Facing Birth Trauma, with Jodi Hall

The Birthful Podcast: Episode #10

In this episode, we are going to be talking about birth trauma; as in, the trauma that can happen during birth. Having a baby is a monumental full body and mind event that can stir up a lot of feelings! What if the birth you think you should have and the one you actually have don’t match up? To go deep into all the feelings, I’ll be talking to Jodi Hall.

Show Notes: what we talked about!

• Birth-related trauma, birth trauma, and traumatic events – how they differ and intertwine
• What makes a birth experience traumatic?
• Whoa! 25-35% of women see their births as traumatic
• The effects of birth trauma on the first weeks with your newborn
• Causes of birth trauma and types of traumatic birth
• Pregnancy trap #1003: the “Right” way to birth
• Beyond “healthy mom, healthy baby”: why your perception of what’s happening matters as much as what’s actually happening
• How can you prepare for the unexpected nature of birth?
• Get it out in the open: sharing what you’ve experienced in the path towards healing

Links for you to dig deeper into this topic:

• SolaceForMothers.org – healing after traumatic childbirth
• BirthTraumaCanada.org – organization of mothers who have had negative childbirth experiences
• PATTCh – Prevention and Treatment of Traumatic Childbirth

Birth pros who Jodi admires for their work related to birth trauma:

• Dr. Cheryl Beck – 20 years focusing on Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorders
• Penny Simkin – Works on birth trauma and the impact of prior history of child and sexual abuse as they negotiate the transition into mothering. She’s also a co-founder of PATTCh
• Dr.Kathleen Kendall-Tackett – Childbirth related psychological trauma research

[mark]About Jodi Hall[/mark]

Courtesy of Jody Hall

Jodi is a mother, dancer, activist, educator, and researcher, and has a PhD in Health and Rehabilitation Sciences from The University of Western Ontario. She’s also Assistant Adjunct Professor at the School of Nursing in Western University.

She has published research on the impacts of trauma on the transition to mothering, the health related needs of women in conflict with the law, and the ethics of conducting health research within incarcerated settings.

Jodi also worked as a doula and childbirth educator for 10 years, with a focus on the intersections between trauma histories and the experiences of women during the childbearing years. She was employed in both residential and clinical settings as a full-time woman abuse counselor.

Her unique combination of skills from both the birthing community and the violence against women sector has spurred a high demand for her workshops aimed at informing other medical and allied health and social service professionals around the complex issue of trauma and the childbearing years.

She lives with her family in London, Ontario, and runs a private counseling practice entitled Sharing Spaces, with her practice partner Amanda Saunders, specializing in supporting families as they manage and heal from the impacts of birth trauma. She also operates A Safe Passage, the only known website dedicated solely to supporting survivors of abuse through pregnancy, birth and the transition to parenting.
You can get a hold of Jodi by email, get more info at ASafePassage.info, or join the conversation in the A Safe Passage Facebook page.