Birth trauma in a population requiring inpatient mental health care in the postpartum period

Sophie Isobel; Alexandra Emerton; Sylvia Lim-Gibson

doi:10.1177/10398562241246150

Birth trauma in a population requiring inpatient mental health care in the postpartum period

Australas Psychiatry. 2024 Apr 14:10398562241246150. doi: 10.1177/10398562241246150. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Sophie Isobel^{1

2}, Alexandra Emerton³, Sylvia Lim-Gibson³

Affiliations

¹ Naamuru Parent and Baby Unit, Sydney Local Health District, Camperdown, NSW, Australia; and.
² Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, Australia.
³ Naamuru Parent and Baby Unit, Sydney Local Health District, Camperdown, NSW, Australia.

PMID: 38616574
DOI: 10.1177/10398562241246150

Abstract

Objective: This study explores rates of birth-related symptoms of trauma in a population of parents experiencing severe perinatal mental illness.

Method: Birthing-parents admitted to a perinatal inpatient unit completed birth trauma measures on admission which were descriptively analyzed.

Results: The population had higher rates of birth-related potentially traumatic events and trauma-related symptoms than the general population.

Conclusions: The findings highlight that assessing for and responding to experiences of birth trauma is highly relevant to an inpatient perinatal population.

Keywords: birth trauma; mother baby unit; parent baby unit; perinatal mental health; post traumatic stress disorder.