“She Was Feeling Overwhelmed at Home Caring for Her Children”: Expectations of “Intensive Motherhood” as a Risk Factor for Young Women's Suicide

This paper looks at how social expectations of motherhood, described as "intensive motherhood", played a part in the suicides of young women in Australia. It analyses 31 young Australian mothers who died by suicide. It questions the common idea that motherhood protects against suicide. The focus is on the mothers' mental health and circumstances, not directly on children's well-being, although the loss of care of children is one theme.

Key points

• Suicide is a leading cause of death among young women and perinatal mothers.
• The paper questions the idea that motherhood is a protective factor against suicide.
• It analyses 31 young Australian mothers who died by suicide.
• Three themes sit under "failing motherhood": mothering without a father, mothering with mental illness, and the loss of care of children.

Limitations

Only the abstract is available, so the data sources, methods and age range of the "young" women are not described. The abstract does not report any direct findings about children's outcomes, so it says little about child well-being.