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Couples as Parents is an insightful collection of essays that explores the impact of parenthood on a couple's relationship.
Written by experienced couple therapists (and the editors of this special issue), this book combines clinical experience with psychoanalytic research to explore how parenthood can influence, challenge, and reshape the couple relationship and broader family dynamic. While many of the theories may feel familiar to clinicians, the book's strength lies in its accessible blend of conceptual insight and practical application. Clinical vignettes bring psychoanalytic theory to life, exposing the quagmire of conflicting feelings parental couples may experience, but not necessarily acknowledge or understand.
The book comprises of fourteen chapters, focusing on the key stages of how a couple evolves into a family. It is set in chronological order, reflecting the parental journey itself, beginning with the seismic decision to have a child.
Martha Doniach explores the journey of conception, which for some can be long and traumatic, and the opportunities of assisted reproductive technology for both same-sex and heterosexual couples. This not only highlights the impact of advancing technology on parenthood, but also the evolution of the traditional familial unit into something more diverse. This is reinforced by Colleen Sandor and Damian McCann, who both address the specific
challenges and choices of same-sex couples, important for dismantling the heteronormative lens and reinforcing more inclusive terms, such as “birth other” or “genealogical bewilderment”. Although specific discussions around trans-couples or gender fluidity in children are largely absent, the text offers a foundation to support a wider understanding of evolving family dynamics.
Aimed at a broad audience, the reader is introduced to psychoanalytic concepts in an accessible way: for example, the Oedipus complex. The psychic pain of managing and tolerating separateness can be triggered from co