Moving forward from a difficult
Pregnancy, Birth or Postnatal experience
When pregnancy, birth or the postnatal time is difficult or not as we expected
The word perinatal means ‘around birth’. I use it here to refer to anytime from planning a pregnancy up to the months after a baby is born. This includes experiences of miscarriage and baby loss and birth trauma.
Sometimes in the perinatal time, we might find that we hold difficult feelings about our experience, or that the memories don’t sit easily in our mind
This can be because
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birth unfolded in a way that was not expected,
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we experienced poor care,
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something that happened that evoked such strong feelings that the brain is struggling to ‘process’ those emotions so we can reach a sense of closure and acceptance.
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pregnancy was medically or emotionally challenging.
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you experienced a birth related injury or have a complicated healing pathway
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you had a long or intense hospital stay
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you had a miscarriage, termination, a stillborn baby or other experience of loss
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there was difficulty with your baby feeding/gaining weight
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you had to be separated from your baby/babies in the early days/weeks
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Sometimes we don’t even know why we don’t feel ok about the experience.
You could have some of the following feelings
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feeling unable to talk about the perinatal time, or alternatively feeling like you can’t stop talking about it
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feeling teary or emotional whenever you think about it
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feeling anxious or panicked when you think about it
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noticing that you’re avoiding thinking about the birth as it is too upsetting
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nightmares or flashbacks
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difficultly feeling confident in your parenting
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physical sensations when you think about the birth/postnatal time, such as a hot flush, or a twisting in your belly, a tight feeling in the throat, sweaty palms etc
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experiencing unpleasant memories when you are reminded of the events, eg revisiting the place where the events happened or every time you feed your baby or hear about a birth
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feeling fearful of having another baby
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not enjoying motherhood as much as you want to
When it comes to this kind of experience, it could be clear what happened that was challenging or traumatic, or it could be confusing as to why those memories feel so difficult. It really doesn’t matter how the experience looked to an observer, what matters is how we feel about it in the here and now.
These feelings may be present straight after the events or they may arise months later, or even in a subsequent pregnancy. It can be the birthing woman or person who is affected or their birthing partner
If you are struggling with difficult feelings from the perinatal time, even if it’s years later, it may be a relief to know that there are things you can do to help shift these feelings and integrate the memories to sit more easily.
I offer short term counselling and debriefing sessions where we can safely talk over your experience so you can find peace with the events you experienced and how you feel about them now.
The chance to talk over your experiences with an experienced professional in a compassionate and unbiased space can be invaluable.
Alongside using counselling , people sometimes find it helpful to use other techniques, such as
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narrative debriefing ( a creative mapping exercise)
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journaling
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hypnosis to release any trauma symptoms (this technique is especially helpful if it feels too much to talk in depth about your experience)
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reconnecting with your body
As an experienced perinatal yoga teacher, ex doula and qualified counsellor, I understand the landscape of birth and am experienced in supporting women, birthing people and their partners through the emotions that birth and the postnatal time can evoke.
Cost
3 x 50min sessions – £240
Single sessions are £85 each
If you need a payment plan to spread the cost out, please get in contact to discuss. Discounts are available for families whose gross income is below £30,000.
Contact
Email- bryony@bryonyvickers.co.uk
Phone- 07988758544.
Please note I am often in session/class and can not answer the phone. If you leave me a message or email we can arrange a time to have a quick chat about working together. All phone calls and correspondence are treated in the strictest confidence.
To learn more about the Rewind Hypnosis Technique, or for further resources on Birth Trauma, visit www.traumaticbirthrecovery.com
Usually 3-6 sessions depending on what feels right for you.
Single sessions can be available if you prefer.
(if you wish to have hypnosis for trauma release there is a minimum of 3 sessions)
Sessions can be online. I can sometimes offer face to face sessions in central Cambridge.