Women's Experiences Of Motherhood Research Articles

What roles do male partners play in the mothering experiences of women living with mental illness? A qualitative secondary analysis

BackgroundMothers who live with mental illness face diverse challenges. Research suggests that partner support or otherwise is likely to have a crucial influence on mothers’ abilities to manage these challenges, yet little is known about how this plays out. In this study, we aimed to explore the roles played by male partners in the mothering experiences of women living with mental illness.MethodsWe conducted a qualitative secondary analysis using interview data collected from 18 participants in two previous qualitative studies. Both studies focused on the mothering experiences of women who lived with mental illness. In both studies, the importance of male partners was striking. The data were analyzed using constant comparative analysis.ResultsThe roles of partners in women’s experiences of mothering were multiple and dynamic, with each male partner playing a unique combination of roles. These included: facilitator; teammate; unfulfilled potential; distraction; dismantler, and threat to child. Roles were influenced by: mothers’ interpretations; partners' behaviors, characteristics and circumstances; the family’s living and custody arrangements; mothers’ active management strategies; and a range of external controls and supports.ConclusionsHealth professionals need to consider the complex roles partners play. This crucial aspect of mothers’ social environments can be optimized by directly supporting and enabling partners themselves, and by supporting mothers to actively shape their partners’ roles.

The Mothering Experiences of Women With Substance Use Disorders.

The aim of this qualitative study was to describe the mothering experiences of women with substance use disorders. We conducted semistructured, individual interviews with 15 mothers. Using thematic analysis, 5 themes were identified: (1) facing the reality of a pregnancy complicated by substance use, trauma, and loss, (2) finding a higher meaning, (3) dealing with the consequences, (4) managing the details of daily life, and (5) looking toward a future with my children. Moreover, the women described entering motherhood with uncertainty, fear, shame, and stress. We hope that these findings will lead to more compassionate nursing care for this population.

The mothering experiences of sex‐trafficked women: Between here and there.

This qualitative study focuses on the mothering experiences of women from the former Soviet Union (FSU) who were sex-trafficked to Israel. In-depth interviews were conducted with 8 women who gave birth either in the FSU or in Israel. The women's stories reflect 3 experiential spheres, those of "the good mother," "the sacrificing mother," and "the mother who wants for herself." These mothering spheres were found to exist against the backdrop of a life between 2 countries, where the women's mothering is split between "here" and "there." Furthermore, it was found that the women's sex-trafficking experience continually threatened to invade the 3 mothering spheres and destabilize the balance among them. The splits and conflicts among the mothering spheres are examined from a gendered perspective with emphasis on mother-daughter relationships and on the social constructions of mothering and prostitution.

Double Binds and the Reproductive and Mothering Experiences of HIV-Positive Women

In spite of the increasing number of young women infected with HIV in the United States, little is known about the reproductive and mothering experiences of these women. The purpose of the grounded-theory research discussed in this article was to describe the reproductive and mothering experiences of HIV-positive women. Twenty HIV-positive women participated in 31 in-depth interviews. The grounded-theory method was used for data analysis. A communication pattern known in the psychiatric literature as a double bind was discovered to be a basic social psychological problem that affected the women's experiences with reproduction and mothering. An understanding of the power and influence of these double binds permits health care professionals to plan patient-centered programs and to individualize care specifically for HIV-positive women.