Birth trauma

Birth trauma is a physical and/or psychological reaction to one single event, or a mixture of experiences through conception, pregnancy, during labour or after the birth.

There are many causes of birth trauma, but the most common include a difficult birth, a rapid or quick delivery, physical pain/injury during birth, mental/physical exhaustion through pregnancy and/or the birth, a birth plan that has not gone the way you anticipated, or significant or unwanted intervention in the birth. These experiences can be exacerbated by feeling that you were not listened to or poor communication throughout the event. Birth trauma can be developed by those who experienced the event itself or by those who witnessed the event.

.

What are the symptoms?

• Flashbacks, nightmares or intrusive memories, which make you feel distressed and panicky
• Avoiding anything that reminds you of the trauma. This can mean refusing to walk past the hospital where you gave birth, or avoiding meeting other women with new babies
• Feeling hyper-vigilant. You’re constantly alert, irritable and jumpy, and worry that something terrible is going to happen to your baby
• Feeling low and unhappy. You may feel guilty and blame yourself for your traumatic birth, and you may have difficulty remembering parts of the birth

Treatment

Early recognition, support and treatment can be a huge benefit to the health and wellbeing of the whole family unit, so it is important to seek professional help/guidance from a GP or midwife as soon as you think that you or someone you know might be affected by any of these symptoms.

More information on birth trauma can be found here: Birth Trauma Support For Parents – Make Birth Better