About us
Born from the belief that no mother
should navigate postpartum alone.
Postpartum Therapy Project was founded because too many mothers fall through the gap between having a baby and getting the mental health care they need. We exist to close it — one fully funded year of therapy at a time.
Why we built this
The moment we knew something had to change.
Postpartum Therapy Project started with a simple, hard truth: far too many mothers reach the edge of what they can carry, and the help they need is either too expensive, too far away, or simply not there.
We watched mothers fall through that gap — between giving birth and getting real mental health care — and decided it didn't have to be that way. So we built something to catch them: our Therapy Access Fund, a full, funded year of specialized therapy, with no cost and no catch.
Our founder's full story — in her own words — is on its way. For now, what matters most is the promise behind it: every mother deserves to feel like someone is in her corner. That belief is why we exist.
Briana Sampson, LMFT, PMH-C — Founder
What we stand for
Our mission
and vision.
To close the gap in postpartum mental health care by providing accessible, specialized therapy to mothers during the first year after having a baby.
A world where every mother has seamless access to mental health support after birth, so no one falls through the gap.
Our values
How we show up.
We meet mothers where they are without infantilizing them. Supportive, but never condescending. We believe in a mother's strength — we're just there to hold space while she finds it.
Evidence-based care communicated through human warmth, not medical sterility. We take the science seriously and leave the jargon at the door.
We acknowledge real struggle while holding a clear-eyed belief in recovery and support. We won't tell a mother to "look on the bright side." We'll just stay with her until she can.
Language and care that feel approachable to any mother — not a luxury wellness brand, not a hospital system. PTP is for every mother who needs it, full stop.
The people behind PTP
Built by people who care deeply.
Briana Sampson, LMFT, PMH-C
Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist — California (LMFT #108056) and Texas (LMFT #204978) · Certified in Perinatal Mental Health (PMH-C)
Briana is a licensed therapist specializing in perinatal mental health. She founded the Postpartum Therapy Project after seeing first-hand how easily a new mother can slip through the cracks — and refusing to accept it. She leads the clinical standards behind PTP's funded care and reviews the guidance published on this site.
“Getting this right matters more to me than anything I've ever built.”
Our care is guided by clinicians who specialize in perinatal and relational mental health.
Aubrey is an Associate Professional Clinical Counselor (#7100) and Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (#116931) in the state of CA. She practices under the supervision of Kathleen Shanahan, LMFT (#125453).
Aubrey's passion lies in helping people grow — whether that's couples building stronger connections, parents finding balance in a new season, or leaders learning to thrive in both life and work.
As a founding member of the Townsend Institute, Aubrey helped shape transformational education that is relational, for future counselors, coaches, and leaders. Working closely with Dr. John Townsend, New York Times bestselling author and psychologist, she trained directly in the Townsend Growth Model, an approach that blends clinical insight with emotional and relational health.
Clients describe Aubrey as warm, grounded, and practical. She draws from evidence-based models while keeping a deeply relational perspective. Passionate about impacting future generations, Aubrey works with couples, families, children, and leaders to grow where necessary. Her specialized trainings include:
- Premarital counseling as a certified SYMBIS facilitator
- Couples counseling using Gottman Method principles
- Parenthood and perinatal support as a certified Perinatal Mental Health professional (Postpartum Support International) and a certified Bringing Baby Home Educator (the Gottman Institute)
- Childhood mental health with trainings by NOCD and The Institute of Child Psychology
Beyond therapy, Aubrey also partners with teams and organizations as a certified Working Genius facilitator, helping leaders and groups grow in self-awareness, connection and effectiveness.
Dr. Olivia Wedel is a Licensed Professional Counselor-Supervisor (TX), a National Certified Counselor, and holds certification in Perinatal Mental Health (PMH-C). A native of Virginia, she came to Texas for graduate school and obtained her Master's and PhD from TCU in 2007 and 2017, respectively. Olivia is also the owner and CEO of Olivia Wedel Counseling & Consulting, PLLC, where she specializes in postpartum mental health using solution-focused and narrative therapies, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, and brainspotting.
Dr. Olivia worked as a professional counselor for over 10 years before changing her specialization to perinatal mental health, where she has invested and trained extensively over the last six years since having her son in 2020. She is trained and certified in The Art of Holding Perinatal Women in Distress (with Karen Kleiman) and Mother Loss Grief Training (with Hope Edelman), and is trained and licensed in Postpartum Nutrition (with The Postpartum University). She is also a trained facilitator in the Circle of Security, an attachment-based parenting program.
Dr. Olivia is active in board service as Past-President of the Texas Mental Health Counselors Association (2021–2023), where she currently serves as a Director-at-Large; she also serves as a Board Member-at-Large for the Solution-Focused Brief Therapy Association (North America) and the Texas Association for Assessment & Research in Counseling. She has presented on stages from local to international platforms on topics related to perinatal mental health, and completed a study abroad on International Practices of Counseling with an emphasis on solution-focused therapy and practice. Outside of work and service, Olivia enjoys traveling with her husband and son; they love finding local playgrounds and coffee shops in the places they visit.
Gretchen is a therapist who works with individuals and couples through an attachment and relationship-focused lens. At the heart of her work is the belief that we heal in relationship.
She helps clients understand what is happening underneath the patterns they find themselves stuck in — not just what they do, but the fears, needs, protective strategies, and stories driving those behaviors. With couples, she helps partners move beyond the surface-level conflict to better understand the cycle between them and create a relationship where both people can feel known, understood, and secure.
A central part of her work is helping people learn to hold compassion and accountability at the same time. Understanding why we developed certain behaviors does not mean excusing their impact, and taking responsibility does not require shame or condemnation. She believes meaningful change happens when we can understand ourselves with compassion while also taking responsibility for what needs to be different.
Her style is warm, direct, curious, and engaged. She wants therapy to be more than a place where you gain insight into your patterns. She wants it to become a place where you begin experiencing something different — learning that it can be safe to be known, safe to have needs, safe to remain connected through differences, and possible to repair when things go wrong.
Financial transparency
Where your money goes.
The large majority — 85% — of every gift goes directly to therapy. Our model is designed to keep overhead minimal and impact maximal. When you fund a mom's year of therapy, you know exactly where it goes.
Allocations are targets set for our first operating year. Actual figures will be published in our annual report once operations begin. We are committed to full financial transparency.
Your gift is tax-deductible today. PTP operates under the fiscal sponsorship of Women's Nonprofit Alliance, a registered 501(c)(3), so donations are tax-deductible now. Gifts may appear on your statement as “Women's Nonprofit Alliance,” and are credited directly to PTP.
PTP grew out of the same founding vision as Rooted Healing, and shares its commitment to grounded, human-centered care — and the belief that mental health support should be accessible to everyone, not a luxury.