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Pregnancy, developmental crisis and object relations: psychoanalytic considerations
The International Journal of Psycho-Analysis
|January 1, 1986
Summary
This study explores the psychological shifts during a woman's first pregnancy, moving beyond traditional psychoanalytic views. It highlights pregnancy as a central organizer of female sexual drive and mental restructuring.
Area of Science:
- Psychoanalytic theory
- Psychology of women
- Maternal mental health
Background:
- Traditional psychoanalytic literature viewed motherhood as secondary to female psychosexual development.
- Pregnancy was often conceptualized as a crisis, with limited focus on internal psychological changes.
- A gap existed in understanding the mental reorganization during a woman's first pregnancy.
Observation:
- Analysis of three women undergoing their first pregnancy provided clinical material.
- The study examined internal shifts and realignments in the women's mental organization.
- Focus was placed on the subjective experience of early pregnancy.
Findings:
- Motherhood emerges as a central organizing factor of female sexual drive.
- Pregnancy involves significant internal shifts and mental restructuring for the woman.
- Psychoanalytic understanding of female development requires re-evaluation to include pregnancy's centrality.
Implications:
- Revises psychoanalytic perspectives on female psychosexual development and the role of motherhood.
- Suggests pregnancy is a critical period for mental reorganization, not just a crisis.
- Highlights the need for further research into the psychological impact of pregnancy on women.