What is Birth Trauma?

Birth is often perceived as a joyous and life-changing event, the beginning of parenthood and a new chapter of life. However, for some individuals, the experience of childbirth can be traumatic, leading to long term physical and emotional difficulties.

Birth trauma refers to the emotional and physiological distress that can occur following childbirth. It is a highly individual experience, influenced by a person’s subjective experience of their birth including how they felt during the birth and how they have subsequently made sense of their experience. Birth trauma can be experienced by any birthing person, mum, dad, birthing partner or others involved. Birth trauma can result from many situations including extended labour, blood loss, medical intervention, emergency surgery including cesarean section, witnessing a baby in distress, separation from baby in NICU, post birth complications or feeling out of control, unheard or uninformed. However, birth trauma can also occur where a birth appears medically straightforward, depending on how the person was made to feel at the time.

Common Symptoms of Birth Trauma include the following:

In addition to these symptoms, which are all fairly common symptoms of trauma following any traumatic experience, birth trauma comes with layer of complexity. Following birth trauma, you will have the physical recovery of childbirth to heal from. You will also have a new baby that requires your love and energy, which can make it hard to prioritise your own needs. Often the focus of those around you will be on your new baby, and you may have your feelings relating to your birth invalidated due to having “a healthy baby”. You may experience lots of feelings of shame relating to your experience, which can begin to grow into other areas, such as your feelings towards your abilities as a parent, or your bond with your baby.

How to Seek Support and Healing

If you or someone you know is experiencing symptoms of trauma following birth, it’s important to know that support is available. Here are some steps that you can take to help in the healing process:

1. Talk about your experience: whether this is with a loved one, peers, in a group setting or with a professional, sharing your experience can help you to process what has happened and can help you to feel less alone.
2. Consider Trauma-Focused Therapy: In the UK, recommended psychological therapies for birth trauma include Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) or Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR). These therapies can help you to process your experience and reduce feelings of distress associated with the memories.
3. Mind-Body Practices: ractices like mindfulness, yoga, and meditation can help individuals reconnect with their bodies and heal emotionally. These practices promote relaxation and provide tools for managing anxiety and stress.
4. Self-Compassion: practicing being kind to yourself and accepting that your feelings about your birth are normal and valid can be a way towards healing. Often the shame associated with trauma can leave us feeling self-critical and angry towards ourselves or our body.
5. Looking After your Physical Health: Birth trauma often has physical as well as emotional implications, and it is important to focus on getting enough rest, healthy nutrition and light exercise to support your body in its recovery.

Birth trauma is a challenging experience that can have a lasting and profound effect on new parents. It’s important to recognise that seeking professional support can make a huge difference to how you are feeling. Perinatal Clinical Psychologists, Perinatal Services, Maternal Mental Health Services, EMDR/CBT therapists and peer support can offer a range of ways to help you to make sense of your experience and manage the symptoms that you have been left with.