Carly's Couch On the Couch with Carly

From caterpillar to butterfly: The metamorphosis of motherhood that no one talks about

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I'm going solo today to talk about a book that has absolutely changed my life - Lucy Jones' "Matrescence." This is the book I wish someone had told me to read before I had my first baby seven years ago. I read it on holiday like a page-turner novel, completely captivated by how it put words to experiences I'd never been able to articulate.

Matrescence is like adolescence - a profound metamorphosis involving massive neurological and hormonal changes. Lucy brilliantly compares it to a caterpillar in its cocoon, in that gooey phase where you're neither who you were nor who you're becoming. We understand and support teenagers through their transformation, but leave mothers to navigate an equally dramatic change alone.
I explore why this concept should be part of every birth conversation, how we've misinterpreted attachment theory to pressure mothers even more, and why keeping another human alive is actually a massive psychological task. This gets political - it's about changing how society treats the most important work we do.

Resources:
Check Matrescence: On the Metamorphosis of Pregnancy, Childbirth and Motherhood by Lucy Jones: https://www.amazon.com/Matrescence-Childbirth-Motherhood-Lucy-Jones/dp/0593317319

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9 Jul English Explicit South Africa Self-Improvement · Relationships

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