Watauga Children’s Council Assists Parents in Addressing
Postpartum Distress It is 11 a.m. on a Wednesday morning and the members of the
Circle of Parents: Postpartum Distress Support group start to arrive in the virtual space that the group has grown accustomed to since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. They greet each other, holding coffee mugs and sleepy-eyed babies. The topics of discussion, as always, center on whatever these mothers are needing and wanting that day. We celebrate the mother whose baby has finally slept six hours,
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allowing her to feel more human today; we share frustration at the grandparent who made unsolicited and unwanted remarks about one mother’s postpartum body; we collectively grieve the loss of expectations and of identities. We find meaning in the new season in which we find ourselves. These mothers don’t come to group to get advice and find answers to magically make the challenges of new parenthood disappear; they come to group to be heard, to hear themselves in others and to know they are not alone. At
11 a.m. on a Wednesday, these mothers are doing one of the bravest things a new parent can do: talk about how they actually feel. Parenthood is marked by both immense joys and immense challenges. Similar to other periods of life transition, the perinatal period — the time spanning from pregnancy through the postpartum period — is often a time of significant changes in social and emotional development. While a lot of attention is paid Continued on page 10 aawmag.com
