PSYCHODRAMA OF YOUNG MOTHERS

Abstract

Psychodrama offers systematic action training for the most important role in the world, "the role of the mother." Mother role training is designed to assist the new mother in finding herself in this delicate, entangling and often frightening relationship to the expected new human being, a being in whose creation she has the leading part. The application of psychodramatic methods of diagnosis have taught us that the prospective mother carries in her mind a" conscious-unconscious Gestalt of her baby, a "psychological or psychodramatic baby." This baby is not merely the result of her pregnancy, but of the entire growth process of a woman. It may have become distorted long before she conceived, even before reaching puberty, while herself a child, playing at motherhood with or without dolls, in a psychodrama of her own making. The psychodramatic method can be usefully extended to motherinfant situations with adolescent girls, long before they go through the actual experiences of marriage and pregnancy, delivery and motherhood. Psychological babies preoccupy their mind considerably. Psychodramatic techniques can help to liberate them from and correct distorted perceptions. If distorted perceptions, false anticipations and morbid presentiments are left unresolved, they may become the kernel of deep-seated mother-child conflicts later on. Psychodrama with pregnant women may be contraindicated in the normal
course of events unless the subject has a special problem to work out for herself, and volunteers to do so. Even so, every precaution must be taken not to traumatize her.