Mothering Without a Map

I finished reading ‘Mothering Without a Map’ by Kathryn Black while at my Yoga Retreat this past weekend. It was very well written and dealt with the subject of under-mothered women and their path to being good mothers. There was great compassion in the writing both for daughters and mothers, clearly recognizing that being under-mothered is very much a chain through the history of successive mothers. It also highlighted how under-mothered women break this chain with their own children.

Black seamlessly interweaves her own story and the stories of the women she interviewed with psychological theories, particularly those of Maslow and developmental psychologists such as Winnicott. I have personally found Maslow's theory of self-actualization to be a very interesting and widely applicable theory since first studying it as an undergrad in psychology many years ago. It's been fascinating to see it pop up in various different areas over the years and here it is again providing both insights into our developmental needs and a framework in which to think of the goals of mothering/parenting as well.

What I found particularly valuable was how many of the ideas and statements could be applied to motherhood and parenting in general. There were some passages that particularly struck me and I may post a few to this blog as I digest what I’ve read.

Oh, and thanks Gail for introducing me to this book!