Post Traumatic Stress Disorder After Childbirth

There has been a great deal of awareness about Postpartum Depression in recent years, but not so with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder after childbirth. The reason for this is likely that people believed this to be a very rare disorder. Only three years ago, after my son was born and I began to experience symptoms of this disorder, there was barely any information available about it online or elsewhere. The rate of occurrence was reported to be between 1.5 and 5.9%. There were only two websites at that time that focused on this issue, both of which were from other countries.

There is a new survey out that suggests that PTSD after childbirth occurs quite a bit more frequently then previously thought. The survey is called New Mothers Speak Out and was a follow up survey to the Childbirth Collective’s Listening To Mothers II survey. The survey found that 9% of the 900 women screened met all of the diagnostic criteria for PTSD, and 18% showed some signs of it.

This new data indicates that many more women are suffering from PTSD, or symptoms of trauma after childbirth then previously thought. It is not clear why there is a discrepancy in figures, if it is because the women are not seeking treatment, or they are being misdiagnosed. Either way, it is very good that this issue is being brought to people’s attention.

One of the main risk factors for PTSD is having negative interactions with care providers and staff during your birth experience, and feeling not in control of your labor or birth. When women, birth care providers, and staff are aware of these risk factors, adjustments can be made that may help prevent PTSD or symptoms of trauma from occurring. Women may decide to choose providers or birth settings where they feel they will have more control over their experience and will be respected. Care providers and staff should be aware of how their treatment affects women and strive to allow her to be in control of her own experience and to respect her wishes and individuality. It is also shown that a large amount of medical interventions can be a big risk factor for experiencing PTSD after childbirth. Both women and care providers should be aware of this and try not to use interventions that are not necessary. Another risk factor is previous trauma, which can be screened for before a woman gives birth. If previous trauma is an issue it may be helpful for the care provider and the woman to strategize on how to work with this issue during labor and birth. Debriefing shortly after a birth that was perceived as traumatic by the mother can also be very helpful for some women and this should be an option for women who find themselves experiencing symptoms of trauma.

The Wall Street Journal just ran an article about this issue entitled Birth Trauma: Stress Disorder Afflicts Moms. There is a very interesting accompanying podcast found here.

Today, there are more resources available for PTSD after childbirth then there was three years ago when I was searching for information. There is a growing awareness of the issue and this will hopefully help to prevent it from occurring in the majority of cases. In the cases where there are true emergency situations, an awareness and the subsequent adjustments in treatment of the mother and her baby can hopefully help to minimize the trauma that the woman might experience.