Psychoanalyst Michaela Chamberlain on misogyny, motherhood & estrangement

Michaela Chamberlain is the author of the new book, On Resisting Women, which examines how individuals become misogynists. She shows how unrecognised misogyny infiltrates everyday life, in both public and private, shaping how we think, feel, and speak. She explores the persistence of misogyny: how it is woven into the fabric of our culture, our institutions, and our psyches.

In particular, I was interested to talk to Michaela about:

• How or if it is possible to eradicate misogyny

• How our conception of misogyny changes as we age

• The rage women feel about living in a misogynistic society, and how that is sometimes misdiagnosed due to — you guessed it — misogyny

• The expectations misogyny places on women and mothers in particular, and

• If it may play a role in maternal estrangement.

Michaela Chamberlain trained at The Bowlby Centre and studied in the Psychoanalysis Unit at UCL. Shortly after qualifying at The Bowlby Centre in 2016, she started teaching Freud and attachment theory and became chair of The Bowlby Centre. She worked as an honorary psychotherapist in two NHS trusts for several years. She has presented clinical papers at public forums, lectures internationally, and has been published in various journals. Her debut book, Misogyny in Psychoanalysis, was released in June 2022, which explores the historical and current context of misogyny in psychoanalytic theory and clinical practice. She is in private practice in London as a psychoanalytic psychotherapist and is a supervisor and training therapist.

Her book is available now from Karnac Books and is available everywhere books are sold. She’s on Instagram @michaelachamberlain_therapist.