“Maybe you didn’t give him enough love?” I have heard this. It ripped my heart in unbelievable ways… but it also started me on a journey of unpacking where did this come from? Why would mothers even consider shaming one another this way? What are the social conditions that would even make us go that… Continue reading On Maternal Self-blame
Category: lived experiences
So have you heard of IFS yet?
✨✨✨Celebrating the BIG and SMALL victories! And this one feels huge! HORÓ Counselling has added a powerful tool to her (mine, that’s a bit weird) treasure chest of magic! In the last year and a half I have been training, and mastering my craft of healing, care, support, transformation and magic ✨ It has been… Continue reading So have you heard of IFS yet?
Lockdown Self-compassion
🖤Lockdown🖤Sitting with lots of Inner Activation. 💜Recognizing All that is present for my Inner world right now. All the discomfort. Disappointment. Disconnection. Dreams undone. The turmoil. Not trying to change it. Just giving it a name. A good label. Some air. 💜Allowing it All to be. Just as it is. Painful. Unfair. Hopeless. Raw. Triggering.… Continue reading Lockdown Self-compassion
Motherhood and the Ivory tower of Academia
Mothers in Academia…oh what a topic! Riddled with controversy. This graduation day is a micro representation of the ambivalent emotions I felt all throughout my research work, starting in 2010 with my Master of Research in Psychology. My then 7 year old son on PhD graduation day My story sits outside of the “modern academic… Continue reading Motherhood and the Ivory tower of Academia
On rituals
I have been digging deep into Ritual work and gathering more and more evidence on the profound role ritual plays in our lives. Ritual is any gesture done with intention and with emotion. And the effects, when ritual is done from the heart and is well contained and held by a trusted and safe other,… Continue reading On rituals
A little poem about MotherWound
Mother, by Aleksandra Staneva I love weaving stories from both my clients and also those parts that resonate with my own experience. With love, Aleksandra
Perinatal mental health week – what I wish I knew back then…
Today we wrap up Perinatal Mental Health week here in Australia, and the recognition of the critical care that new mothers and families need during pregnancy and early motherhood. I would argue that this care needs to be stretched from before conception to late/teenage motherhood (the one I find myself in right now). However, let’s… Continue reading Perinatal mental health week – what I wish I knew back then…
This belongs…this belongs
My partner took this image of me when we snuck in a coffee together before work and right after doing the school drop off. It felt big for many reasons. Both personal and collective. I have been in and out of the Covid vortex and the exhaustion felt too real. In my bones. The fear,… Continue reading This belongs…this belongs
Dream Work
I started working with my Dreams in my early 20s - 2000-2001, when I began my Psychoanalytic training as part of my Psychology degree in Bulgaria. I remember the trepidation, self-awareness, and tingle with which we started each session. Those were group discussions on Classical Freudian Psychoanalytic Dream analysis. We gathered weekly for 2 years… Continue reading Dream Work
Parenting during a Pandemic
As part of my research work at Peach Tree Perinatal Wellness 🍑🧡 I have been investigating the impact of COVID-19 on mothers. I got to speak with some Super Women whose stories of incredible resourcefulness while on the brink of mental collapse were just hm..how do I put it - otherworldly! Pregnancy, birthing and early… Continue reading Parenting during a Pandemic
