Vanessa Babineau, PhD

Vanessa Babineau, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Science (Ob/Gyn) at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Director of the Resilient Beginnings Laboratory (ReBeL). She is the Principal Investigator of NIH and BBRF grants focused on biological pathways of intergenerational trauma in pregnancy and infant brain and behavior development. Her research identifies biological and behavioral pathways of intergenerational trauma and risk for mental health disorders to future generations in the context of mental health during pregnancy (e.g., depression, anxiety, PTSD, bipolar disorder) among persons who have a history of trauma including experiences of childhood maltreatment. Mother-child dyads are followed longitudinally to identify associations with newborn amygdala connectivity, infant emotion regulation, mother-infant interactions, parenting sensitivity, and risk for psychopathology. She also contributed to PREPP (Practical Resources for Effective Postpartum Parenting), a clinical trial at Columbia University to prevent postpartum depression. Dr. Babineau's research promotes resilient beginnings by supporting the development of trauma-responsive perinatal interventions integrated in Ob/Gyn practice.

Dr. Babineau serves as a licensed Clinical Psychologist in the Women’s Mental Health Center, a mental health service in collaboration with Mount Sinai's Ob/Gyn practices. She specializes in trauma-responsive care and the treatment of mood and anxiety disorders in the perinatal period.

Faculty at Mount Sinai since 2026, Dr. Babineau serves as a member of the Mindich Child Health and Development Institute, the Friedman Brain Institute, and the BioMedical Engineering and Imaging Institute (BMEII).

Dr. Babineau obtained her PhD at McGill University with distinction as a Vanier Scholar awarded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and completed her clinical training at the Jewish General Hospital in Montreal and the William Alanson White Institute in New York City. She completed a CIHR Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at Columbia University in Ob/Gyn and Psychiatry with a subsequent appointment as Assistant Professor and Clinical Psychologist.