New mother/old therapist: Transference and countertransference challenges in the return to work

Abstract

Psychodynamic psychotherapists are not generally accustomed to discussing with patients the impact of their own personal experiences on their clinical work. Psychotherapists who return to work postmaternity leave, however, have both a rich opportunity and a clinical mandate to explore the effects of their new parenting on the treatment field. Pregnant therapists have addressed their pregnancy with their patients; however, the experiences of both therapists and patients postmaternity leave are often not discussed to the same extent. Using the author's own experience following her return to clinical work following the birth of her child, this paper explores the ways that the psychodynamic work is affected when the therapist has become a parent, including: changes in transference work; problems of separation and abandonment; and expanding boundaries.