(Re)constructing Myself: the process of transition to motherhood for women with a disability

Abstract

AIM: This paper presents a substantive theory that explains the transition to motherhood for women with a disability. BACKGROUND: Over the last thirty years, interest in exploring women's experiences of motherhood has increased. Extant theories on transition to motherhood originate, primarily, from the perspective and experiences of non-disabled women with few exploring the phenomenon from the perspective and experiences of women with a disability. Those that do tend to focus on issues of accessibility, profiling the challenges that women with a disability encounter while accessing maternity services, attaining a maternal role and fulfilling the requirements of that role. Little is known about the experiences of women with a disability and their transition to motherhood and even less about the relationship of this process on the self. DESIGN: The study was conducted using a Strauss and Corbin approach to grounded theory. METHOD: Individual interviews (n = 22) were conducted over 4 years (2008-2012). Women were interviewed during pregnancy and in the postnatal period. All interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, imported into Nvivo 8 and analysed using the constant comparative method. FINDINGS: The substantive theory that emerged from the study provides a conceptual framework clinicians can reference when counselling, assisting and facilitating women with a disability during their preparation for and transition to motherhood. CONCLUSION: The substantive theory presented in this paper will increase clinicians' understanding of the process involved in the transition to motherhood for women with a disability.

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