Supporting Black Mothers Through a Relational Lens What Infant Mental Health Can Teach Us About Seeing, Supporting, and Staying With Mothers
What helps a mother feel safe enough to receive care—and what becomes possible for her baby when she does? This two-hour interactive training explores Black maternal mental health through a relational and infant and early childhood mental health (IECMH) lens. Anicia Battles, LMSW, IMH-E®, integrates current research, clinical and home-visiting experience, relationship-based practice, and her lived experience as a Black mother raising her son. This training is designed for anyone who supports mothers and families—including professionals in mental health, healthcare, home visiting, early childhood, social services, public health, community-based programs, and other family-serving settings. Participants do not need prior training in infant mental health to benefit from the session. Participants will examine factors contributing to disparities in Black maternal mental health, including racism, chronic stress, systemic inequities, cultural context, barriers to care, and experiences within healthcare and social service systems. The training then applies core Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health principles—including emotional safety, curiosity, attunement, co-regulation, culturally responsive care, and reflective practice—to consider how these same relational conditions can strengthen support for mothers.
Learning Objectives
At the conclusion of this training, participants will be able to:
- Identify at least three factors that contribute to disparities in Black maternal mental health and reflect on how helping professionals and systems may unintentionally reinforce barriers to trust, safety, access, or engagement.
- Describe at least two infant and early childhood mental health principles—such as emotional safety, attunement, curiosity, co-regulation, culturally responsive care, or reflective practice—and explain how they can be applied when supporting Black mothers and their babies.
- Apply a relational lens to one practice scenario and identify at least one concrete change that could strengthen trust, relational safety, cultural responsiveness, continuity, or connection for Black mothers and families.
