Motherhood in motion, anchored by community.
postpartum therapist in chicago
Motherbound exists to hold space for the tender, transformative experience of early parenthood. Through connection, shared stories, and community-rooted care, we help mothers and families feel seen, supported, and strengthened, because no one is meant to do this alone.
Motherbound was born from a truth too many mothers face in silence: the early months of parenthood are as isolating as they are beautiful.
Despite the abundance of baby products and parenting advice, what’s often missing is a space where mothers themselves—their stories, fears, identities, and growth—are truly seen and supported. As a perinatal therapist and community-builder, our founder witnessed again and again how transformative it can be when mothers are held in connection, not just responsibility. That vision became Motherbound.
We believe motherhood is not meant to be done alone. It's a threshold experience—a journey of becoming, undoing, relearning, and rising. At Motherbound, we hold space for that evolution.
Our Brand Story
Through intimate, therapist-facilitated group sessions, we offer more than support; we offer belonging. Here, mothers gather in circle, not to be taught how to parent perfectly, but to connect to themselves, to one another, and to the wisdom that community holds.
Rooted in clinical care, emotional warmth, and cultural humility, our programs honor the complexity of postpartum life: its joys, griefs, shifts, and longings. We center social connection as a healing force and group care as a radical form of resistance to the isolation so many parents experience. Whether you're a mother in her first days, a father navigating change, or a grandmother holding the lineage, Motherbound welcomes you.
We are not just a service.
We are a space. A circle. A grounding place.
Where care is collective. Where stories are sacred.
Where you don't have to hold it all alone.
You are becoming. We are Motherbound.
Meet the Founder
Karima Shabana is a licensed clinical social worker, psychotherapist, and women’s mental health advocate with over 15 years of experience supporting individuals and families through life’s most profound transitions. A graduate of the University of Chicago’s Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice and Columbia University, Karima has dedicated her career to addressing the often-unspoken emotional complexities that arise during the perinatal period—particularly for mothers and families navigating postpartum mood and anxiety disorders.
Karima's path has always been rooted in service, but it was her own work with mothers—both inside clinical spaces and in the community—that revealed the profound need for something more than individual therapy or one-size-fits-all parent education. She saw women yearning for connection, for language, for understanding that went beyond symptom management. She witnessed how healing happens not only in private sessions but in shared stories, in circles of belonging, in the quiet moment when someone says, “Me too.” That insight gave birth to Motherbound.
As founder and clinical director of Motherbound, Karima blends clinical expertise with an intuitive understanding of emotional nuance and social context. She designs group programs that are as grounded in evidence-based therapeutic practice as they are in warmth, community-building, and cultural sensitivity. Her role extends beyond facilitation—Karima is a listener, a witness, and a guide. She ensures that Motherbound remains a space where mothers feel held, heard, and honored in their becoming.
Karima’s vision is expansive:
She is not just building a business—she is cultivating a movement toward community-rooted care for new parents. She dreams of a world where emotional support is not a luxury, but a standard part of postpartum care; where mothers, fathers, and caregivers are bound not by pressure, but by compassion and connection.
At Motherbound, Karima’s leadership is both personal and professional. It’s a reflection of who she is: a clinician with heart, a mother with vision, and a woman committed to reimagining how we care for those doing the most important work of all—raising the next generation.
Our Values
At Motherbound, our impact lives in the quiet revolutions of new parenthood: a mother who feels less alone in her anxiety, a father who learns to listen more deeply, a grandmother who reclaims her role as nurturer and guide.
We exist to make these transformations possible, through community, care, and clinically grounded support that meets families where they are. Our work centers emotional wellness during the postpartum period, a time often overlooked in traditional healthcare systems. By offering intimate, therapist-led group sessions, we provide a rare space where vulnerability is welcomed, connection is encouraged, and healing happens collectively. These groups help prevent isolation, reduce symptoms of postpartum mood disorders, and foster lifelong tools for emotional resilience and partnership.
Beyond the individuals we serve, Motherbound nurtures a broader cultural shift—one that values rest, reflection, and the emotional labor of parenting. We’re building communities that raise one another, shaping a world where support isn’t an afterthought, but a foundational part of care. With every circle we form, we create ripples—within families, across communities, and into the next generation.
This is the heart of our impact: real change, one connected parent at a time.
