TRAUMA AND EMERGENCIES
I had a traumatic childbirth experience.
“Between 25 and 34% of women report that their births were traumatic. A birth is said to be traumatic when the individual (mother, father, or other witness) believes the mother’s or her baby’s life was in danger, or that a serious threat to the mother’s or her baby’s physical or emotional integrity existed. Following the birth, some of these people go on to develop Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), which is a severe and long-lasting reaction to the trauma.”
Symptoms may include:
Intrusive recollections
Avoidance and/or numbing reactions
Hyperarousal
Functional impairment
The following organizations provide information, resources, and support for individuals who have experienced birth trauma.
Prevention and Treatment of Traumatic Childbirth (PATTCh)
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pattch.org/
Contact: http://pattch.org/contact-us/
PATTCh is an organization dedicated to the prevention and treatment of traumatic childbirth. We envision a world where women, infants, and families experience optimal physical and mental health in pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period. The PATTCh board members are a group of psychotherapists, childbirth educators, doulas, researchers, and academicians who are dedicated to bringing together like-minded individuals to educate childbearing women and families and maternity care professionals; develop effective prenatal, intrapartum and postpartum care practices to prevent or reduce traumatic birth and post-birth PTSD; and identify and promote effective treatments to enhance recovery.
Birth Monopoly
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/birthmonopoly/
Birth Monopoly advocates for a maternity care system that recognizes that you own your body. Birth Monopoly is working to dismantle the monopoly that tells us how, where, and with whom we are ‘allowed’ and ‘not allowed’ to give birth. They provide a "Know Your Rights" course, and they address issues of childbirth rights and obstetric violence.
Obstetric Violence: https://birthmonopoly.com/obstetric-violence/