Upcoming Class: Meeting Yourself in Motherhood
A guided reflective workshop for mothers to explore their journey into motherhood with compassion and curiosity.
By Registered Psychologist Viola Prinz.
This special workshop is a gentle invitation to slow down long enough to notice what's happening inside you as we navigate motherhood.
Together, we'll explore the different parts that motherhood can bring to the surface.
Rather than judging these parts or trying to get rid of them, we'll begin understanding what they're trying to do for us, and why.
Through guided experiential practices, personal reflection, and exploring the Meeting Yourself in Motherhood Framework, you'll begin developing a different relationship with your inner world - one built on curiosity, compassion and understanding.
My own experience becoming a new Mum inspired a shift in my work to blending my extensive training in Internal Family Systems, psychology, and self-exploration through the lens of motherhood.
It’s my pleasure to offer this workshop for you, where I’ll share the most compassionate practices that supported me throughout.
Saturday 29th August | 10am-12pm | Cottesloe.
A workshop designed for Mum’s who appear to have it together but quietly wonder…
This workshop is for the Mum who appears to have it together, but quietly wonders why motherhood feels so much harder than she expected. You may be a Mum who spends so much time looking after everyone else that you’ve lost sight of herself.
You aren’t looking for someone to tell her how to parent. You’re looking for space to understand yourself, make sense of your inner world, and realise you’re not the only Mum carrying it all.
This workshop is designed as an offering for mothers who...
feel like you're constantly trying to "get motherhood right."
feel like no matter what you choose, you're letting someone down - your children, partner, yourself or the impossible standard you’ve set for what a "good Mum" should be.
carry the weight of feeling like you should know what to do, and find yourself endlessly searching for answers when things aren't going to plan.
are so used to holding everything together that you don't realise how much it's costing you.
can't remember the last time they did something just for yourself/
secretly miss the person you were before becoming a Mum, while deeply loving the person they're becoming.
long for a space where you don't have to hold it all together; where you can slow down, reflect, and realise you're not the only one feeling this way.
You already know how to nurture. You do it every day. This workshop is about learning to turn some of that same nurturing energy towards yourself.
At its heart, this workshop isn't teaching you something you don't already have: It's helping you reclaim something you’ve been giving away so freely.
Motherhood asks more of us than we ever imagined. This is the space to bring compassion to this chapter of evolution, identity shifts and growth.
Workshop Overview
The Workshop is a gentle invitation to slow down long enough to notice what's happening inside us as we navigate that journey.
Together we'll explore the workshop framework through teaching, guided experiential exercises, workshop cards, personal reflection and optional group discussion.
Through this process, you’ll identify and explore the different Mum Parts that motherhood can bring to the surface:
the organiser trying to hold everything together
the guilty part wondering if she's doing enough
the self-sacrificing part who always puts herself last
the achiever trying to get motherhood "right"
… and the many other parts that quietly shape our experience.
Rather than judging these parts or trying to get rid of them, we'll begin understanding what they're trying to do for us, and why. Through guided experiential practices, personal reflection, the Mum Parts cards and shared conversation, you'll begin developing a different relationship with your inner world - one built on curiosity, compassion and understanding rather than self-criticism.
At its heart, this workshop isn't teaching you, something they don't already have. It's helping you reclaim something you’ve been giving away so freely.
As mothers, we already know how to nurture. We comfort, encourage, protect and care for our children every day, often without thinking twice. This workshop is an invitation to begin including yourself in that same circle of care.
My hope isn't that you'll leave with motherhood all figured out.
It's that you'll leave recognising your Mum Parts when they show up, understanding what they're are trying to do, and feeling more able to nurture them with the same love, care and compassion you so naturally offer your children.
As mothers, we already know how to nurture.
We comfort, encourage, protect and care for our children every day, often without thinking twice.
This workshop is an invitation to begin including yourself in that same circle of care.
Instead of seeing all these different reactions as signs I wasn't coping, I began to understand them as different parts of me doing their best to help me figure out how to be a Mum.
Common Mum Myths & Misunderstandings
Invitations for Compassion over Self- Criticism.
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So many of us believe if we can just find the right routine, the right advice or the right answer, we'll finally feel confident. Motherhood doesn't ask us to have all the answers. It asks us to keep showing up, with flexibility and compassion when things don't go to plan.
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Motherhood often activates different parts of us with different needs, fears and priorities.
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We can hold two seemingly opposite feelings at the same time - deep love for our children alongside exhaustion, grief, resentment or a longing for space. These experiences don't make us bad mothers; they make us human.
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Motherhood asks us to show up for our children every day. We deserve to learn how to show up for ourselves too.
Motherhood changed me too | My Story
Here’s the truth: Motherhood is so bloody hard.
After becoming a Mum, I went from feeling like a relatively grounded, functioning adult to feeling overwhelmed almost overnight. There was so much happening all at once. I was keeping a tiny human alive, recovering from birth, navigating sleep deprivation, learning how to breastfeed, and trying to make sense of one of the biggest transitions of my life.
At first, I felt like I was still me... just with a baby.
It wasn't until later that I realised motherhood had changed me too. There was no going back to who I was before. I had to slowly come to terms with who I was becoming.
At the same time, motherhood seemed to awaken parts of me I hadn't expected . Parts that had been around long before becoming a Mum suddenly had a much bigger job to do.
My ‘Organiser Part’ wanted to run wake windows, feeding schedules and naps like a military operation.
My ‘Intellectualiser Part’ wanted to understand everything: Why is she crying? Why won't she sleep? What am I missing?
My ‘Achiever Part’ was determined to "do motherhood right", while my ‘Self-sacrificing Part’ insisted my needs could always wait.
Alongside those familiar parts were others that suddenly felt louder than ever - the ‘Guilty Part’, the ‘Overwhelmed Part’, the part longing for a moment to herself, the 'Resentful Part’, and the Part worrying whether I was doing enough. It often felt confusing because I didn't have a way of understanding why I felt so pulled in different directions and I felt like I wasn’t coping.
Motherhood asks so much of us. We're constantly balancing competing needs while trying to keep another human alive, fed and happy. It's relentless. There isn't much space to stop and notice what's happening inside us - we just keep going.
Learning the ‘Mum Part's’ Framework; during my Mother-Centred Internal Family Systems training was a real lightbulb moment. I already loved using this modality in my therapy work, but seeing it applied specifically to motherhood suddenly gave me a language for what I'd been experiencing myself.
Instead of seeing all these different reactions as signs I wasn't coping, I began to understand them as different parts of me doing their best to help me figure out how to be a Mum.
My own journey and training helped me realise there was another way I wanted to serve mothers. Not just through one-to-one therapy, but by creating spaces where women could come together, better understand themselves, and realise they're not the only one whose inner world feels messy, conflicted or confusing.
That's why I wanted to create this workshop.
My hope is that mothers leave with a language for what's been happening inside you, a little more understanding of the different parts of themselves that show up in motherhood, and the permission to begin showing up for themselves with the same compassion they so naturally offer their children.
The Workshop Will Explore...
how motherhood can bring different parts of ourselves to the surface.
some of the common Mum Parts many mothers experience, and how they are often trying to help us be the Mums we want to be.
the stories, expectations and impossible standards we carry about being a "good Mum."
how understanding our Mum Parts can create more curiosity and compassion, instead of self-criticism.
what it looks like to meet ourselves with the same care, compassion and nurturing that we so naturally give to our children.
creating enough space to notice what's happening inside us, without becoming overwhelmed by it.
the power of slowing down, reflecting and being witnessed alongside other mothers.
You’re invited to experience…
A guided experiential practice to help you slow down, step out of the busyness of motherhood, and gently notice what's happening in your inner world.
The opportunity to identify and explore one of your Mum Parts, helping you make sense of reactions that may have previously felt confusing or overwhelming.
Reflection using the Mum Parts cards, helping you put words to experiences that can often feel confusing, messy or difficult to explain.
Quiet time for personal reflection and journalling, allowing space to connect your own experiences with what you've discovered during the guided practice.
An invitation (never an expectation) to share your reflections with the group, and experience the power of being witnessed by other mothers in a compassionate and non-judgemental space.
A simple closing ritual to help you leave with an intention for how you'd like to care for yourself beyond the workshop.
A Mum Parts card deck to take home, inviting you to continue meeting yourself with curiosity and compassion long after the workshop has ended.
Cultivating a deeper understanding of what’s been happening internally
This powerful workshop will reframe your inner criticisms and conflicts as you grow and deepen into your ability to hold all of the complexities with compassion. The experience will help you reduce secret shame and shift your perspective to consider that:
Your Mum Parts aren't the problem. They are trying to help you be the Mum you want to be. The more you recognise them, understand them and nurture them, the more choice you have in how you respond.
Motherhood doesn't ask us to be perfect. It asks us to hold many competing needs at once. Feeling pulled in different directions doesn't mean you're failing - it means you're human.
You already know how to nurture. Every day you offer love, patience and care to your children. This workshop is an invitation to begin offering some of that same nurturing to yourself.
You're learning how to be a Mum at the very same time your child is learning how to be in the world. Neither of you were ever meant to get it right all the time.
Difficult feelings like guilt, frustration, resentment and overwhelm don't make you a bad Mum. They are invitations to pause, listen and respond to yourself with curiosity rather than criticism.
You don't need permission to show up as you are. You are already enough.
Your children don't need a perfect mother—they need you.
Nurturing and compassionate practices to take-away for everyday.
My hope is to share with you the nurturing gifts of feeling:
Seen, understood and emotionally held.
Less alone in the complexity of motherhood, knowing that many other mothers carry similar thoughts, feelings and inner conflicts.
Better able to recognise when your Mum Parts are showing up, understand what they're are trying to do, and begin nurturing them with the same care that you so naturally offer your children.
More able to hold the competing needs of motherhood with greater compassion, rather than feeling like you have to choose between being a "Good Mum" and caring for yourself.
Less afraid of the difficult emotions that motherhood can bring, recognising that guilt, resentment, overwhelm and frustration don't make you a bad Mum - they are experiences that can be met with curiosity, understanding and care.
Lighter, clearer and more accepting of yourself, knowing you don't have to have motherhood all figured out to be enough.
Hopeful that your already have within you the capacity to continue nurturing yourself long after the workshop has ended.
The Mum Parts IFS Framework
The Mum Parts Framework is a gentle way of understanding the different thoughts, emotions and inner experiences that can show up throughout motherhood. Inspired by the evidence-based Internal Family Systems (IFS) model, it invites us to see these experiences not as flaws or failures, but as different "parts" of ourselves that are each trying to help in their own way.
Rather than asking, "What's wrong with me?" the framework encourages a different question:
"Which part of me is here right now, and what might she need?"
Together, we'll learn how to gently recognise these parts, become curious about what they may be trying to protect, and begin responding to ourselves with the same compassion we so naturally offer our children. This simple shift opens the door to greater self-awareness, self-compassion and a more nurturing relationship with ourselves.
Considerations Before Registering
The workshop is a psychoeducational and reflective group experience designed to support learning, self-understanding and personal insight. It does not provide therapy or treatment for specific mental health concerns.
This workshop may not be the best fit if:
You're currently working with me in individual therapy, as maintaining recommended professional boundaries means I am unable to facilitate workshops for my current therapy clients.
If you're a former therapy client of mine, please contact me before registering so we can consider together whether attending this workshop would be appropriate.
You're looking for personalised therapeutic support or are currently experiencing difficulties that would be better supported in individual therapy.
If you're unsure what kind of support would be most helpful, you're welcome to contact our Client Care Team here to discuss the available options.
Participating and sharing: The workshop includes opportunities for reflection and optional sharing. You're always welcome to participate in the way that feels right for you. Sharing is completely optional, and there is never any expectation to discuss personal experiences.
For urgent or immediate support, connect with the PANDA website or contact PANDA's Perinatal Mental Health Helpline on 1300 726 306.
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