S4 Ep 6. Midwifery, motherhood and pregnancy related trauma.

Helen is a midwife, academic, lecturer and mum. When a scan at 21 weeks in her first pregnancy showed that her baby girl was on the 3rd centile for weight with high pressure flow in some crucial blood vessels, Helen knew exactly what that meant. Letting go of her hopes for an uncomplicated pregnancy, Helen kept working and looking after other people’s healthy babies, a box of tissues in her car for the inevitable tears that came each day. At 24 weeks she was advised her baby girl may survive, but the stress of her pregnancy was far from over. Helen shares her story of the trauma she suffered from her high risk pregnancy with baby Emilia and her postpartum mental health crisis. Helen also shares the story of her second pregnancy with son Lincoln who, in heart breaking circumstances, died after an unrelated pregnancy complication. Helen shares her wisdom relating to pregnancy trauma, a concept that includes but is not limited to birth trauma. She explains why understanding the impact of stress and grief on families is essential to providing best practice trauma informed care.