BLACK MAMAS CIRCLE
- Form social connections with Black mothers
- Receive support from a peer mentor mother
- Access to community services, mental health therapy and medication
- Referrals as needed
A free peer-to-peer support group where pregnant and postpartum Black mothers connect, learn and increase well-being through shared experiences.
Join from home, your car, or wherever you can sit down for an hour. Your link is sent after you register.
Gather face to face with other mamas. Babies welcome. Location details are shared when you register.
Scan for the flyer
To register, call Women's Behavioral Health and Wellness: 303-724-1646
November Diaper Drive
All month long, we're collecting diapers and baby essentials for the mamas and babies in our circle. Every pack you give means one less worry for a new mom — and more room for rest, joy, and healing.
Drop-off: 13123 East 16th Ave, Aurora, CO 80045
Questions & drop-off hours: 720-777-1234
COMMUNITY DRIVES
Diapers, toys and holiday cheer for the mamas and babies in our circle.
WHAT YOU'LL FIND IN THE CIRCLE
Free weekly sessions guided by community members and a Black perinatal psychiatrist, with one goal: making perinatal mental health care easier to reach for Black moms and babies.
Social connections
Build real friendships and a village with other Black mothers.
Peer mentor mother
Support from a mother who has walked this road herself.
Services, therapy & medication
Access to community services, mental health therapy and medication.
Referrals as needed
Our care coordinator connects you to the next support you need.
IT SHOULDN'T TAKE LUCK TO MAKE IT THROUGH.
In Colorado and across the U.S., Black women and their babies die at higher rates around childbirth than other racial and ethnic groups, and Black babies are more likely to be born early and underweight. These outcomes reflect the systems Black mothers have to navigate — not who they are.
Black Mamas Circle grew out of the need to break the isolation that weighs on expecting and new mothers. That isolation deepened during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it lands harder on Black mamas moving through a healthcare system still shaped by racism.
Many Black mothers don't seek out mental health care, can't easily reach it, or don't feel safe naming what they're going through. So we made a room where they can — community-led, peer-facilitated, and uniquely welcoming to Black women and their babies.
THE WOMEN WHO HOLD THE CIRCLE
A psychiatrist, a care coordinator, and a peer mentor mom — and, at the heart of it all, the mamas themselves.
Shaleah Dardar, MD, MSW
Assistant professor of child and adolescent psychiatry at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, practicing at Children's Hospital Colorado. A Xavier University graduate with an MD and MSW from Tulane, she joined CU in 2015 as a fellow in the Irving Harris Program in Child Development and Infant Mental Health.
Christina “Chrissy” Pittman
Chrissy is the connector — linking mamas to culturally concordant resources, referrals, and next steps between and beyond circle sessions.
Kalisha Frazier
Kalisha brings lived experience to the circle, mentoring fellow mothers and making sure every mama who walks in feels seen.
“I DON'T DO THIS ALONE.”— Dr. Shaleah Dardar, on the team and mothers at the heart of the work
THREE STEPS TO YOUR VILLAGE
Call to register
Call Women's Behavioral Health and Wellness at 303-724-1646 and say you'd like to join Black Mamas Circle.
Or send an email
Write to WBHW@cuanschutz.edu with “Black Mamas Circle” in the subject line.
Pick your circle & show up
Virtual Thursdays or in-person Mondays. Come as you are — babies always welcome.
WBHW@CUANSCHUTZ.EDU
Free · Rolling admission · Immediate openings
BLACK MAMAS CIRCLE IN THE NEWS
Improving the Lives of Black Mothers and Their Children
A profile of Dr. Shaleah Dardar and the grassroots, community-based approach behind Black Mamas Circle.
Read the story →Black Mamas Circle on Parents Thrive
Find Black Mamas Circle alongside other Colorado resources for pregnancy, postpartum, and Black families.
View the listing →Black Mamas Circle Flyer
The current schedule and registration details from Women's Behavioral Health and Wellness at CU Anschutz.
Open the flyer →GOOD TO KNOW
Who can join Black Mamas Circle?
The circle is for pregnant and postpartum mothers who identify as Black or African American. Not sure it's for you? Call 303-724-1646 and the team will talk it through with you.
Does it cost anything?
No. Black Mamas Circle is completely free.
Are there openings right now?
Yes — there are immediate openings, and the group has rolling admission, so you can join at any point in your pregnancy or postpartum journey.
Can I go to both sessions?
Ask when you register — the team will help you find the session (or sessions) that fit your schedule.
Is this therapy?
The circle is a peer support group, not a replacement for clinical care. If you'd like therapy or medication, the team can connect you to community services and mental health care.
Can I bring my baby?
Yes. The circle is uniquely inclusive of Black women and their babies — in person or on camera.
HELP US GROW THE VILLAGE.
Black Mamas Circle is a grassroots effort sustained by grant funding — and funding is always in short supply. Your support keeps the circle free, expands its reach, and helps make sure it isn't luck that carries Black mothers and their babies through.