Volunteer with PSI

HelpLine Volunteers serve as the bridge between families who need support during perinatal mental health disorders and our volunteer Support Coordinators and other local and international resources.

PSI has two teams of HelpLine volunteers—English and Spanish—who respond to calls and texts from moms, dads, grandparents, and others seven days a week. PSI also provides training and support for all of our volunteers.

English HelpLine Volunteers are responsible for one weekly 3-hour shift. During your shift, you will answer texts and/or return voicemails and provide a listening ear, reassurance, and information to our help seekers, along with connecting them with a local PSI volunteer Support Coordinator. You will need access to a tablet or desktop computer during your shift in order to access the software and phone system used by the PSI HelpLine. Looking for applicants with lived experience (1 year post-recovery).

Once you have completed the application (links below), we will keep your information on file and will contact you prior to our next training session. If you have any questions, please contact PSI’s HelpLine Manager, Lisa Zeitlin, at helpline@postpartum.net. If you have any questions for Spanish HelpLine/Linea Calida please contact PSI’s Spanish Language Programs Operations Manager, Karla Cardoza, at Karla@postpartum.net. We look forward to supporting you in your desire to volunteer with the families we serve.

Thank you so much!

PSI Support Coordinators are volunteers who serve as a bridge between resources and families who need support when facing perinatal mental health disorders.  The assistance they provide can help change the path of a parent’s journey toward healing.  Click here for more information.

Coordinator responsibilities include:

• Provide education, empathy, and resource referrals to those who reach out for help in your area.
• Reach out within 24 hours to help seekers.
• Provide help seekers with at least three resource referrals (when possible).
• Become familiar with local resources to provide the best referrals for those seeking assistance.
• Utilize our database, iCarol, to ensure timely responses and coordinated help.

Specialized Coordinators

The PSI Support Coordinator Program has a wonderful subset of volunteers who have offered to share their experience and knowledge related to specific situations, roles or conditions that can exacerbate mental health challenges during pregnancy or postpartum. Examples include: Bed Rest, Dads, LGBTQIA+ Parents, Military, NICU, Pregnancy and Infant Loss, Teen/Young Adult Parents.

If you have any questions, please contact PSI’s Support Coordinator Manager, Melissa Bentley, at coordinators@postpartum.net.  We look forward to supporting you in your desire to volunteer with the families we serve.

For questions about PSI’s Spanish-language Programs, please contact PSI’s Spanish Language Programs Operations Manager, Karla Cardoza, at Karla@postpartum.net.

The Peer Mentor Program pairs moms, as well as dads, in need of support with a trained volunteer who has also experienced and fully recovered from a Perinatal Mental Health Disorder (PMHDs). Establishing a one-to-one connection with someone who has journeyed through a PMHD offers invaluable insight, encouragement, and hope.

Through weekly communication over the course of six months, our Peers and Mentors build a strong relationship that removes isolation, provides education, and breaks down stigma. Peers and Mentors are thoughtfully matched. Perinatal experiences, family context, and other individual nuances are all considered to create a safe peer-to-peer environment that fosters trust, support, and connection.

For details, click here. If you have any questions about the program, please reach out to Jessica Schultz at peermentor@postpartum.net.

For details about the Spanish peer mentor program, click here. If you have any questions about the Spanish peer mentor program, please reach out to Xenia Valencia at Xenia@postpartum.net

If you’ve fully recovered from your PMHD (recovered for at least one year) and would like to join us as a Mentor, please fill out the application below.

Currently recruiting mentors, and there is a specific need for mentors with lived experience specific to LGBTQI, pregnancy loss, termination, BIPOC, teen parents, partners, and dads.

Postpartum Support International considers volunteer support group facilitators on an ongoing basis and based on need. We encourage people with the following qualifications and experiences to apply:

• Can commit to a minimum of one year of volunteering.
• Can attend approximately 3 hours of observing and 2 hours of initial training on the 4th Monday of the month, 7:30-9:30pm ET
• Can volunteer a minimum of once a month to facilitate groups that are 90 minutes in duration.
• Has a stable and reliable internet connection
• Is at least a year post-recovery from a PMHD
• Has lived/personal experience with one or more of our support group topics. You can find a complete list of our groups here. (https://postpartum.net/get-help/psi-online-support-meetings/) OR is a licensed healthcare professional who has special training in PMHDs or a related area. The PSI 2-Day Components of Care would also meet this requirement.

You can find a complete list of our Spanish support groups here.

Click here for a video about volunteering as a PSI Support Group Facilitator

For questions, please reach out to the Support Groups Program Manager, Megan Roberts, at groups@postpartum.net.

For questions about Spanish support groups, please reach out to Karla Cardoza at Karla@postpartum.net

PSI State Chapters are often looking for new board members or individuals to become members at the local level. PSI State Chapters advance the mission of PSI on the state level and help to build systems that support families while also increasing access to education and treatment for perinatal mental health.

Chapter leaders work to raise awareness, create resources, and advocate for change. Several State Chapters are currently recruiting board members, shown below, or click here to visit your local chapter page.

• Currently Recruiting in Alaska, Connecticut, Indiana, Florida, Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska, New York,  Utah &  Canada.

The Climb is a community walk and international fundraiser for survivors, providers, and members of the community to come together.

Raising awareness for perinatal mood and anxiety disorders, The Climb brings our community together to shine a light on a darkness we often don’t speak about. Perinatal mood and anxiety disorders are the most common complication of childbearing.

For information about The Climb, please click here.

To learn more about becoming a Climb Leader, please click here.

In addition to the valuable volunteer roles described in the sections above, we have these volunteer opportunities:

• Help write for our newsletter or blog.  Email samantha@postpartum.net
• Help write for our Spanish newsletter or blog.  Email aocana@postpartum.net Formulario de interés para escribir en el blog PSI español
• Participate in one of our essential committees:
  • Fundraising, PR/Marketing
• Be a Virtual Volunteer by sharing PSI news on social media. Contact socialmedia@postpartum.net for more information about social media volunteering.
• Are you interested in collaborating with our Spanish PSI social media influencers and organizations? Contact us at enarvaez@postpartum.net