It's estimated that 30 000 women in the UK experience a traumatic birth every year.
Yet it’s only recently that we have started talking about birth trauma and offering specific psychological treatments for it.
If you experienced a difficult birth, you may notice the following difficulties:Intrusive thoughts
- You might find yourself thinking about the birth when you don’t want to and it doesn’t come with a warm fuzzy feeling but perhaps it leaves you overwhelmed or troubled. You might try and push it to the back of your mind or shake it off but it doesn’t stay pushed back there for long.
Become overwhelmed with negative thoughts and feelings
You might be overwhelmed by negative emotions and thoughts.
Maybe you think you’re not good enough because you didn’t have the birth in your plan.
Maybe you think you’re a bad person for not being smiley and happy all of the time.
Maybe you have hateful thoughts towards people who seem to have it all and cope well with their immaculate house, smiley/happy baby.
Being unable to move on with your life
You might know that this birth is over but be unable to move on with your life.
You might notice yourself thinking ‘I’ve got what I wanted, my baby is here. But i just don’t feel right.’
Yet you keep thinking about that horrible experiences around the birth and you are not enjoying the moment?