Shattered Motherhood

Surviving the Guilt of a Child's Suicide

Donna Frances Johnson

• Publisher: Spinifex Press
• Year: 2025
• eBook ISBN:
  9781922964151
• Subtopic: Feminism & Feminist Theory

If you are a mother today, you are mothering in patriarchy. What that means, and how it impacts a mother grieving the loss of her child to suicide, is a subject Donna Johnson explores in this profound book.
Donna worked closely with mothers who lost a child to suicide and what struck her was the absence of specific support groups for them and the overwhelming sense of guilt, shame and failure they experienced – emotions not shared by the fathers of the children.
In Shattered Motherhood, Donna Johnson argues for assistance for mothers that meets their unique needs, recognizes the depth of their suffering and provides them with proper care.
Through a feminist lens, she considers the institutions of marriage, motherhood and the family and how these impact mothers' suffering. She also offers hope through the power of women coming together to name their own experiences, feel their own pain and search for their own solutions.

Table of contents

• Cover
• About the Author
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Prologue
• Introduction
• 1. The First Year After the Suicide
• 2. Five Years Later
• 3. How Partner Abuse Affects the Loss
• 4. Maternal Guilt
• 5. The Power of Women Talking
• 6. Lessons from a Police Crisis Unit
• 7. Atonement: A Feminist Reversal
• Bibliography