Matrescence: On Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Motherhood

by Lucy Jones

Carl Jung has become one of my wayfinders; his work a map as I orient myself in this transformation. He believed that individuation—the process of becoming a whole person, of maturing—happened throughout a person’s life rather than just in adolescence. I have found this framing a useful and empowering way of thinking about matrescence. Even if it is painful, lonely and frightening, writes Marchiano, mothering is one of life’s great opportunities. She describes it as a crucible in which the dross can be burned off and the wilder, more authentic self remains. “Mothering can be like being thrown down a deep well,” she says.[3] At the bottom, I realized how puny my understanding of the world was—I don’t know anything at all! I have no idea who I am!—and that was, eventually, liberating. I could construct my life again.