Birth Shock - How to recover from birth trauma
Birth Shock - How to recover from birth trauma by Mia Scotland
Published by Pinter & Martin 10th September 2020, paperback original £12.99
At least you have a healthy baby. That, after all, is the most important thing. Or is it?
Research shows an incredible 30% of women describe their birth as traumatic* with 4% experiencing full blown post-traumatic stress disorder**. For some this is can be the result of a physically demanding labour and delivery with medical complications. But research suggests that birth trauma is also associated with the way that women are treated during and after labour. Coercive practice, issues surrounding lack of consent and a failing of compassionate care can have devastating consequences. Feeling they are not listened to, and experiencing a subsequent loss of control, women can suffer the debilitating effects of trauma for many years to come.
In her compelling new book Birth Shock, perinatal and clinical psychologist Mia Scotland explores exactly what birth trauma is, how it can occur, the common presenting symptoms and gives clear suggestions and practical tips on how to recover. With over 20 years of experience in the field, as a psychologist and as a doula witnessing birth on the frontline, Mia brings her unique expertise and insight to this guide to understanding obstetric violence and the path to recovery.
Mia says, ‘If you think birth trauma is just about birth, think again. My clinical work, and research, suggests that birth trauma is a function of the systems that we birth in. These systems are arguably patriarchal, controlling, over-medicalised, and can be damaging to women’s health, both physically and emotionally.’
*Reed, Sharman and Inglis, 2017
____________________
About the author: 
Mia Scotland is a Perinatal Clinical Psychologist and birth doula, working in private practice in the East Midlands, UK. She has been helping mothers deal with birth trauma, perinatal depression and anxiety for more than 20 years. Her particular passion is for the psychology of birth and motherhood, from a biopsychosocial perspective. As well as running her private practice, she teaches birth professionals about the psychology of birth internationally. She has three children, and lives in Melton Mowbray. Mia is the author of Why Postnatal Depression Matters. www.yourbirthright.co.uk