Published by Routledge
ISBN10:0-415-37266-6 (paperback)
ISBN10:0-415-37265-8 (hardback)
Reviewed by Rachel Burrows
Find this book on AmazonEleven years on and I opened Sheila Kitzinger's book Birth Crisis with some
trepidation or should I say outright fear. Would it re-open old wounds or
at last give some sense of closure to the violation and trauma I
experienced as a result of the actively managed labour and birth of
my first child? Would it yet again raise more issues to be confronted,
or would it answer in more detail the questions that initially swamped my
head into total confusion (or near madness) and later re-emerged as I
queried my role as mother. In short would I be able to relate my
experience to Sheila Kitzinger's interpretations, or would I yet again
be left feeling that my crisis was a result of my own inherent weaknesses?
Shelia Kitzinger draws on her many hours of listening to women's real-life
experiences of childbirth, and her knowledge of the maternity system as
it is experienced by women today. She presents it from an
anthropologist's viewpoint. I was particularly interested to read about
the power wielded by the high-tech culture of the hospital, ensuring
subser vience, conformity and obedience from women and their carers alike.
All of which leads to disempowerment and anxiety for mothers, and sets the
scene for the pro-active management of the birth process by health professionals,
which can result in PTSD. So often women are only ever presented with the
medical model of pregnancy, labour and birth without any explanation of
the fragile social and psychological processes involved which are easily
disrupted by obstetric inter ventions.
The chapter entitled Nightmares, Flashbacks and Panic Attacks nearly
caused me to close the book as I didn't recognise any of these classic
but extreme symptoms. However on reading the text, particularly the
quotes from women, it was clear that my experience of trauma, although
not as severe, was the same emotional response. I remember well
the hyper-vigilance which stopped me sleeping, eating or going to the toilet
whilst alone in the house with my baby and I too still feel sick walking
into the maternity hospital.
The chapter on The Baby also resonated with my experiences. The
feeling of being emotionally numb and detached from the baby is
captured accurately by Sheila's description of women's feelings. It
was comforting to know that other women too had felt they 'didn't feel
like a mother' and they too were merely 'going through the notions of
motherhood'. The chapter If only I hadn't... discusses the guilt women
feel about the circumstances in which they find themselves.
Sheila presents a positive way forward through listening and
responding to women as they prepare for fur ther pregnancies. She
gives pointers for midwives, doulas and birth partners as they help
women come to terms with and heal from the trauma. Over the past
eleven years I have spent a great deal of time and effort trying to make
sense of my birth crisis from a variety of view points including psychotherapy,
counselling and my own reading and research. Certainly this book helped me
piece together and consolidate my fragmented birth story. At last I have
confidence in my own interpretation of my experiences.
ISBN-10: 0-955-37700-5 £14.99
Reviewed by Jill Moore, mother
Find this book on AmazonThe title of this textbook about PN PTSD (post natal post traumatic stress disorder) is misleading. The
book's proposed aim is to help PTSD sufferers and their Health Care professionals identify this condition
and to treat it appropriately. It is unhelpful to suggest that PTSD is exclusive to caesarean delivered
mothers and the book is clear that a traumatic birth is one perceived as such by the mother, whether vaginal
or abdominal. I mention this as it is symptomatic of the book as a whole. Its aim (to support a seriously
underdiagnosed section of new mothers) is laudable but its execution is patchy.
The book is separated into two sections. In the first ten chapters, Martha Jesty produces a memoir of
her own experience of PN PTSD. She also includes information about her son's reaction to his traumatic
birth and a section written by her husband - giving a partner's perspective. After a difficult labour
and birth, a new mother can feel very isolated and unable to share her birth experience with others around her.
In this context, access to other women's experiences (and through them, the feeling that you are not
alone) can be enormously helpful. Martha Jesty's story certainly proves that there is a path through
postnatal illness. However, these chapters are somewhat rambling, dealing with aspects of the author's
life that are not necessarily relevant to the subject in hand. It should also be noted that she writes from a
position of strong Christian faith. If a reader shares her faith, or is at least sympathetic towards it, then her
description of how her beliefs aided her recovery will be uplifting. Jesty does clearly signal areas of the book
where she discusses her condition in spiritual terms, so it is possible to skip these chapters, if they leave you
feeling uncomfor table. However, her story may then seem incomplete.
The second part of the book, including a lot of information from the Birth Trauma Association, is the
stronger section. Here, readers will find a very clear section entitled 'What is Post Natal Post Traumatic
Stress Disorder?'; a list of symptoms; brief stories from sufferers; a list of possible triggers; the differences
between PN PTSD and PND or Post Partum Psychosis; possible treatments and some charts which would enable
women to monitor their own recovery. This portion of the book is clearly set out, with lots of bold subheadings,
and is easily navigable for someone wanting to find out something specific about the condition. Overall, I can
commend these chapters to anyone wishing to attain a better understanding of PN PTSD. With better understanding,
comes a better chance of recovery and Martha Jesty's story is worthwhile for that reason - she has come through it.
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