Da dualidade à integração: a ambivalência na gestação de mães solo à luz da psicanálise

Abstract

This study aims to understand, in the light of Winnicottian psychoanalysis, how the experience of ambivalence in solo pregnancy can contribute to the woman's psychic and subjective strengthening, considering the singularities of this context and the psychological care resources involved. By acknowledging the diversity of paths and conditions that shape solo motherhood, the aim is to avoid generalizations and reductionisms, fostering a broader understanding of this multifaceted emotional experience, whose unfoldings are both unique and complex. From this perspective, Perinatal Integral Psychological Care (CPIP) is presented as a proposal for an expanded clinical practice, grounded in the principles of integrality, ethics, and political commitment in the development of care pathways for women’s health and the mother baby dyad. The object of study concerns the phenomenon of ambivalence experienced during solo pregnancy. The target population of this study comprises women who become solo mothers, whose present experiences may unconsciously reactivate psychic traces from the past—particularly from childhood—manifesting in adulthood as emotional terror when facing daily challenges. The guiding question is: How can the ambivalence experienced by solo mothers during pregnancy be understood, in light of Winnicott’s theory, as part of the process of forming a more authentic and healthy motherhood? This is a narrative literature review, with an emphasis on publications from the past five years. The findings indicate that ambivalence is inherent to both human and perinatal experience, although it may be rendered invisible or minimized. This human experience lays the groundwork for the capacity for ambivalence: an achievement in emotional development that can foster good enough mothering. It is concluded that there are gaps in the literature on this topic from a Winnicottian perspective, which reinforces the importance of expanding this discussion within the fields of psychoanalysis and maternal-infant health. Winnicott’s theory, therefore, provides relevant contributions to understanding how the psychic holding of ambivalence can support reparative movements and the strengthening of the maternal self, promoting caregiving practices more attuned to the singularity of the solo gestational experience, as well as encouraging reflections and concrete actions within the social sphere.