Unburdening Motherhood: A Guide to Breaking Cycles, Healing Trauma, and Becoming a Self-Led Mom

When clinical psychologist and mindfulness meditation teacher Dr. Angele Close started a family, she assumed she would have the professional skills, maturity, and all the love to create a harmonious, joy-filled home. But with a history of childhood sexual abuse, a complicated relationship with her own mother, and the internalized myths of what society expects of moms, motherhood quickly became a minefield of triggers that revealed her unhealed wounds and that she still had work to do.

Close's experience probably sounds very familiar to many mothers out there. A recent US Surgeon General advisory confirmed that 33% of parents experience high levels of stress, with 48% feeling overwhelmed. Studies show that mothers, more than fathers, find parenting stressful, feel judged, and experience isolation, burnout, and depression. Add to that, burdens of being the perfect mom like:

• A good mom loves all aspects of motherhood.
• A good mom sacrifices her needs for her family.
• A good mom raises "good" kids.

These cultural myths lead to guilt, hiding from judgment, and creating unnecessary pain that affects both mothers and their children. But instead of ignoring her mounting triggers, Close turned them into profound opportunities for healing which she shares in Unburdening Motherhood.

Unburdening Motherhood explores what all mothers go through: "matrescence," the profound identity transformation women undergo when they become mothers. Matrescence encapsulates how mothers are impacted by the social and cultural myths that surround mothering and are compounded by the resurgence of wounds from childhood. These can send already stressed moms spiraling into feelings of shame, unprocessed grief, and often isolation and self-blame. Drawing on the tenets of Internal Family Systems, an evidence-based model for trauma healing, Close invites mothers to understand their inner "parts" and shows them a path to heal.

Mothers want to enjoy mothering but feel weighed down by these unrealistic expectations. They worry about passing on their wounds to their children, but therapy often feels inaccessible. This is where Unburdening Motherhood steps in--teaching mothers how to address their inner struggles, transforming confusion into clarity, and becoming the mothers they aspire to be.