Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders Online Course(s) & Continuing Education

Dr. Melanie Badali is a Registered Psychologist in British Columbia, Canada with over 20 years of experience working as a clinician, researcher, and instructor in the field of clinical psychology.

Dr. Badali currently provides psychological assessment and treatment services at the North Shore Stress and Anxiety Clinic, where she is on the Perinatal Services Team. She is certified in the practice of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) by the Canadian Association of Cognitive and Behavioural Therapies and works with the organization to advance training, knowledge and accreditation in CBT. She has experience working in a variety of clinical settings including inpatient and outpatient, public and private.

She is also an Associate Faculty member at Yorkville University, where she teaches in the Master's of Counselling Psychology Program.

As a Board Director for Anxiety Canada, a non-profit organization that increases awareness, promotes education and provides resources for people dealing with anxiety, her role includes advocacy, research, knowledge translation and speaking to the media.

Dr. Badali is actively involved in research, training and writing. She enjoys creating psychoeducational resources such as the Canadian Psychological Association’s new factsheet on Perinatal Anxiety and is currently working on the third edition of the book, “Match Made on Earth”.

Dr. Maria Enrica Bettinelli is Lecturer of Pediatrics, University of Milan, Italy School of Medicine. As IBCLC since 2003, her research focuses on how overcoming barriers to implement breastfeeding support in the community and to promote mother and babies well-being in the perinatal period and the first years of life, adopting nurturing care approach. She has authored peer-reviewed publications on baby friendly community, breastfeeding rates in Lombardy, and the maternal and child health effects of lactation.
Her current research includes the clinical management of breastfeeding difficulties and how emotional experiences impact on breastfeeding decision. As Director of Milan Breastfeeding Network in Milan, Dr. Bettinelli leads an interdisciplinary team of clinicians, nurses and midwives that is developing new approaches to management of breastfeeding difficulties and to sharing breastfeeding education. Dr. Bettinelli is a member of the Italian Society of Pediatrics and Italian Society of Neonatology, chairs the Task Group of Education and Conference 2020 of ELACTA Board 2018-2020 and is a member of the ELACTA Board 2018-2020, and since 2012 is a member of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine.
Dr. Bettinelli attended University of Milan School of Medicine where she graduated with her M.D. in 1986. She completed her Residency in Pediatrics in 1989 and in Neonatology in 1991 at University of Milan and went on to complete her medical experience at Mangiagalli Hospital in Milan. Dr. Bettinelli obtained her MSc in Perinatal Mental Health in 2019.
She lives in Milan, Italy with her husband and her daughter.

Dr. Kendall-Tackett is a health psychologist and International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, and the Owner and Editor-in-Chief of Praeclarus Press, a small press specializing in women's health. Dr. Kendall-Tackett is Editor-in-Chief of the journal, Psychological Trauma and was Founding Editor-in-Chief of Clinical Lactation, a position she held for 11 years. She is Fellow of the American Psychological Association in Health and Trauma Psychology, Past President of the APA Division of Trauma Psychology, and a member of APA’s Publications and Communications Board.

Dr. Sheehan Fisher is an Assistant Professor and clinical psychologist at Northwestern University. His research career focuses on the effects of perinatal and subsequent parental mental health on infant/child health outcomes, with a specialization in the emerging field of father mental health. More specifically, he examines: 1) the biopsychosocial risk factors for parental psychopathology, 2) the impact of parental psychopathology on parenting behaviors and the family environment, and 3) the combined effect of the family environment on infant/child medical and emotional health outcomes. His aim is to reconceptualize parental mental health research to integrally involve both mothers and fathers to differentiate the etiology, course, and potential interactivity of paternal and maternal mental health and, in turn, the longitudinal associations with child medical and mental health. Dr. Fisher’s research dovetails with his perinatal clinical practice, including being the clinical director of the Fathers’ Mental Health Specialty Clinic. Ultimately, the goal is for his research plan is to optimize the health and effectiveness of the parental team to positively influence the child health trajectory starting from infancy.

Jayashri KULKARNI commenced her appointment as Professor of Psychiatry, The Alfred and Monash University in 2002. She directs a large psychiatric research group, the Monash Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre (MAPrc), with approximately 150 staff and students. The Centre is dedicated to discovering new treatments, new understanding and new services for people with a range of mental illnesses.

Jayashri Kulkarni completed her MBBS degree in 1981 at Monash University and worked mainly in Emergency Medicine before deciding to specialise in Psychiatry. She became a Fellow of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists in 1989 and was awarded a PhD from Monash University in 1997 for her thesis “Women and Psychosis”. Jayashri has pioneered the novel use of estrogen as a treatment for schizophrenia and is internationally acknowledged as a leader in the field of reproductive hormones and their impact on mental health. An expert in Women’s Mental Health, Jayashri was elected the President of the International Association of Women’s Mental Health, a role she commenced in 2017.

Dianne Cassidy is a Lactation Consultant in Rochester, New York with Advanced Lactation Certification.  Dianne works in Private Practice, and in a busy Pediatrician office supporting mothers and babies. She also teaches prenatal breastfeeding and childbirth in the hospital setting.  In the fall of 2013, Dianne completed her MA in Health and Wellness/Lactation.  She is dedicated to serving mothers and babies, and has the unique ability to identify with the needs and concerns of new mothers.  Dianne has worked extensively with women who have survived trauma, babies struggling with tongue tie, birth trauma, milk supply issues, attachment, identifying latch problems, returning to work and breastfeeding multiples.

Dianne has 3 biological children, including twins, 3 step children and a wonderful husband.  Dianne is an author and public speaker and enjoys teaching caregivers how to support new families through breastfeeding struggles.

Angel Montfort, Psy.D., PMH-C is a licensed clinical psychologist, mother of four, and the founder of the Center for Maternal Mental Health, a therapy practice dedicated to serving women throughout all stages of motherhood. She has always gravitated toward treating women and became passionate about perinatal mental health while working in a Women's Clinic within a hospital setting. At first it was a way to meet the needs of her patients and it quickly led to an understanding of her own postpartum experiences, which deepened her connection to this work.

In her practice, Dr. Montfort addresses concerns such as postpartum depression, postpartum anxiety, birth trauma, perinatal loss, infertility, and adjustment to motherhood.

Dr. Montfort shares educational information on her Instagram account (@drangelmontfort) and her website (www.cfmmh.com) in an effort to validate and uplift moms who are struggling through a time that is expected to be the most joyous. Her expertise in perinatal mental health has been featured in a number of media outlets including Forbes, Healthline, and ScaryMommy. She believes that if we make space for both the highs and lows of motherhood, we set new moms up for a more balanced experience.

Dr. Cindy-Lee Dennis is a Professor in the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing and the Faculty of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto. She holds a Canada Research Chair in Perinatal Community Health and was recently appointed the Women’s Health Research Chair at Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael’s Hospital. She is currently the principal investigator of seven large, multi-site studies and is a co-investigator on twenty-four other research projects concerning maternal, paternal, and infant health outcomes. She holds over $23 million in funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and has over 170 peer-review publications. She is the lead author on eight Cochrane systematic reviews and has provided over 150 invited presentations.

Dr. Christina Hibbert is the bestselling author of This Is How We Grow, Who Am I Without You, 8 Keys to Mental Health Through Exercise, & the forthcoming Mastery of Motherhood (www.MasteryOfMotherhood.com). She is a clinical psychologist specializing in women’s and maternal mental health, parenting, grief/loss, self-worth, and personal growth, and host of the weekly web radio/TV show, “Motherhood.”.Dr. Hibbert is a popular speaker, founder of the Arizona Postpartum Wellness Coalition, and producer of the internationally-sold DVD, Postpartum Couples. A mother of six, Christina was named “Mother of the Year” AZ, 2018, and lives in Flagstaff, AZ, with her husband and family. Learn more about Dr. Hibbert through her award-winning website and blog, “The Psychologist, The Mom, & Me,” at www.DrChristinaHibbert.com.

Birdie is an RN with a Master’s Degree in Psychology/Counseling. She is a past president of Postpartum Support International (PSI), past Chair of Education and Training, and is currently serving as Director of Certification. Birdie is a Perinatal Mood Disorders International Trainer with Postpartum Support International and speaks frequently to communities, nursing schools, grand rounds, and conferences. Birdie specializes in the recognition and treatment of pregnancy and postpartum mood and anxiety disorders. She is the coordinator of the Perinatal Mood Disorders Program at Indiana University Health in Indianapolis, Indiana. Birdie is highlighted as a PMD expert in PSI’s DVD that is shown around the world: “Healthy Mom, Happy Family: Understanding Pregnancy and Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorders”.