Emily Heilman (she/her)

MA, LCSW, BCD, PMH-C
Founder

My background:

I am a trauma-informed Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and Certified Perinatal Mental Health Provider (PMH-C) specializing in women's reproductive mental health and wellness. I support women and their families navigating the fertility journey, pregnancy, the postpartum period, and the reproductive mental health spectrum from preconception through menopause. My expertise in women's and perinatal mental health spans over 20 years, during which I have worked in community mental health, hospital settings, advocacy organizations, and private practice.

Why I’m a therapist:

Throughout my career, I've had the privilege of working with a diverse group of women and their families. My foremost takeaway is that people are incredibly resilient. Our resilience is reflected in our growth and the emotional scars we carry while overcoming hardships like trauma, loss, life transitions, and unexpected roadblocks. It is because of these struggles, not in spite of them, that I believe we all have the capacity to flourish.

From my own journey throughout motherhood, I know how overwhelming and isolating it can feel. I understand how joy and loss coexist, and how the identity shift of becoming a mother is complex and interwoven with our own experiences of being mothered. I also know the crippling feeling and nervous energy associated with postpartum anxiety. It is a journey that is both beautiful and trying, and you do not have to walk it alone.

Education & Training:

Emily Heilman is the owner and founder of Flourish Counseling & Wellness, Inc., located in Kailua, Hawaii; Chicago and Oak Park, Illinois; and Indiana. In addition to her clinical role, she serves as the Advocacy Chair for Postpartum Support International - Hawaii Chapter.

She earned a Master of Social Work and a Master of Arts in Women's Studies from Loyola University Chicago in 2006, and a Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Women's and Gender Studies from Indiana State University in 2004. Following graduate school, she pursued advanced training in infant mental health at the Erikson Institute and studied psychodynamic psychotherapy at the Institute for Clinical Social Work. Additionally, she has completed Level II Gottman Method Couples Therapy training and received specialized training to become a Certified Perinatal Mental Health Provider (PMH-C). Emily's therapeutic approach is trauma-informed, strengths-based, and grounded in relational theory, which emphasizes that mutually satisfying relationships are essential for emotional well-being.

Areas of Specialization:

As a LCSW and PMH-C, Emily has extensive training and experience in treating Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMADs). She provides individual, couples, and group therapy in the following areas: 

• Perinatal anxiety disorders and depression
• Relationship issues
• Infertility, grief, and pregnancy loss
• Fetal anomalies and birth trauma
• Transitions to parenthood and parent
• Child attachment issues
• Women's issues across the lifespan

In addition, Emily has specialized training to conduct third-party psychological consultations for intended parents, directed/non-directed donors, and gestational carriers.