Navigating 'normal' motherhood struggles: Movement, compassion, and occupational balance

Motherhood presents challenges requiring new occupations and co-occupations to care for a growing child while balancing previous roles. Common struggles include perinatal mood and anxiety disorders, physical changes, and evolving roles. Occupational therapists address these challenges by addressing the occupational needs of the mother, not just the child. By listening to women's stories and working sensitively and collaboratively, occupational therapists can reframe 'normal' challenges as occupational engagement issues and unmet needs-many of which have significant health and wellbeing implications for women and families, and are preventative, treatable, and manageable with occupational therapy and multidisciplinary team input. This chapter explores women's 'common-sense' struggles during perinatal transitions and motherhood from a human occupation perspective. Occupational therapy interventions to promote women's wellbeing, maternal role development, and lifestyle redesign to develop and refine practical performance skills for motherhood are explored.