ABSTRACT
When remembering relational space with their babies, women expressed feelings of self worth and pride as they relived happy memories that contrasted with the emotionally exhausting times spent thinking and acting protectively. As women realised that a mutually supportive relationship with their partner was not achievable, they increasingly gained strength through their relationship with their babies. Motherhood led women to using their agency to make decisions with the protection of their babies in mind. Here agency refers to women's ability to act despite fear and the constraints of their situations. The need for women to protect their babies acted as a powerful motivator for change. Women who were able to access practitioners knowledgeable about domestic violence were able to move on and protect their babies because the knowledge they received affirmed their subjective knowledge. The women, their children and the relationships between them continue to grow and their wishes, fears and hopes for the future evolve.
