Birth trauma is shorthand for PTSD experienced after childbirth.
Perinatal trauma is PTSD experienced during the broader perinatal period.

Symptoms of birth trauma can include:

• Intrusive memories

• Nightmares and flashbacks

• Anxiety or panic when something reminds you of your birth

• Difficulty sleeping

• Outbursts of anger

• Difficulty concentrating

• Avoiding thinking or talking about your birth

• Avoiding activities or places that remind you of the birth

• Difficulty remembering parts of the birth

• Feeling disconnected

• Unable to have or express loving feelings

• Loss of hope for future

What causes birth trauma is unique to the individual. Sometimes it is caused by a birth experience where they feared for their or their baby’s lives. For many it can be caused by feelings of loss of control, loss of privacy or dignity, feelings of coersion, attitudes of the people around them, not feeling heard or listened to, lack of information or explanation, or non-consensual medical procedures.

It wasn’t until recently that we recognised that in some people, a postnatal depression diagnosis was actually a sub form of PTSD caused by labour or birth.

Perinatal trauma has similar symptoms and may be experienced after pregnancy loss, baby loss or challenging fertility journeys.

Birth trauma can overlap with postnatal depression (PND) as some of the symptoms are the same, but the two are distinct and need to be treated individually.

Unfortunately, many women are wrongly diagnosed with PND and are prescribed medication that may do little or nothing to help their situation. Women and new parents are frequently made to feel they should try and move or just be grateful that they have a healthy baby. This can exacerbate feelings of guilt and isolation and people may then end up with prescriptions for anti-depressants simply because doctors do not understand the disorder.

If you are concerned that you have been misdiagnosed, speak to your GP or health visitor and direct them to Birth Trauma Association resources if they are unaware of birth trauma or the fact that it requires specialised treatment.

BTR therapy sessions consist of simple breath work, personalised and guided visualisations and a simple technique that allows your brain to reprocess your experience in away that will no longer trigger an embodied stress response.

Other techniques may be used to help prepare for future births or simply to rebuild confidence and self-trust in your life as a new parent. We will work together to create a personalised plan for your therapy sessions.

You can share as much or a little of the detail of the trauma as you feel comfortable doing. BTR works with the emotions that are attached to the trauma, not the details themselves. This may be helpful for those who don’t want to verbally express what happened.

By working with your traumatic memories from a place of deep relaxation and sustained emotional regulation, the brain is able to reprocess memories and events without distressing emotional associations.

While the memories will never be happy or joyful, they will no longer cause the upsetting physical effects reported by people suffering from trauma.

There is a growing evidence base that consistently shows that more than 90% of women reported that their distress reduced meaningfully following their engagement with BTR therapy (please see Chelsea and Westminster Trust)