What is psychological birth trauma?
Mental health in pregnancy and after birth (SIGN)
Psychological birth trauma, also known as postnatal post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a type of anxiety disorder. You may develop psychological birth trauma if you experience traumatic or frightening events during labour or childbirth.
What someone feels to be traumatic or difficult can differ from person to person.
Examples of traumatic events that may cause psychological birth trauma include:
- a difficult labour with a long and painful delivery
- an unplanned caesarean section
- emergency treatment
- other shocking, unexpected or traumatic experiences during birth.
Common symptoms of psychological birth trauma include:
- reliving aspects of the trauma
- alertness or feeling on edge, for example, trouble sleeping, irritability, feelings of anger
- avoiding feelings or memories, for example, feeling unable to show affection
- difficult beliefs and feelings, for example, not trusting others, self-blame.
Many people find that their symptoms improve over time as they recover naturally after childbirth. But, for a small group of people, the symptoms continue over time and they need further assessment and treatment.
If you have had a difficult experience giving birth, your healthcare professional can offer support. They may ask you questions, based on a birth trauma screening questionnaire, to find out how best to support you.
If you are finding things very difficult, or the feelings of trauma last more than 3 months after birth, your healthcare professional will refer you to a mental health professional for further assessment and care.
If your birth partner has experienced trauma, you could ask your health professional about what local support is available for them.