ResearCh, EDUCATION, Consultation
Matrescence 101
“Childbirth brings about a series of very dramatic changes in the new mother’s physical being, in her emotional life, in her status within the group, even in her own female identity. I distinguish this period of transition from others by terming it matrescence to emphasize the mother and to focus on her new life style.”
“The critical transition period which has been missed is matrescence, the time of mother-becoming...Giving birth does not automatically make a mother out of a woman...The amount of time it takes to become a mother needs study. ”
What is
Matrescence?
My Working Definition
To attribute [APA Style]: Athan, Aurelie. (Year, Month, Day of D/L). Working Definition. https://www.matrescence.com/
“In my expanded definition, the process of becoming a mother or matrescence, the term first coined by Dana Raphael, Ph.D. (1973) and which I later built upon, is a developmental passage where a woman transitions through pre-conception, pregnancy and birth, surrogacy or adoption, to the postnatal period and beyond. The exact length of matrescence is individual, recurs with each child, and may arguably last a lifetime! The scope of the changes encompasses multiple domains --bio-psycho-social-political-spiritual-- and can be likened to the developmental push of adolescence. Increased attention to mothers has spurred new findings, from neuroscience to economics, and supports the rationale for a new field of study known as matrescence. Such an arena would allow the roundtable of specialists to come together and advance our understanding of this life passage.”
- Definition written by Aurélie Athan, Ph.D. (2016)
“What makes matrescence distinct from adolescence is that its length varies among individuals, it may reoccur with each new child, and may have an acute stage followed by a more complex, and longer process with no definitive end (e.g., grandmothering). It has been suggested that integrating developmental psychology terms like “emerging motherhood” (infancy to school age), “middle motherhood” (adolescence), and “late motherhood” (adulthood) could enhance our understanding of the evolving stages within this lifelong transition.”
Domains of Change
Improving maternal well-being: a matrescence education pilot study for new mothers. Maternal Health, Neonatology and Perinatology (2025)
“A more comprehensive understanding of matrescence suggests that the transformations that occur during preconception, pregnancy, birth, surrogacy, adoption, and early parenting can affect every domain of human life experience, above and beyond those initially identified by Raphael. In response, a more updated definition was provided by Athan, who described it as a holistic phenomenon, or a “…lifespan, developmental transformation that is biological, neurological, psychological, social, cultural, economic, political, moral, existential, ecological, and spiritual in nature.” This expanded conceptualization is essential for facilitating a thorough understanding of motherhood that may more aptly explain the decline in maternal well-being observed today.”
If you’ve been hearing the term matrescence lately, here is maybe why…
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If you’ve been hearing the term matrescence lately, here is maybe why… ------