All That Glitters...A Memoir
Document Type
Master's Thesis
Graduation Year
2026
Writing Track
Creative Nonfiction
Degree
Master of Fine Arts
Program
Creative Writing
Program Director
Judy Halebsky, PhD
First Reader
Robert Bradford, MA
Description
This work chronicles the struggles I endured during one of the hardest periods in my life. My story begins with me being excited about the upcoming birth of my first child. Then, a traumatic delivery changed this feeling of eagerness to disappointment, resulting in PTSD and postpartum depression. The reader joins me as I navigate how to be a first-time mother and deal with unanticipated challenges related to this journey. Examples include dealing with overbearing in-laws, coping with changes to a relationship, and how having a child affects my career choices for the future.
My intention is to provide other women going through the same experiences support so they do not feel isolated during this difficult time. When I was in the midst of this, I looked for comfort in articles, books, and websites because I could not relate to the people in my circle. There were many that covered the same topics, such as, post-partum depression; however, I could not find anything that resonated with me and similar enough to what I was experiencing. Being of Asian American descent, I was also seeking information on cultural impacts to all the issues that I was facing. Additionally, there was not much that could be found from parents of high needs babies. The lack of approaching the widely publicized topics from these angles informed the writing of my memoir. Hopefully, I can give insight to anyone—-whether it be the mother herself, a husband, family members and even friends—-that needs the solace that everything will be okay.