Christine Cunningham

Less than a decade after graduating from the Social Service Worker program, Christine Cunningham has established herself as a leader in the field of perinatal mental health, supporting hundreds of women in need.

Christine runs a successful counselling private practice that serves perinatal clients (those who are pregnant, trying to conceive, or welcoming a baby into their family). She is also the founder and executive director of Perinatal Wellbeing Ontario (PWO), a not-for-profit organization that provides free to low-cost mental health supports to those living with a perinatal mood and anxiety disorder (PMAD).

With OHIP-covered PMAD programs in short supply and high demand, Christine founded PWO to help fill the gap. They offer a number of valuable services for those who don’t have access to care elsewhere, including individual or group therapy and peer support programs, free e-courses for those experiencing symptoms of PMADs, as well as a podcast about challenges in the perinatal period.

Christine also works to increase awareness of PMADs and their impacts on parents and families, and provides support and mentoring through education sessions, one-on-one consultation and supervision with other therapists.

Her contributions to volunteerism have been recognized with several awards, and she works to ensure the future of quality PMAD care by acting as a placement supervisor for Social Service Worker students from Durham College and psychotherapy students from universities throughout Ontario.