Counseling for Working Moms in Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Online Therapy for Moms in Cedar Rapids, Iowa | Dr. Emily Fornwalt, PhD, LMHC

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Being the Default Parent as a Working Mom

It’s 6:15am, and the daycare texts that it’s closed for snow. Before you finish reading the text, you’re already moving your 9am meeting, because you don’t stop to ask whether anyone else could take the day. You never do.

Your name is the first contact on every form, from daycare to the pediatrician to the dentist. When the school nurse calls about pinkeye, she calls you. When a permission slip needs a signature, you’re the one who finds it at the bottom of a backpack at 9pm.

At work, you take the 7am calls so you can leave early for pickup, and you log back on after bedtime to finish. Lately, you’ve noticed that you aren’t asked to lead the big projects anymore, and you wonder if it’s because you’re always the one leaving early.

You’re good at all of it, and your kids are lucky to have you. You’re also tired of rearranging your whole day every time a kid gets sick, school lets out early, or practice gets moved, and you’re ready to stop doing it automatically.

Why Time Off Doesn’t Feel Restful When You’re a Working Mom

You keep two running lists in your head. One is for work and one is for home, and you add to both of them all day. When you finally sit down, you start going through the lists. That’s how a free hour turns into an hour of planning. After years of this, stopping feels like falling behind, so you feel uneasy any time you aren’t doing something useful.

That habit has helped you. It’s the reason your projects get done and nobody misses a dentist appointment.

But the cost is that you’re tired in a way a good night’s sleep doesn’t fix, and a week of vacation only starts to help the day before it ends.

→ My counseling for professional moms page explains more about how I work with moms who are balancing careers and kids.

How I Work as a Therapist for Working Moms in Des Moines

I’m Dr. Emily Fornwalt, a licensed mental health counselor in Iowa, and I work online with moms in Des Moines who haven’t had a real break in years.

In our sessions, we’ll pay attention to what happens when you try to take a break, like sitting on the couch after the kids are asleep or taking a day off work. Maybe you feel your shoulders tense, or you start thinking about tomorrow’s meeting the minute the house gets quiet.

We’ll look at what goes on for you in those moments and what you believe will happen if you don’t keep going. That way, you can enjoy the time you have with your kids and for yourself, without feeling like you’re falling behind.

I won’t ask you to do less at work or care less at home. We’ll work on how you feel when you take a break, so the evenings and weekends you already have leave you with more energy, instead of a longer to-do list.

I keep my caseload small, around ten clients, so I have time to think about what you bring each week and to remember what we worked on last time.

A black and white photograph of a rocky stream in a dense forest, with tree branches overhead and sunlight filtering through the leaves.

How Counseling Helps Working Moms in Des Moines.

When you go years without a real break, the cost adds up. You can end up scaling back a career you love, feeling too tired to enjoy the weekends you work so hard for, or feeling far away from your kids even when you’re in the same room.

Our work helps you enjoy the life you already have, instead of just getting through it.

You close your laptop at 6pm and leave the rest for the morning. The first few nights, you feel uneasy, and you notice the feeling without opening the laptop again. A month later, you start each workday with more energy, you make clearer decisions in meetings, and you get the same work done without the late nights.

On your next vacation, you turn off your work email before you leave. By the second day, you’re reading a book on the beach and laughing with your kids in the pool. You come home rested instead of dreading Monday, and the trip you saved for feels worth what you paid.

You used to think you had to finish the chores before you were allowed to play with your kids. Now, when your son asks you to build his new Lego set on Saturday morning, you sit down on the floor with him first. You do the laundry on Sunday afternoon, and you remember that you like slow mornings as much as he does.

You finally book the doctor’s appointment you’ve put off for two years, and you keep it, even though it means moving a meeting. Taking care of yourself stops feeling like one more task you don’t have time for, and you start to feel like a person with needs of her own again.

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Dr. Emily Fornwalt, standing and leaning against a wall.

About dr. emily fornwalt, PhD, LMHC

Therapist for Professional Moms in Des Moines, Iowa

I’m Dr. Emily Fornwalt, a licensed mental health counselor in Iowa, and I work online with moms in Des Moines who are tired of spending every evening and weekend catching up.

I provide secure online therapy for women in Iowa, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.

Learn more about me

How to get started in Counseling

Prices and logistics:

Sessions are 45 minutes, usually once a week, and cost $225 each. Your first session is a 90-minute intake, and it costs $450.

My practice is private pay. I don’t bill insurance, and I don’t provide superbills, which are the receipts some clients send to their insurance company for out-of-network reimbursement. Because I don’t bill insurance, no information about our sessions goes to an insurance company.

I work online with moms in Iowa, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia, and you’ll need to be in one of those states during each session. My practice is based in Eastern Time, which is one hour ahead of Iowa.

Self-Schedule here:

  1. Choose an appointment time through my HIPAA-compliant calendar using the button below.

  2. I’ll review your request and confirm it, usually within one business day. Then you’ll get your new client forms by email and a text from IvyPay asking you to add a card.

  3. Log on for your first session at the time you scheduled, using the secure video link in your confirmation.

Schedule your first session here

Have a practical question before Scheduling? Send me a message below.

If you have a question before you schedule, send it here and I’ll reply personally within two business days. This form is private and secure, so you’re welcome to share as much or as little as you’d like about what’s bringing you to therapy.

This form is only checked during regular business hours, so if you’re in crisis or need help right away, please call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room.

How do you prefer to be contacted? (required)

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Fees and insurance (required)

Your first session with me is 90 minutes for $450, and each ongoing 45-minute session is $225. I work with clients directly rather than through insurance, so I don’t bill insurance companies or provide Superbills (itemized receipts for out-of-network reimbursement).

Areas Served in Des Moines

I’m licensed in Iowa as a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC #140678), and I work with moms in Des Moines and surrounding areas through secure, HIPAA-compliant Google Meet.

This includes:

  • Des Moines neighborhoods, including Downtown, the East Village, Sherman Hill, Drake, Beaverdale, Waterbury, Highland Park, River Bend, Gray’s Lake, Southwestern Hills, and Easter Lake

  • Windsor Heights and the western suburbs, including West Des Moines, Clive, Urbandale, Waukee, and Van Meter

  • The northern suburbs, including Ankeny, Johnston, Grimes, Granger, and Polk City

  • The eastern and southern suburbs, including Altoona, Pleasant Hill, Bondurant, Norwalk, and Carlisle

  • Nearby towns in Dallas, Warren, Madison, and Jasper counties, including Adel, Indianola, Winterset, and Newton

If you’re a mom anywhere in the Des Moines area, I can work with you.