100. What is the Essence of 'Good Enough'? Bridging Child and Adult Psychology with Dr Tanya Cotler
The Good Enough MotherShow Notes
In this episode, we dive into the concept of the "good enough mother" from the perspective of Dr Tanya Cotler, who is a Clinical Psychologist, author, and speaker specializing in reproductive mental health, infant mental health, and parent-child attachment. Tanya has studied the work of Winnicott (who is the creator of the concept of ‘the good enough mother’) extensively and offers a unique lens and insight having expertise in BOTH child and adult psychology.
We dive into unpacking what ‘good enough’ actually means, the process of attunement mismatches and rupture-repair cycles in a child’s development, and how intentional and unconscious repair contribute to building trust, resilience, and frustration tolerance in children. We centre the mother in our conversation to shift a child-focused lens, and I ask Tanya about her experience with what it’s like to work with both adults and children in the context of reflecting on these theories.
Tanya shares insights from her nearly 20 years of clinical and research experience, and she offers us a key takeaway we can put into practice as good enough mothers, for the benefit of both our children and ourselves.
Episode show notes: https://drsophiebrock.com/podcast100
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drcotler/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tanya.cotler Website: https://drtanyacotler.com/
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Have you ever felt two completely different emotions about motherhood at the same time?