What No One Tells You - A Guide to Your Emotions from Pregnancy to Motherhood

Zusatztext “Too often women imagine pregnancy! childbirth! and the first year of parenthood through rose-colored glasses. Reproductive psychiatrists Sacks and Birndorf reassuringly talk about why these experiences can be stressful. They call pregnancy early motherhood 'matrescence!' which fittingly sounds like adolescence! 'another time when bodies morph and hormones surge'…. A good guide to mental health issues faced by new parents.” — Booklist Informationen zum Autor Alexandra Sacks and Catherine Birndorf Klappentext "Your guide to the emotions of pregnancy and early motherhood, from two of America's top reproductive psychiatrists. With a combined thirty years of counseling new and expectant mothers, Dr. Sacks and Dr. Birndorf have seen firsthand how the pressure to be perfect, and perfectly happy, leaves women feeling confused and even ashamed of the emotions that can bubble up during pregnancy. Now, in What No One Tells You, the two psychiatrists show why it's natural for "matrescence"--the birth of a mother--to be as stressful and transformative a period as adolescence. From the swirl of trepidation and joy of seeing that plus sign, to the complexities of bonding with a tiny and mighty newborn human, Drs. Sacks and Birndorf provide a roadmap for mothers-to-be, detailing the emotions (both positive and negative) that can develop, explaining the psychological backstory as to why, and offering women a practical guide for managing the ups and downs of this exciting, exhausting time. After years of hearing their patients say, "But how come no one told me?" Drs. Birndorf and Sacks are ready to share their secrets with the world"--What No One Tells You Introduction Julie had dreamed for years about becoming a mother. It took months of trying, but finally, here she was, excited, grateful, and a bit nauseated. At an early doctor’s appointment, she and her husband were relieved to hear that the screening results were healthy. Julie and her husband hadn’t discussed whether they’d want to know the baby’s sex in advance, but when the doctor asked, “Do you want to find out?” they locked eyes and agreed: “Sure, let’s go for it.” The doctor smiled and said, “Congratulations, you’re having a boy!” Julie’s husband squeezed her hand and beamed, but she felt her heart sink. Since the baby she had always imagined had been a little girl, she felt like she was losing that dream. What’s wrong with me? she asked herself. My baby is healthy, my husband is happy, and all I can feel is disappointment that I’m not having a girl? She plastered on a fake smile, but as she gathered her things to leave the exam room, all she could think was: Am I a horrible person? Will I be able to love my son? Everything was going well, but Julie was spiraling, caught up in her worst fear: being a bad mom. Julie wasn’t a bad mom, of course. She loved her son, and once he was born, she would say that she couldn’t imagine any other baby than him. But this wasn’t the last time in her pregnancy or motherhood that she would be troubled by mixed feelings—about her son, about herself, about her choice to become a mother. And for Julie, as for many mothers, these ambivalent feelings sent up red flags. Anything less than joy and contentment, Julie thought, must mean there was something wrong. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. The expectation that babies bring ultimate happiness is not only unrealistic, it’s dangerous. Our culture reinforces a story of motherhood that has left out doubt, uncertainty, and the bittersweet, and this myth has become hazardous to women’s mental health. It’s time to rebirth pregnancy and bring parenting down to earth. We, the authors of this book, are reproductive...

Product details

• Authors: Catherine Birndorf, Alexandra Sacks, Alexandra/ Birndorf Sacks
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster USA
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 30.04.2019
• EAN: 9781501112560
• ISBN: 978-1-5011-1256-0
• Dimensions: 152 mm x 228 mm x 23 mm
• Subject: Guides > Health