All these additions to a woman’s life can obscure what is lost and what feels damaged, altered, broken, disrupted. Autonomy and personal freedom. Restful sleep. The familiar and predictable routine of life without a newborn. Confidence in one’s appearance, comfort in one’s own skin, a sense of oneself as feminine and sexual. A sense of connection to, and participation in, the outside world. Occupational identity. The time, and maybe even the interest, to be close to our mates.
