About the Live Panel:
Join a panel of experts and parents with lived experience to discuss:
Education and awareness around maternal mental health
The most common challenges and barriers birthing people face throughout pregnancy and postpartum
How to support families in trauma-informed and compassionate ways
Where we go as a field and community from here
⚠️ Content Warning: Discussion of maternal mental health challenges, birth trauma, and difficult perinatal experiences
Together, we’re breaking down stigma and making space for honest conversations that honor lived experience and improve maternal mental health outcomes.
Why Care?
Join the Conversation
Date: Sunday, May 17, 2026
Time: 10:30am – 12:30pm CST | 11:30am – 1:30pm EST
What’s Included: Keynote speaker + 90 minute panel
Location: Virtual on Zoom
Cost: FREE!
Who is the panel for? Expecting and current parents, those navigating infertility, advocates, supporters, health providers, and mental health professionals. Anyone and everyone is welcome!
Keynote Speaker
Keynote Speaker
Kayleigh Summers, LCSW, PMH-C is a licensed therapist, writer, and content expert in perinatal trauma. Drawing from her clinical expertise and lived experience as an amniotic fluid embolism survivor, Kayleigh is dedicated to supporting families navigating perinatal trauma and collaborating with healthcare institutions to implement trauma-informed care tailored to pregnant and postpartum populations.
As The Birth Trauma Mama, Kayleigh has cultivated vibrant support communities through Instagram, TikTok, and her podcast, offering connection, storytelling, and valuable resources for individuals impacted by perinatal trauma. Her work bridges clinical knowledge and personal insight, fostering hope and healing for the more than 650k followers across social media platforms.
MEET THE PANELISTS
MEET THE PANELISTS
Top Row: Liz Gray, Raag Malhotra, Katie Prezas
Middle Row: Dr. Roohi Jeelani, Dr. Dionne Middlebrooks
Bottom Row: Chelsea Derrico, Kara Kushnir, Melissa Brown
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Liz Gray, LCSW, RPT is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Certified EMDR therapist, trauma survivor, & infertility warrior. During her infertility journey, Liz experienced medical retraumatization at the hands of insensitive and negligent providers during IUI and IVF treatment. These experiences fueled the fire for her to provide trauma-informed trainings, offer expert consultations, and create the nationwide Trauma-Informed Maternal Health Directory. Liz lives outside of Chicago, IL with her husband, mini goldendoodle, and 2 year old son who was conceived via IVF.
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Raag Malhotra PMH-C, is a certified counselling psychologist specialising in maternal mental health, with five years of clinical experience working with mothers through pregnancy, postpartum, and beyond. Raag is Indian and immigrated to the Bay Area with her husband. As a South Asian woman who has navigated the complexities of motherhood within immigrant family systems, she brings both personal and professional insight into the unique cultural dynamics that impact perinatal mental health in our community. Her work is deeply informed by understanding the intersection of traditional expectations, intergenerational family structures, and the isolation that many South Asian mothers experience when facing postpartum struggles in a culture where mental health remains heavily stigmatized.
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Katie Prezas, IBCLC PMH-C, is an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant and owner of Empowering Lactation. For the past 5 years, she has helped families navigate infant feeding including breast/chestfeeding, pumping, bottles, returning to work/daycare, weaning, and everything in between via home visits, telehealth, and clinic work at the Birth Center of Chicago. With an additional certification in Perinatal Mental Health, Katie's work focused on developing manageable feeding plans for parents, personalized for their family and situation; she also has significant expertise in tethered oral tissues, including tongue-tie and lip-tie. Aside from patient care, she has spent the last several years educating fellow providers on the intersection of lactation and mental health via speaking engagements and workshops, and hosts a professional development circle for fellow lactation consultants. Katie is the outgoing President of the Northern Illinois Lactation Consultant Association, former Vice Chair of the Illinois Chapter of PSI, former head of Climb Team Chicago, and a Girl Scout Leader for both of her daughters and their classmates. Her newest endeavor is building a local community of inclusive and passionate women's health professionals via the Empowering Women's Health Network (Chicago Area).
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Roohi Jeelani, MD, FACOG, is a double board-certified Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility (REI) specialist, nationally recognized for her leadership in fertility care and women’s health innovation. As both a physician and former fertility patient living with PCOS, Dr. Jeelani brings a rare combination of clinical expertise, scientific insight and personal understanding to every aspect of patient care.
Dr. Jeelani takes a proactive, patient-centered approach that integrates personalized care with evidence-based medicine. She views fertility as a critical indicator of overall health, which enables her to identify and address factors that influence well-being across the lifespan. Her focus is on delivering exceptional fertility outcomes while supporting long-term health.
As Founder and CEO of Onto Health, Dr. Jeelani is committed to expanding access to high-quality health care, building innovative clinical programs and ensuring every patient feels informed, supported and empowered on their path to parenthood.
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Dr. Dionne Middlebrooks PT, DPT, OCS, CSCS is a board-certified orthopedic specialist, certified strength and conditioning specialist, and birth doula. She is the owner of Reign Physical Therapy and Wellness, a concierge practice dedicated to pelvic health, women’s health, sports and orthopedic rehabilitation, vestibular therapy, and perinatal care.
She serves as Adjunct Professor in the Doctor of Physical Therapy programs at Hanover College and Hampton University, and as an instructor at AMREF International University’s Advanced Diploma in Obstetric and Perinatal Physiotherapy in Kenya, where she continues to support global education initiatives through monthly webinars.
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Chelsea Derrico, CD, CPD, CCE, is a certified labor and postpartum doula, placenta encapsulation specialist, and certified childbirth educator with over 10 years of experience supporting growing families through Chicago Family Doulas. She is deeply passionate about women’s health, birth reform, and empowering parents through evidence-based education and compassionate care.
Chelsea is dedicated to helping families build their village and feel confident, informed, and supported through every stage of the journey.
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Kara Kushnir, LCSW, PMH-C, is a recognized thought leader in perinatal mental health and birth trauma. As the founder of A Work of Heart Counseling & Wellness, she specializes in supporting women, children, and families navigating anxiety, trauma, and the complexities of the perinatal period. Kara is a sought-after hospital trainer, equipping medical professionals with trauma-informed approaches to maternal care. Her voice has been featured in national outlets including USA Today, CNN, and Parents, where she speaks on the evolving challenges facing parents today. Her work is deeply informed by both clinical expertise and her own lived experience as a parent, allowing her to bring a compassionate, real-world lens to maternal mental health advocacy. She is passionate about expanding access to care and reshaping how we understand and support maternal trauma.
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Melissa Brown, MSN, APRN, PMHNP-BC, WHNP-BC, PMH-C is a dual board-certified psychiatric and women’s health nurse practitioner at iTrust Wellness Group, a holistic outpatient psychiatric practice in Greenville, South Carolina. Her work focuses on the intersection of mental and reproductive health, with particular expertise in caring for individuals during key life stages, specifically pregnancy and perimenopause. She also has a strong clinical interest in treating bipolar disorder, supporting individuals with late-diagnosed ADHD, and providing compassionate, trauma-informed care for those living with complex PTSD.
Prior to her current role, Mel worked as a registered nurse in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), caring for critically ill and premature infants, and previously as a patient care technician in the Pediatric ICU and Renal Medicine. These experiences, along with her own postpartum mental health journey, have shaped her integrative and patient-centered approach to care. In addition to her clinical work, she is a speaker for Intracellular/J&J, and an expert content advisor for Rescripted, a women’s health–focused online platform.
Mel earned her BSN from MUSC, MSN from Vanderbilt University, and a post-master’s from Wilkes University. She completed additional training and a year-long practice supervision program through the National Curriculum in Reproductive Psychiatry and holds her Perinatal Mental Health certification through Postpartum Support International. She is passionate about providing unbiased education on mental health treatment, especially during the perinatal period, empowering patients and clinicians alike to make informed decisions that prioritize the individual's health while also supporting healthy outcomes for families.
MEET THE MODERATORS
MEET THE MODERATORS
SPONSORS
SPONSORS
If you’d like to support this important conversation, click HERE to learn more about sponsoring the event.
Why Sponsor?
HOST ORGANIZATIONS
HOST ORGANIZATIONS
Maternal Trauma Support
Maternal Trauma Support is the umbrella organization of The Trauma-Informed Maternal Health Directory, a one-of-a-kind nationwide directory that connects women & birthing people navigating infertility, pregnancy, new parenthood, and perinatal loss to trauma-informed maternal health and mental health providers. MTS also offers free monthly Sunday Series workshops, a support network for perinatal providers, and customized trainings and consultations on Trauma-Informed Care.
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Chicago Family Doulas
Chicago Family Doulas is a premier, full-service agency that was created to improve birth and postpartum outcomes for families through high quality trainings, education, and birth and postpartum doula support. It is the largest doula agency in the United States, employing over 400 birth and postpartum doulas.
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