enjoy delicious food, great company, and meaningful conversations about maternal mental health.

🍼 Special Giveaway:
All mamas in their first year postpartum can enter a drawing for a free box of diapers!

A huge thank you to Anchored, LLC for their generous contribution and support of our local moms. 💐

We can’t wait to see you 😘🩷

11/07/2025

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11/06/2025

In Louisiana, Black maternal health is in a state of crisis. Black women are four times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white women. As clinicians and healthcare providers, we must reevaluate how we care for Black mothers. We need to listen with genuine care and curiosity, prioritize their needs, and build trust within the patient-provider relationship.

A heartfelt thank you to Whitney Jason with LDH, Brittany Brown and Shamekia Sauceberry with AmeriHealth Caritas, and Megan Lasserre and the Healthy Start team at Start Corporation for organizing the Black Maternal Mortality Forum. It was a true honor to serve as a panelist alongside Dr. Mann, someone I deeply admire and who continues to exemplify sensitivity, kindness, and patience in maternal healthcare. I hope to see these essential conversations continue and expand throughout the Bayou area.

11/04/2025

Join in on the conversation tomorrow as we bring awareness to Black Maternal Health and Mental Health!

Join us for the Black Maternal Mortality Forum — a powerful discussion on Black maternal mortality, prevention, and advocacy.

🗓 Wednesday, November 5
🕚 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
📍 Terrebonne Parish Main Library- 151 Library Drive, Houma

🎤 Panelists:
• Courtney Malveaux, LPC-S, PMH-C, Balanced Mama Counseling Services
• Dr. Elena Mann, OB-GYN at Life Coast Health Center of Houma

This event is open to all- the public, healthcare providers, and students studying nursing and allied health.

Can’t attend in person? 📲 Scan the QR code on the flyer to join virtually or use this link—> https://ldhophbrcoregion3.zoom.us/j/9262606084

Let’s come together to raise awareness, learn, and advocate for change in Black maternal health. 💕

10/21/2025

Last week, I had the privilege of serving as a panelist for the Beyond Labels Training: Reducing the Stigma of Maternal Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders during a pre-conference session at the Louisiana Primary Care Association Annual Conference. I was honored to join a group of dedicated providers who are deeply committed to transforming the experiences of mothers, birthing people, and their families.

Stigma continues to affect maternal mental health, but it’s through open conversations centered on needs, resources, and practical tools that we can create lasting change and support the wellbeing of all families.

10/15/2025

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💕TODAY IS NATIONAL PREGNANCY AND INFANT LOSS REMEMBRANCE DAY!!

Global Wave of Light Day is a yearly event that honors babies lost through pregnancy or infant loss, and is part of Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month! The Wave of Light involves participants lighting candles! The Wave of Light is open to all families and parents, regardless of the circumstances of their baby's loss. It is a time to come together to remember and support those who have experienced pregnancy or infant loss!! Consider lighting a candle at 7:00 pm in honor of Remembrance Day! Take a photo of your candle and share it on social media, using hashtags like and/or .
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10/08/2025

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10/05/2025

A practical guide for postpartum women to better understand what they are experiencing and perinatal therapist to better assess and treat perinatal disorders ‼️

Let's clear something up.

Postpartum women and perinatal therapists are often eager to proclaim that all emotions are "normal" during the postpartum period. This trend to normalize every feeling - no matter how painful or persistent - comes from a well-intended effort to reassure moms that they are okay, that what they are feeling is common and not worrisome. Of course, this reassurance can go far to comfort a new mom in distress.

At least for a while.

The important distinction, however, is this: It’s not enough to validate the feeling itself; we also need to observe and assess how that feeling shows up.

Let’s break this down.

Even very strong negative emotions in the postpartum period can be quite "normal." Anger is normal. Grief is normal. Sadness and crying are normal. Disappointment, resentment, scary thoughts, and guilt are normal.

However…

While these emotions commonly surface during the postpartum period, what needs attention is the F.I.D. - Frequency, Intensity, & Duration.

While sadness and crying are normal, we ask:

How often do you cry?
Do you notice any patterns - times of day, situations, or thoughts that make it worse?
Are you able to stop once you start crying, or does it feel out of control?
How does the crying make you feel?
What’s triggering the crying?
Are you bothered by it? Are others commenting on it?
Does the crying interfere with your ability to care for yourself or your baby?

Or -

I know you feel angry that the baby screams and keeps you from sleeping.

Tell me how the anger makes you feel about your baby?
How does the anger make you feel, in your body?
Do you ever feel out of control when you’re angry?
Are others bothered by the expression of your anger?
How long have you felt this level of anger?
How much does it interfere with your ability to function or take care of the baby?

𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 + 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 + 𝗗𝘂𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 = 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀
𝗗𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗦 = 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻

If strong negative emotions persist without the balance of positive emotion, healthy perspective, support, distraction, or therapy, they can linger and morph. Guilt can deepen into hopelessness. Anxiety can immobilize. Scary thoughts can terrify. Anger can harden into rageful disconnection.

The take-home point is this:

To parents:

While all emotions are normal after the birth of a baby, when you hear or read that “it’s okay to feel all the feelings,” know that if you are feeling any uncomfortable emotion too often, too much, or for too long, that’s not okay. It doesn’t mean anything terrible is happening. It means that your level of distress is likely too high and that you would benefit from more support than you are currently getting.

To perinatal therapists: Use caution when over-normalizing or over-validating all emotions during the postpartum period. This requires a careful and individual assessment.

10/05/2025

Walk With Grace hosted another phenomenal event, A Table of Grace Luncheon dedicated to raising awareness about pregnancy and infant loss. We heard powerful stories from mothers with lived experiences, insights from therapists who support grieving families, and wisdom from maternal health professionals committed to compassionate care in our community.

Thank you, Toya, for sharing your vision with me as more awareness and support grow for families experiencing loss. Grateful to God for being at the heart of it all. I hope everyone had a wonderful time ✨🩷🩵

10/05/2025

We are beyond grateful for your continuous support and dedication to Walk With Grace as we continue to raise awareness about pregnancy and infant loss throughout the Bayou region ✨🩵🩷