ABSTRACT
In her early 40s, Kitty was, at the time we began our sessions, a stay-at-home mother though she has since entered the education sector. Kitty worked in the federal public service for 18 years rising to executive level before she gave birth to her daughter, Harley. At the time of our sessions Kitty went through many unsuccessful trials of IVF and an attempt to conceive with a donor egg, experiencing a deep sense of loss with each attempt. Her only familial support, her grandmother, also passed away during our sessions. In addition, at the age of five, Harley was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. Given all of these challenges, as well as my own, our work together extended over a longer period and a wide range of holding experiences were explored. Over time we considered questions around whether Kitty would ever be ‘enough’ for Harley to her experiences of deep connection with Harley. These qualities of connection were difficult to articulate and were often represented by images and metaphors from domains scientific, biblical and poetic.
