Three generations of mothers with learning difficulties in Iceland

Rannveig Traustadottir

We know little about mothers with learning difficulties and their children, and no one knows how many they are. To learn more about them and their history I spent time with ten mothers with learning difficulties and talked to them about having children.

There were three groups of mothers:

• older mothers in their 70s and 80s
• middle aged mothers in their 40s and
• young mothers in their 20s.

Their stories reflect how the possibilities to be a mother, having a family and live in the community have changed over a period of 50 years (1950-2000). Three adult-children of the oldest mothers were also interviewed and the paper will end by telling their stories.