ABSTRACT
When a mother experiences scary thoughts, one of the first things she asks is, “Why is this happening to me?!” We’ve discussed that scary thoughts are present in the majority of postpartum mothers. Thus, one answer to this question is that scary thoughts occur because it is normal for mothers to experience them as they adjust to caring for a new baby (or another new baby). Although this may sound woefully unsatisfactory, it is nonetheless very true. It is happening because it happens all the time, to most mothers.
