Motherhood Missed

Honouring women who are childless by circumstance, these first-person stories describe their emotional responses and under-discussed grief. While exploring their sense of loss, the book also presents the hopefulness and positivity of the women interviewed and the alternative routes their lives have taken.

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Many women expect to become mothers but are childless through social rather than biological reasons - perhaps they haven't met the right person or they prioritised career or education earlier in life. Featuring international interviews by grief counsellor and researcher Lois Tonkin, this collection of first-person stories provides insight into the under-discussed situation of being childless by circumstance.

Each story highlights the different aspects of being childless by circumstance, as women move through their 30s, 40s, and 50s, and beyond their ages of fertility. The book explores feelings of grief and loss, and also how women adapt positively to their changed life expectations, finding excitement in the alternative, rich and complex shapes their lives have taken.