Join our campaign to make the word matrescence better known.
Just like adolescence, when a woman becomes a mother a new identity emerges.
Matrescence gives that process its due respect.
the advocate...
When Maggie Gordon-Walker became a mum she felt isolated, lonely and like she was failing. She realised there were others who felt this way, who wanted to talk openly and honestly about their dreams and hopes, as women, as well as mothers.
the group...
Mothers Uncovered was established in 2008 and we've helped thousands of women with our creative support groups focused on the mother. Women realise they are not the only ones struggling and they feel less isolated and lonely. Many women say we have quite literally, 'saved their lives.'
the petition...
Our campaign began because we met so many women broken by the experience of motherhood. Some of our participants were diagnosed with depression, many didn’t go to their doctor, feeling they could or should battle on regardless, or felt ashamed to admit they were not coping.
matrescence makes sense of motherhood
matrescence in the spotlight
Advocacy, Resources,
Support Groups
experiences
Our Blog
Recent posts
Ashleigh Houlton: Why Should We Be Shamed to Silence?
April 8, 2024
The mental health of mothers is a serious business
September 21, 2023
Anna Kisby: Best and Worst
July 27, 2023
Saskia Neary: What would you tell a pregnant woman?
July 27, 2023
Chloe Forfitt: New Mum
July 27, 2023join our matrescence sessions
Would you like to share the story of your matrescence? We are running online sessions, led by one of our experienced facilitators, to explore how matrescence has changed you. Open to all stages of motherhood, whether you’re a very new mother or gave birth years ago.
Background to Matrescence
Dana Raphael, as well as introducing the word 'doula', coined the word matrescence in 1973 in an essay published in the book she edited.
'Childbirth brings about a series of very dramatic changes in the new mother’s physical being, in her emotional life, in her status within the group, even in her own female identity. I distinguish this period of transition from others by terming it matrescence to emphasize the mother and to focus on her new lifestyle.'
The Tender Gift of Breastfeeding.
Being Female: Reproduction, Power and Change.'
Dana Raphael
Anthropologist
The women who popularised Raphael's work and brought it into the open.
Athan, a faculty member at Columbia University, discovered Raphael's teachings in 2008 and began applying them to maternal mental health.
Sacks wrote a NY Times piece, then delivered a TedX talk in 2018, spreading the word further.
Aurelie Athan & Alexandra Sacks
Psychologist & Psychiatrist
About
Maggie's story:
When I gave birth to my first child in 2004 I felt like I was stuck in a big tunnel, cocooned from reality by the effects of the epidural. The midwife said, ‘Let’s get Mum up to the ward’ and I thought, ‘my Mum’s not here, is she?’ I couldn’t get my head round the fact that I was ‘Mum’.
I cried every day for weeks, although I’d give the impression everything was fine. I felt invisible, lonely and like I was failing, but not enough to be flagged up with post-natal depression (PND). What would that mean? Might my baby, that I loved so very much, be taken away from me?
Contact us to join one of our matrescence sessions or if you would like to share a link to your support group or appear on our blog:
