Carly's Couch

Hi!

I’m Carly Abramovitz, I’m a clinical psychologist and mom. I have a therapy practice in Constantia, Cape Town, where I see adults for individual and couples therapy.

I have a special interest in supporting new parents.

I’m a licensed facilitator, an intervention aimed at helping parents form secure attachment relationships with their children.

I have also developed two workshops:

Oh baby, WTF! is an antenatal class that focuses on preparing parents for the psychological and emotional experience of having a baby.

Ready, Steady, Baby! is a couples coaching programme designed to equip couples with the necessary tools for managing the most common difficulties that come up after baby is born.

I run in-person workshops in collaboration with and there are pre-recorded online versions of these courses available on my website.

Please follow the links in my bio for information pertaining to these.

I love a chat so please pop a comment or dm me to ask me anything about how I work. I obviously can’t provide advice or therapy through this app.

Thanks for being here

I’m so excited to announce that Oh baby, WTF! is back

In collaboration with I will be hosting an in-person workshop in Cape Town at Victoria House in Belmont Road, Rondebosch on Saturday October 26 09:00-11:30.

Who is the workshop for?
- expecting or new parents (especially those in the 4th trimester)

What will you gain from attending?
- deeper understanding of how parenthood impacts all areas of life

- Tools to navigate the WTF moments that come with being a new parent

- Strategies for managing stress, adjusting your expectations, and protecting your mental well-being

Head to the link in my bio to take advantage of the early bird special.

Tag a friend in the comments or type WORKSHOP in the comments and I will send you a sign up link.

Please also feel free to ask any questions you may have.

✌️

You’re probably wondering what coaching is all about and why I’ve added it to my offerings here.

I love that coaching feels like operating in a different gear from therapy.

Therapy is a wonderful long-term process whereby we get to know you via in-depth discussions that are more a reflective process than anything else. We don’t necessarily have goals and objectives and we definitely don’t think in terms of measurable success.

What I love about coaching is that it’s a short-term intervention. We set goals and introduce new frontiers for you to traverse.

Unlike therapy we don’t focus on sitting with what happened to you and how this informed where you are today (a really useful and meaningful process by the way).

Coaching is all about where you are going. It’s about painting a picture of a desired future and then mapping out the steps towards getting there.

In coaching, you choose a topic to work through and we focus on aiding you to shift your patterns so that you can actually see change in how you are thinking about the topic.

Through coaching you will be empowered to take actions that will move you towards the future you.

You will learn to make use of the skills you already possess and help build new capabilities along the way.

Coaching offers insights but also, most importantly, practical tools. We will design and implement exercises and practices that you will do daily to build new capabilities. So yes that means homework!

The tools you get will be available for you to practice and master after the coaching sessions end so this helps you to keep doing the work and being responsible and accountable for your success and development, obviously with my support and guidance.

If any of this sounds interesting to you please DM me or email me on [email protected]

I’m still running my opening special which offers a major discount for new clients.

Oh Baby, WTF! is an antenatal class with a difference. Unlike traditional antenatal classes, this course does not focus on birth, breastfeeding and baby care.

Oh Baby, WTF! focuses on the impact of having a baby on every sphere of your life:

• your relationship to self (your identity)
• your relationship with your partner
• your relationship to your wider community
• your relationship to your career

From understanding matrescence to being able to determine what levels of anxiety are normal or when one needs to get medical help, this course aims to provide a textured account of the emotional landscape of early parenthood.

From this course you will walk away with a broad understanding of what baby’s impact will be AND you will be equipped with a number of practical ways to manage the inevitable upheaval with your mental health intact!

After a once-off payment of R700 you will get login details so that you can get lifetime access to the course content.

Tap the link in my bio and follow the prompt for “online products”

Hello!

I feel like I need to reintroduce myself and this page.

I’m Carly. I am a clinical psychologist in private practice.

I work out of Constantia and currently my practice is full.

I come here to Instagram to get and share inspiration, to connect with people, and to share about the services that I offer in addition to therapy.

1. I have a podcast called On the Couch with Carly - it’s a place for me to share my thoughts and sometimes I interview interesting people. You can find it on Apple or Spotify or follow the link in my bio.

2. I also have two online courses that you can buy right now on my website. They are both geared towards expecting parents.

Oh baby WTF! is a psychological antenatal class that prepares you for what life with a baby is like, how it impacts every sphere of your life: your identity, your relationships and your career. I also share a handy toolkit for you to use in those WTF moments.

Ready, steady, Baby! is a couples coaching course that specifically prepares YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR PARTER for having a baby.

3. I am about to qualify as an integral coach and this will be another kind of offering for me. More to be revealed soon.

For those that know this page, what do content do you enjoy and what would you like to see more of? And please just post a ✌️ or a ❤️ in the comments to say hi. Your engagement is appreciated 🙏

LONG TIME NO POST 😅

Hello! Gonna try be more active on here again. If you’re seeing this please like, save, share this post!

Sleep training is a divisive topic and in the last three episodes of the podcast I have tackled it head on.

My take on infant sleep was the second last episode. After listening to that, Karlien Terblanche contacted me and asked if she could be on to chat about her experience with sleep training. She had always believed she would be in the “cosleeping camp” but things didn’t turn out that way.

In the latest episode we get into it. Here are some highlights.

Please be advised that I am NOT suggestion anyone sleep train their infant. I am trying to bring attention to the messy middle of parenting, the figuring it out, the trying it on for size, the efforts we go to on our journey to find regulation and secure attachment.

Find what works for you. You know best. ✌️❤️

Let’s talk about our mental health

I’m going to be doing a live with and this Thursday (26/10) at 8pm. Hosted by ❤️

On the topic of mental health and motherhood, is there a particular issue you would like us to talk about?

Drop a comment or dm me 👇

What do you want to know about taking care of babies?

Next week I’ll be sitting down with .sense to answer all your questions.

Meg is a renowned parenting expert, the author of numerous books and creator of the .app

We can ask her anything to do with babies so please comment below with your questions for Meg ⬇️ or send me a DM if you’d like to stay anonymous.

I have a request.

I am looking for stories of early parenthood.

Do you have a story from your own experience of the following:

- the journey of matrescence
- shifts in your identity since becoming a parent
- shifts in your relationship with your partner
- the complexities of managing friends and family after you have a baby
- going back to work

Please email [email protected] or DM me

Got a couple more spots available

I’m starting to see clients again from 1 September in my rooms in Constantia.

Please get in touch if you would like to book an initial meeting.

In-person sessions only
Tuesdays during office hours

Get in touch via DM, email [email protected] or msg 0712287084

I have very limited availability!

I’m baaaack. Not at work but back on the gram. And I’m here to remind you to check out my podcast.

Since I’ve been gone I’ve release a few very imperfect episodes:

1. New Year, New Me (A life update)
2. The final stages of pregnancy
3. Back from Beyond
4. Why Breastfeeding is Hard
5. Seeking order in the newborn chaos
6. Tools for surviving Postpartum

Which is your fave episode? Do you have any follow up questions? What did you find helpful?

Please share, like, follow, rate/review - it will help me a lot! ❤️

Congratulations to who has won our competition and will be joining us on Saturday for our once-off antenatal workshop.

For anyone else who is thinking about attending, here are the details.

To book your spot please eft me and confirm your booking.
(Details on the second slide)

If you have any questions about the content of the course please ask!

There is the option of joining via zoom on Saturday.

The cost is the same.

There will be a recorded version made available at a later stage as well.

✌️

It’s the most _____ time of the year!

For some it is wonderful like the song but for many of us this time of the year is a mad rush to the finish, filled with anxiety over money, family conflict, feelings of loss and overwhelm.

As someone described it to me: “It’s like an advent calendar of meltdowns” at this time of year.

So if you’re feeling like every day is just one emotional meltdown after the next for you, you’re not alone.

There is also a lot of pressure to be jolly and to engage in lots of socializing even though you might be burnt out and needing a break.

So flip the script and focus on nurturing yourself instead.

Choose from the following activities and make sure to do one a day (like an advent calendar of selfcare).

1. Rest
2. Walk in Nature
3. Swim in cold water
4. Phone a friend
5. Say no to an invite
6. Practice mindulness
7. Stretch your body
8. Listen to music
9. Watch a Christmas movie
10. Talk to someone
11. Put your phone away
12. Lie on your back
13. Drink a glass of water
14. Play with a puppy
15. Play with children
16. Take yourself out on a date

Which is your favourite? Which do you find hardest to do? Tag a friend who needs this right now or comment below with suggestions of some self care activities to add!

This is one of my last social media posts for the year.

If you listen to my latest podcast episode you will understand why.

In this episode I talk about how I aim to challenge myself as I go on maternity leave.

I, like you, am on my phone too much and I need to make a change.

I know the ways in which this platform can be beneficial but I believe that my phone/social media addiction is causing more harm than good right now.

I am curious to know who I am and what I do when I don’t resort to mindless scrolling whenever I feel bored/anxious/overwhelmed.

Do you want to join me on this challenge?

*Upcoming event*

In this episode I discuss the reasons I’m offering this once-off antenatal workshop in the V&A Waterfront on 10 December 2022.

Oh baby, WTF! is a workshop that all expecting first time parents should attend. Unlike traditional antenatal courses, it REALLY prepares you for what it’s like to bring home a new baby.

The focus is on the experience of becoming a parent so that you are prepared for the many ways that having a baby impacts on every sphere of your life including your identity, your relationship with your partner and your community, as well as your work/career.

You will also be provided with a toolkit for how to navigate those WTF moments with your mental health intact.

So please join us for this once-off workshop.

Contact me or to book your spot!

Also today I am joined by who shares about her pregnancy journey, as well as her insights around mental health during pregnancy.

The transformative process of becoming a mother starts in pregnancy. Jess shares her biggest lesson thus far.

Listen now on or or follow the link in my bio.

Today on the podcast I’m talking about BIRTH OPTIONS

While you’re pregnant you can start to think about what kind of birth you would like.

Although I believe that most of our energy and planning should go into a postpartum plan (see future episodes), I know that most people will spend a lot of time thinking about birth.

1. It’s important to get ALL THE INFORMATION so that you are aware of your options

2. We might have desires for our births but it is not guaranteed we will get the birth we want

3. Have a plan B, make allowance for things not working out and make peace with those options too

4. Birth trauma is often exacerbated by feelings of powerlessness. So, however it turns out, feeling empowered is key here. Do whatever you need to feel EMPOWERED.

5. There are lots of emotions involved in navigating your options including fear, confusion, overwhelm, and disappointment.

Do you have any follow up questions? Please feel free to ask here in the comments or DM me!

On the Couch with Carly - New Episode out today!

How Pregnancy Teaches You About Boundaries

“Pregnancy is a time of adjustment. Like all adjustments, it's a process that involves resistance and surrender. In this episode I talk about how I surrendered to a part of the process this week that taught me again how to take care of my needs via communication of a boundary. I hope it inspires you to do the same.”