The other mother: a narrative analysis of the postpartum experiences of nonbirth lesbian mothers.
The purpose of this study was to develop a metastory of nonbiological lesbian mothers' postpartum experiences utilizing Riessman's structural approach to thematic analysis. Ten nonbirth lesbian mothers were interviewed. Each shared a unique story of her first year of motherhood. Themes were individually analyzed within each story. The metastory of the postpartum experiences of nonbirth lesbian mothers revealed 6 themes including the following: At the mercy of health care providers, Nursing is the major difference between us, Defined by who I am not, Fighting for every piece of motherhood: The world can take them away, What's in a name?, and Epilogue: The new normal.
Department of Nursing and Allied Health, Westfield State University, Westfield, Massachusetts.
Michele M
MM
McKelvey
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D018452:Homosexuality, Female / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008425:Maternal Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D016487:Parenting / Q000523:psychology*; D049590:Postpartum Period / Q000523:psychology*; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology*; D013315:Stress, Psychological; D014481:United States