Speaking in Metaphors: Exploring Black Women’s Communicated Sense-Making of Postpartum Depression

Guided by the communicated sense-making model, we describe the results of an analysis of interviews with 15 Black women about their experiences with postpartum depression (PPD). The findings indicate that the women made sense of their experience using three categories of metaphors: (1) mobility, (2) cultural expectations, and (3) social support. These categories of metaphors provide evidence that the discourse of motherhood as distressing is expressed in the narratives of Black women with PPD, even as they seek to fulfill the demands of the discourse of motherhood as intensive. The metaphors also reveal that Black mothers with PPD struggle with the cultural pressure placed on them to act as a strong Black woman/mother. As a result, the participants demonstrate that cultural expectations expressed by their social network add to the motherhood as distressing discourse. Finally, the study makes an argument for the inclusion of metaphors as a viable and supporting device in the communicated sense-making model. Implications for practical and future applications are presented.