That is a descriptive qualitative research that aimed to analyze the implications of the psychiatric disorders in the mother-child relationship, according to the maternal perception. Data were collected though semi-structured interview with ten women, selected by the diagnosis of mental disorders in the postpartum period. The collected data were discussed through the content analysis technique. The results pointed difficulties of the mothers to feel themselves sick, due to cultural and social factors that act in the presence of biological factors in the definition of the diagnosis and treatment of the disorders; determining impairment in the prognosis and, causing damages in the mother-child relationship. One concluded that, although the incidence and gravity of psychiatric disorders in the gestational cycle, the professionals and health services still need to be provoked for the implementation of preventive actions to minimize the psychic suffering of the women affected.
Perception; Women; Puerperal Disorders; Mental disorders