Birth trauma support program to be piloted

WOMEN’S Health & Wellbeing Barwon South West (WHWBSW), local practitioners and Birth Trauma Australia (BTA) will launch Victoria’s first dedicated peer-to-peer birth trauma support program.

To be piloted in Geelong and Warrnambool next month, the program will give parents direct access to lived-experience guidance, recovery tools and a supportive community close to home.

It fills a long-standing gap in postpartum care, connecting people affected by physical or psychological birth trauma.

Research from Birth Trauma Australia shows up to one in three Australian birthing parents report their experience as traumatic.

Birth trauma can be both physical and psychological and can have short and long-term impacts on a person’s wellbeing.

Physical trauma can include damage to pelvic floor muscles, the bladder and nerves; pelvic organ prolapse or pelvic fractures; perineal tears, post-partum haemorrhage and hysterectomy.

Psychological trauma can include anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which can cause nightmares and flashbacks, sweating, shaking, headaches or dizziness.

Without early intervention, these conditions can affect bonding with the baby, cause relationship breakdowns as well as limit the ability to parent or return to the workforce.

The evidence-based peer-to-peer program will be delivered over six weeks, and cover topics including what trauma does to the brain; the range of emotions that can be associated with trauma; self-advocacy; care and treatment options; impact on partners and families; and accessing different forms of support.

Facilitators have both professional training and their own experience of birth trauma, so they bring an understanding of what women are experiencing.

“Parents who have experienced birth trauma have unique needs, and this vital peer-to-peer program will provide a valuable space for them to connect with others and feel less isolated as well as to understand their trauma and get the support they need to move forward,” WHWBSW chief executive officer Jodie Hill said.

“We’re so pleased to partner with local practitioners and Birth Trauma Australia to pilot this vital program in the Barwon South West, where it’s so urgently needed.”

Warrnambool-based GP Dr Alex Umbers said she had both personal and professional experience of the lack of recognition of a traumatic birth and options for a recovery pathway.

“Birth related trauma can be very isolating, even more so in rural and regional areas where services don’t meet the demands of the community.

“The peer-to-peer support is a wonderful option for birthing parents to be supported, validated, develop connections and build hope for recovery; it’s a program I wished I had access to myself.”

Birth Trauma Australia co-founder and EO Amy Dawes said the Birth Trauma Support Group was a program built by parents, for parents.

“It recognises the deep need for trauma-informed, peer-led support in the aftermath of a traumatic birth.

“By sharing lived experiences in a safe, supported environment, participants can begin to make sense of what’s happened to them and importantly, realise they’re not alone.

Places in the group are limited. Clinician and self-referrals welcome.

For more information, head to womenshealthbsw.org.au or phone 5500 5490.