Traumatology, Vol 32(1), Mar 2026, 5-15; doi:10.1037/trm0000529
Young mothers from out-of-home care are at risk of complex trauma. Complex trauma manifests through severe and persistent disruptions of functioning, especially in the context of relationships. As negotiating significant and trusting relationships is an essential aspect both of motherhood and complex trauma recovery, it is important to better understand the young mothers’ relational functioning in light of complex trauma. The current study seeks to describe the complex trauma-related relational disruptions among 17 young mothers (Mage = 24.2) who experienced maltreatment and were placed in residential care during adolescence. The young mothers had an average of 1.6 children (Mage = 3.9), with whom they had regular contact. Semistructured interviews documenting complex trauma, its consequences, and motherhood were conducted. A thematic analysis was used to create main themes and subthemes describing their relational disruptions. Analysis resulted in two main themes: (a) Relationships in Peril and (b) Relationships as Lifebuoys, representing two poles of a continuum of relational disruptions. Young mothers adopt a swaying motion between withdrawing from abusive or conflictual relationships and striving to build significant relationships, which shape their experience of motherhood. The results suggest that young mothers’ swaying motion can be attempts toward trauma recovery and that professional services should recognize young mothers’ needs for connection and support their efforts to achieve better relational functioning. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)