Shame is often experienced by parents who had a traumatic birth.

Shame arises out of a perception that we are wrong, unlovable, bad or unacceptable in some way. 

Sadly, it’s all to obvious why modern, medicalized birth is so often shaming of parents.

Experiencing birth as a series of...

Being pregnant again after a traumatic birth is for many parents an anxious time.

It might also be the first time that they have experienced trauma symptoms, even though their birth may have been years ago.

Often parents recover well after a difficult or traumatic birth experience, busy...

Last month a London Assembly health committee review of Covid maternity care in the capital heard that over 75% of the 110,000 women who gave birth in London in 2020 laboured alone, without their partner's support.

Mothers were frequently left to labour, birth and recover alone as staff shortages...

This week has been Birth Trauma Awareness week in the UK and the theme this year was birth injury.

I am grateful to BTA UK, Australasian BTA and Make Birth Better who have collaborated to publish the results of their survey which echoes what TBR College has heard from parents with birth injuries...

It’s easy to get distracted from our BIG why.

The reason why we are so passionate about supporting parents at different stages through their journey 

Why did we decide to train as doulas, midwives, antenatal teachers, health visitors, breast feeding counsellors, lactation consultants...

I am still surprised that many perinatal professionals are unaware of how many parents struggle with their mental health and wellbeing.

Here are some statistics you might find surprising:

• 1 in 5 parents experiences perinatal anxiety.
• Depending on what study is used between 10% and 20% of parents...

Did you know that when bad things happen, when we experience trauma because we felt a threat to our life, the brain’s biology changes to protect us from experiencing the same threat again.
 
We become hardwired to react with the fight, flight or freeze response whenever a similar...

I have always believed that perinatal trauma is nuanced and different from other kinds of trauma, such as motoring accidents or natural disasters.

Perinatal trauma can impact parents health on all levels; physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual.

The lasting effects can be devastating for both...

When I think about trauma, which I do often, all the paradoxical feelings come up.

On the one hand I think we are lucky to be living in an enlightened age where evidence about how trauma has far reached effects on our health is gradually becoming common knowledge. 

But when I consider...

Reading the full Ockenden report today has been tough going. My heart goes out to all the families impacted by the Shrewsbury & Telford maternity trust’s poor care.

I was also, however surprised by the report.

I had expected there to be more damning evidence blaming midwives who were...

This Sunday I will dusting off my placard again to join midwives, other perinatal professionals and parents in Parliament Square in London. I will be there to show solidarity with midwives who are increasingly seeing their profession eroded, their working conditions untenable and their futures as...

The other day I was having one of those conversations that happens from time to time on social media about 'who' is best placed, most qualified, most appropriate to support parents who are struggling after a traumatic perinatal event. 

There was lots of hemming and hawing from a fellow...