It is PTSD Awareness Month. Did you know that PTSD can happen in childbirth? Did you know that it can happen during pregnancy? Did you know that it can be caused by a traumatic childbirth? Many people assume that post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) only happens in war or from abuse or a terrible, violent accident, but post-traumatic stress disorder can occur whenever there is a traumatic situation that has not been resolved such as a traumatic childbirth. Yes, that’s correct; many women, nowadays, are having traumatic birth experiences which are resulting in post-traumatic stress disorder or are triggering previous trauma they already had. This is a topic that is not discussed very often. Most people assume that childbirth is a happy memory and therefore, women with traumatic birth experiences are often keeping their experiences silent. But even if they are not consulting with a therapist, these memories are still stored in the body and can affect their lives and future birth experiences, as well as, their relationship with their child.
Trauma is an experience that most people do not understand. Many people think they can simply think themselves into a happier state. Mind over matter. They believe they can avoid thinking of unpleasant experiences and then the experiences will not live in their minds. But trauma is deeper than this. One cannot think oneself out of trauma by being more positive. One cannot heal trauma by avoiding it and suppressing emotions. Trauma must be healed; otherwise, it will continue to bleed into other areas of our lives.
Reoccurring negative patterns/cycles may surface and even chronic illness can develop, showing clearly, that the body has not healed from the ordeal. People may experience triggers. Memories may return causing visceral reactions: they may have intense emotions or physical sensations. People may have nightmares or try to avoid certain places or locations such as where the trauma happened or any place that reminds them of the location where it happened. For instance, if a woman had a traumatic birth experience, she may never wish to return to the same hospital again. Even if she needed emergency care for something not related to childbirth, she may request to go to another hospital. She may break out in a sweat, hives, become agitated, and feel nauseous thinking about going back to the same hospital.
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