Matrescence: the process of becoming a mother.
This term was coined by anthropologists to recognise the immense rite of passage women walk through during the transition of maiden to mother. A major transition that is not yet routinely acknowledged in Western cultures.
This is one of the most profound changes in a woman’s life, on every level of our beings. But most interesting, on a neurobiological level. The hormones during pregnancy are involved in quite literally rewiring the mother-to-be’s brain. Certain centres become more active and others slightly down-regulated. This process of “pruning” or “rewiring” tends to shine light on certain unprocessed or unhealed emotions, trauma and memories that may be lingering. There are many reasons why this occurs, but a theory that resonates with us, is this process is to make the mother-to-be, the highest version of herself in preparation for her future child.
However, this can be quite confronting for some women and also quite baffling! Everyone is willing to share all of the physical changes that happen during pregnancy, but not many women speak on the immense sadness, grief and uprooting they may experience too. When everyone is telling you that it should be one of the happiest times of your life. But we think it is incredibly important that women know that they can experience grief too. A grieving of the woman she once was. And of course, this is incredibly different for everyone. You may not experience this side of pregnancy, but you might, or you might know someone that has.
So if this is resonating with you, rest assured – these feelings can be totally NORMAL. This is your opportunity for healing. We believe that it is so crucial that women are equipped to deal with this potential emotional uprooting, so we have dedicated a module in our Conscious Conception online course to providing women with the tools to navigate this.
Some of our favourite tools for navigating challenging emotions are flower essences, journaling and meditation.
Flower Essences ~
The most gentle form of herbal medicine. Vibrational essences of certain flowers, that support us to find the root cause of an emotion, pattern or belief and help to release and heal. They work powerfully on emotional and spiritual imbalances that hold us back.
Journaling ~
A window into the mind. A way to explore our inner landscape by allowing our conscious mind to take a back seat and hear what our unconscious mind is holding onto. Can be done by either using certain journal prompts that invite you to consider an aspect or scenario you may not have previously, or simply free-flowing what is currently circulating in your mind.
Meditation ~
An expansive way to sit with what is coming up for you and act from a place of stillness. Around cultivating peace and acceptance. By allowing thoughts to simply come and go and not latch onto them and go down the rabbit hole of the story, you are creating a powerful practice and inner retreat that is always available to you to assist in handling whatever may arise along your journey.
We teach our students each of these techniques alongside their physical preparation, not only to prepare them if they experience an intense emotional uprooting during pregnancy, but also so the emotional clearing and healing can start now. The more you are able to let go of and process prior to crossing this enormous transition, the gentler this process may be for you. The more you are able to heal and release old stored emotions, the more space you have and create, to expand into the mother your future child has come here for.
If you would like to begin your whole-being pregnancy preparation journey, but aren’t sure where to start, we invite you to join us in our 12 week Conscious Conception online course. Enrolments open now. You can learn more here.
By Maddison
Mother, Holistic Dietitian & Yoga Teacher
Image of Maddison Milton, photographed by Shana Makins.