--- title: "Matrescence and Identity Therapy | Harlan Therapy" description: "Therapy for the identity shift of becoming a mother, for accomplished women in Virginia. 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[Harlan Therapy](/) - [Birth Trauma](/specialties/birth-trauma) - [Who I Help](/who-i-help) - [Services](/services) - [Individual Therapy](/services/individual-therapy) - [Therapy Intensives](/services/therapy-intensives) - [Rates](/rates-and-insurance) - [Facts](/faq) - [Blog](/blog) - [Resources](/resources) - [About](/about) [Request a consultation ](/contact#intake)Menu ![A ceramic vase of dried stems casting a soft shadow, therapy for matrescence and identity shift in Virginia](/assets/spec-dresser-1920-FCtlyO8V.webp) Specialty # Matrescence and Identity Shift Matrescence is the developmental shift into motherhood. If you built a strong professional identity first, it can feel disorienting. You spent years becoming someone: a physician, an attorney, an executive, a therapist. Then you became a mother, and the person you built no longer fits the same way. ## What This Shift Can Bring Up - 01 Grief for parts of your former life or self, alongside genuine love for your child - 02 Resentment that surprises you, followed by guilt about the resentment - 03 A sense of having lost your edge, your sharpness, your sense of competence - 04 Difficulty answering the question of who you are now, outside of your roles You can love your child and still grieve who you were. ## How I Work Internal Family Systems is especially suited to this work. It lets us talk to the part of you that misses your old life and the part of you that's fully in this new one, without forcing you to choose. Somatic work helps with the physical exhaustion that often comes with this shift. ## Who I See Professional women in the first years of motherhood who feel unrecognizable to themselves and want language and support for the change, not reassurance that it will pass. Related Pages [ ### Professional Mothers Read more ](/who-i-help/professional-mothers) [ ### Internal Family Systems Read more ](/approach/internal-family-systems) [ ### Perfectionism and High Achievement Read more ](/specialties/perfectionism-and-high-achievement) [ ### Individual Therapy Read more ](/services/individual-therapy) ## Talk Through This Shift Book a free consultation to see if this is the right support. ## Tell Me What Is Going On A few lines is enough. Please keep clinical details out of the form, and we will talk properly when I reach you. First name Last name Email Phone What brings you here right now Preferred contact method text email phone Session preference Telehealth In person I agree to receive text messages from Harlan Therapy about my inquiry and appointments. Consent is not a condition of receiving services. Message frequency varies. Message and data rates may apply. Reply STOP to opt out or HELP for help. See the [Privacy Policy](/privacy-policy) and [Terms](/sms-terms). Harlan Therapy sends only messages related to your inquiry and your appointments. We never send marketing or promotional texts. No mobile information will be shared with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes. Send my inquiry Harlan Therapy 6610 Commons Drive, Suite C Prince George, Virginia 23875 [804-395-5362](tel:8043955362) [Request a consultation ](/contact#intake)![Proud member of the ABB Collective, A Brighter Birth](/__l5e/assets-v1/a0c7ddc9-14e0-4b02-a93f-76b9dec6cdaa/abb-collective-badge.webp) Specialties - [Birth Trauma](/specialties/birth-trauma) - [The Motherhood Wound](/specialties/the-motherhood-wound) - [Traumatic Birth Recovery](/specialties/traumatic-birth-recovery) - [Perinatal Anxiety](/specialties/perinatal-anxiety) - [Postpartum Anxiety](/specialties/postpartum-anxiety) - [Postpartum Depression](/specialties/postpartum-depression) - [Pregnancy After Loss](/specialties/pregnancy-after-loss) - [See All Specialties](/specialties) Who I Help - [Who I Help](/who-i-help) - [Professional Mothers](/who-i-help/professional-mothers) - [First Generation Professionals](/who-i-help/first-generation-professionals) - [Therapists and Helping Professionals](/who-i-help/therapists-and-helping-professionals) Approach - [How I Work](/approach) - [Brainspotting](/approach/brainspotting) - [Internal Family Systems](/approach/internal-family-systems) - [Somatic Therapy](/approach/somatic-therapy) Service Areas - [Service Areas](/service-areas) - [Northern Virginia](/service-areas/northern-virginia) - [Richmond](/service-areas/richmond) - [Virginia Beach](/service-areas/virginia-beach) - [Charlottesville](/service-areas/charlottesville) - [Telehealth Across Virginia](/telehealth-in-virginia) - [Prince George Office](/therapy-in-prince-george) - [The Tri-Cities](/therapy-in-the-tri-cities) Practice - [Rates and Insurance](/rates-and-insurance) - [Private Pay in Virginia](/rates-and-insurance/private-pay-therapy-in-virginia) - [Fees and Facts](/faq) - [Contact](/contact) - [For Providers](/refer) - [Blog](/blog) - [Resources](/resources) - [Privacy Policy](/privacy-policy) - [SMS Terms](/sms-terms) - [Good Faith Estimate](/good-faith-estimate) Services - [All Services](/services) - [Individual Therapy](/services/individual-therapy) - [Therapy Intensives](/services/therapy-intensives) - [Child and Adolescent Therapy](/services/child-and-adolescent-therapy) - [Family Therapy](/services/family-therapy) - [About Leah](/about) * * * Serving Prince George, the Tri-Cities, and by telehealth [across Virginia](/service-areas). - [Privacy Policy](/privacy-policy) - [Terms](/terms) - [SMS Terms](/sms-terms) - [Disclaimers](/disclaimers) - [Good Faith Estimate](/good-faith-estimate) - [Cookie Policy](/cookie-policy) Harlan Therapy LLC Leah Harlan, MA, LPC · Licensed Professional Counselor #0701013658 (Virginia) If you are in crisis, call or text 988. In person in the Tri-Cities area and by telehealth throughout Virginia. This website is informational and is not therapy, and it is not a place to share clinical details. If you are in crisis, call or text 988, or call 911. Therapy outcomes vary from person to person and no particular result is promised or guaranteed. © 2026 Harlan Therapy. All rights reserved.