What is Reproductive Psychiatry?
Reproductive psychiatry focuses on mental health across reproductive life stages—times when hormonal and body changes can seriously impact mood, anxiety, sleep, focus, and overall well-being.
It includes care for menstrual and premenstrual symptoms, fertility challenges and reproductive loss, pregnancy and postpartum, PCOS and other hormone-related conditions, and perimenopause/menopause.
Meet the Team
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Medical Director, Co-FounderDr. Lindsay Standeven is a board-certified adult psychiatrist with specialized training in women’s mental health and reproductive psychiatry. At the heart of her work is a deeply held belief that what women experience in their bodies and minds deserves to be understood, named, and taken seriously.
After completing her psychiatry training at Johns Hopkins Hospital, Dr. Standeven pursued an additional two-year academic fellowship to develop true expertise in women’s mental health and reproductive transitions. Early in her career, she served on the faculty at Johns Hopkins as the Clinical and Education Director of the Reproductive Mental Health Center, where she provided clinical care and trained future psychiatrists. Her academic work allows her to stay current with emerging research and evolving treatments.
Dr. Standeven works with patients across the full spectrum of reproductive transitions, including menstruation and premenstrual mood symptoms, infertility and reproductive loss, pregnancy and postpartum, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), and perimenopause and menopause. Across these stages, many patients notice changes in sleep, mood, cognition, energy, and self-image—yet are often told these symptoms are “just stress,” “just hormonal,” or something they should simply tolerate. Dr. Standeven is passionate about helping women understand the very real biological and hormonal changes that occur during these transitions and about validating experiences that are too often overlooked or dismissed. These symptoms are not imagined, not a personal failing, and are treatable.
Her approach is collaborative, thoughtful, and warm. Dr. Standeven believes care works best when patients feel heard and informed. She deeply respects the vulnerability it takes to talk about mental health, identity shifts, and bodily changes, and she sees her role as a partner—helping patients make sense of what is happening and supporting them as they move toward feeling more like themselves again.
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Psychiatrist
Dr. Sasha Narayan is board-certified in Adult Psychiatry. She completed Adult Psychiatry residency training at Johns Hopkins Hospital in 2024 with a focus on women’s mental health and reproductive psychiatry. She is currently pursuing additional sub-specialization fellowship training in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Bloomberg Children’s Center at Johns Hopkins.Dr. Narayan is passionate about maternal-infant and young-child attachment, especially for parents who themselves struggle with mood, anxiety, or executive function disorders, like depression, OCD, anxiety, and ADHD. She enjoys helping families navigate the challenging reality that the “village” has disappeared from our current society, and childrearing is now the hardest that it has ever been. She particularly enjoys supporting people through significant hormonal fluctuations. For parents who experience matrescence, pregnancy, birth, and the post-partum period, issues such as sibling integration, feeding, and return-to-work can arise. Additionally, Dr. Narayan enjoys supporting people who are undergoing feminizing therapies, including hormones and/or surgery, while navigating mental health treatment.
Dr. Narayan’s typical practice is to combine thoughtful medication management with lifestyle, education, and therapeutic techniques to arrive at a plan that feels manageable and realistic for each person’s unique situation. She is friendly and collaborative, and aims to leverage her patients’ own expertise and lived-experiences to help improve their quality of life.
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Therapist and Co-Founder
I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, and I have been working in maternal mental healthcare for nearly 15 years. During this time, I have gained valuable insights into the complexities of mental health and the unique challenges faced by women across their lifespan. For 10 years, I worked and trained at the Johns Hopkins Women’s Mood Disorders Center (now the Center for Reproductive Mental Health), where I was trained by leaders in reproductive psychiatry, which enriched both my clinical skills and my commitment to women’s mental health.
I specialize in treating Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and provide Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) Treatment, which is the gold-standard, evidence-based approach for OCD. When I provide ERP, it is a time-bound service, with the duration of treatment depending on the severity of symptoms.
My passion lies in understanding and supporting women through various stages of their life, including challenges related to the menstrual cycle, fertility, pregnancy, pregnancy loss, postpartum, perimenopause, and beyond. I am dedicated to providing collaborative, evidence-based care that addresses the mental well-being of my clients, helping them navigate the emotional and psychological aspects of their journey.
As a therapist, I bring respect, partnership, and empathy to my practice. I believe that every individual has the potential to overcome the obstacles they face and build a life that is meaningful and full of the experiences they value. I am committed to working with my clients to identify their strengths, address their concerns, and develop personalized strategies for overall wellness.
Whether you are dealing with the stress of pregnancy, postpartum challenges, navigating a fertility journey, or coping with pregnancy loss, I am here to offer the support, guidance, and tools to help you through. Together, we can work towards enhancing your mental health and well-being.
MD License: 19164
IN License: 34009801A