SANTOS PSYCHOTHERAPY
Hi, I'm Anjelena
I’ve worked as a Therapist since graduating with a Psychology degree in 2008. Since then, I’ve completed a Masters degree, two further Postgraduate Diplomas and specialist training in Perinatal Psychotherapy.
But I’ve also had my own experiences of birth trauma and baby loss and emotional challenges in motherhood.
After six pregnancies, I’m a mum of three — two daughters and a son who was stillborn.
My birth with my first daughter wasn’t traumatic because of a medical emergency but because of unnecessary interventions, coercion and choices that could have been easily accommodated — but weren’t.
And this is what made it so confusing.
My baby and I were healthy, so why did I feel so broken?
Instead of enjoying my baby as I had imagined I would; I felt alone, angry and completely let down by my body and the system I had trusted.
After a start to motherhood that felt chaotic and completely out of my control, my perfectionism and need for control kicked into overdrive. I tried to regain a sense of safety by holding everything together myself — while holding myself and my partner to impossibly high standards.
What started as an attempt to feel safe became resentment, overwhelm and maternal burnout.
Being a psychotherapist didn’t make me immune to trauma, grief, rage or the messy reality of becoming a mother.
I know what it’s like to desperately want to enjoy motherhood while feeling like you’re drowning in it.
I don’t just understand this professionally. I understand what it feels like to be the woman sitting in the chair.
My own experiences have taught me things no training ever could — and they shape how I work today.