Women who experience difficulties giving birth can develop symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder soon afterwards
CELEBRITY MUMS are often accused of making pregnancy and labour look like little more than a spa break. So when model Miranda Kerr, wife of actor Orlando Bloom, spoke out about her difficult labour in an interview with In Style Australia, mothers everywhere saluted her.
Kerr revealed that during the birth of baby Flynn she was convinced that she was going to die and, at one point, felt like she had left her body.
While childbirth is deemed natural, for some women, it can be distressing, frightening and traumatic for others.
There is a growing consensus among health professionals that women who experience a traumatic birth go on to develop symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The common perception of childbirth, perhaps created by the portrayal of celebrity mums seemingly giving birth and recovering without difficulty, is in part responsible for the differentiation between reality and perception.
Maggie Gilmour, a psychotherapist and midwife from Dundalk, Co Louth, sees many clients trying to come to terms with traumatic birth experiences.
“Postnatal post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD following childbirth, or simply birth trauma, has been medically recognised only since 1994, although some studies show that women suffered from this through the generations,” she says.
“Left untreated, PTSD can develop into depression. Therefore, it is important to recognise it and treat it appropriately.
“PTSD is characterised by reliving the event through flashbacks, dreams, nightmares and intrusive thoughts. These symptoms are accompanied by intense fear and anxiety, which feel out of the woman’s control.”
While many healthcare professionals recognise postnatal depression, Gilmour believes that PTSD doesn’t appear to be widely acknowledged.
“This is changing as women become more aware themselves. There tends to be a societal view that if a mother has survived the birthing process with a healthy baby, then she should be grateful and get on with things.”
To help counteract birth trauma, Gilmour says that education and support in the form of antenatal classes, along with familiarity with healthcare professionals, is vital.
“Women who experience support from healthcare professionals can manage difficult situations much better. Counselling can help with tokophobia , identifying fears and the root causes of these or helping a client to deal with past trauma prior to labour,” she adds.
For Susan Copeland, originally from Co Mayo and now living in Belfast, the birth of her second child Evan, was “traumatic and brutal”.
“Out of my three children, Evan’s birth was definitely the worst. I went into labour naturally but I progressed slowly and my waters had to be broken. Blood gushed out with the waters and before I knew it I was having an emergency section,” she says.
“The epidural didn’t work and I could feel this awful tugging sensation. Afterwards, the consultant told me I had lost two and half litres of blood and I was close to having a hysterectomy.”
Copeland was told by the consultant that any subsequent births would have to be by elective Caesarean as she had a scar wound from her first C-section, which extended to the cervix and this put her at risk.
Fionnuala McGoldrick, from Galbally, Co Tyrone, a bestselling author (writing under the pen name Fiona Cassidy) recalls her own experience giving birth to her son Oran, now 22 weeks old.
“Although Oran’s birth wasn’t traumatic as such, it was very frightening as he came at a much faster pace than my previous babies. He was premature by four weeks, I felt unprepared and that I had no control,” she says.
“I felt the urge to push while I was in the antenatal ward bath and there was no way I wanted him born in water as I have a fear of water. I wasn’t in the right environment and felt like I had lost all control.
“His head came out while I was still in the antenatal ward. We had to get the bed into a lift while I was screaming blue murder. The lift doors opened and a man was standing there waiting to get in. I can remember thinking, if he hasn’t had children he never will after hearing and seeing me.
“Looking back I think it was all hilarious. The circumstances weren’t straightforward, but I had a sense that it would all work out and I had no problems bonding with Oran,” she adds.
Dr Geraldine Scott-Heyes, a consultant clinical psychologist based in Belfast, believes several factors can influence how a woman experiences childbirth and make a post-trauma reaction more likely.
“Any emergency situation where there are concerns about the health of the baby or the mother is more frightening and more likely to be psychologically traumatising. Prolonged, painful labour and/or ineffective pain relief can have a similar effect,” she says.
“However, a woman’s subjective sense of the experience can be as important as actual events. If she feels well supported by a trusted birth partner and staff, this can help her to feel safer and more in control, reducing the risk of a post trauma response.”
