Mother writes : writing as therapy for mothers of children with special needs

This study integrates the research on the social construction of motherhood as it applies to mothers of children with special needs. More specifically, it, looks at how writings by these mothers can (a) help them cope with the emotional ramifications of having such a child, (b) contribute to the knowledge base of professionals who deal with and nurture not only children with special needs but also their mothers, and (c) constitute an effective qualitative research tool.The study focuses on the relationship between writing processes and products and the development of mothers' emotional states and emotional development, their self-image, self-confidence, role identity, and comfort. It investigates feelings of inadequacy, guilt, anger, and frustration, especially those engendered by good mother/bad mother social judgments, to which mothers of children with special needs are particularly vulnerable.I came to this area of research organically---as a clinician, as a teacher, and as a mother of a child with special needs myself. Van Manan (1990) suggests there is no better way to understand a phenomenon than to live it. I realized I was uniquely positioned to understand, examine, and synthesize the therapeutic effects of mothers' writing, reading, and storytelling, and understand the social environment that fuels it. As a clinician and educator, I also recognized its value as a rich, yet relatively unexplored, source of knowledge.In preparation for designing the study, I looked beyond peer-reviewed literature to popular literature, including diaries and autobiographies of mothers, to familiarize myself with their writings and the impact of such writings on the mothers' emotional adjustments, including their need for expression, support, and advocacy---for themselves and others.The study describes the experiences of a writing group (eight participants) comprised of mothers of children with special needs. The group met weekly for ten weeks to examine and share their feelings and life stories through a series of written assignments. Common themes and individual responses to this experience were captured anecdotally throughout the sessions, as well as in pre- and post-group interviews.Following a description of how the study evolved, coinciding with my personal shift from quantitative to qualitative researcher, I begin with a comprehensive review of mothering as a research area in literature, and a review of literature on the therapeutic effects of reading, writing and storytelling. I then discuss the methodology of this study with an emphasis on the literature on focus groups, memory work, narratives and writing, as well as qualitative research tools and techniques. The results of the study are presented descriptively using primarily a narrative approach, including a more detailed analysis of the experiences of four mothers who participated in the study.All the mothers reported beneficial effects from their participation. They felt empowered by the experience and inspired to continue to use writing, not only for its individual therapeutic effect but also as a means to advocate and inform others. The connection between writing and advocacy was a recurrent theme that emerged from the study---a strong common desire to help others, and the recognition that writing was an effective means to accomplish the mothers' goal to have professionals understand them better, individually and as a whole, and to be more empathetic.Other findings include the incongruence of thought between mothers and professionals, and the need to deepen our understanding of parent-professional interaction; and how much more impact the mothering debate has on mothers of children with special needs, particularly the stay-at-home versus working mothers' argument.This study provides insight into the extensive thoughts and emotions experienced by these mothers, and furthers our understanding of themes like stages of mourning for the not-so-perfect child, and the inter-related processes of storytelling, reading, and writing. It also has implications in the field of memory work, looking at how these mothers recalled early events in the lives of their children and how they remembered their experience in the study, months after its conclusion. Finally, it discusses the implications of using therapeutic writing as a qualitative research tool.The study concludes with suggestions for using writing to facilitate communication and understanding between parents and educators as well as between parents and other professionals, for their mutual benefit