Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects between 3.1% and 15.7% of women after childbirth. Around 1 in 10 women experience symptoms of PTSD within 4 to 6 weeks of birth. This disorder can be triggered by traumatic deliveries, whether medically complex (such as emergency caesarean sections or haemorrhage) or perceived as psychologically difficult. Postpartum PTSD is often linked to depression.
Symptoms include: reliving, avoidance, emotional numbing, hypervigilance and negative mood swings. This affects mothers' quality of life and can impact the child's development (physical, emotional, social).
Early psychological interventions can prevent and treat post-delivery PTSD, but their effectiveness varies.
Early psychological support: Low-intensity sessions (1-2 sessions led by a midwife or clinician within 72 hours of a traumatic birth) effectively reduce PTSD symptoms at 4-6 weeks, with an effect that can last up to 12 weeks.
Specialized therapies: Therapies such as trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) are also proving effective in treating trauma symptoms.
C-sections and premature births: Results for more intensive interventions remain uncertain, as does their effect on postpartum depression, often associated with PTSD. Further research is needed.
Learn more about Lactium for stress management!
Sources:
Early psychological interventions for prevention and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and post-traumatic stress symptoms in post-partum women: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Taylor Miller PG, Sinclair M, Gillen P, McCullough JEM, Miller PW, Farrell DP, Slater PF, Shapiro E, Klaus P.
PLoS One. 2021 Nov 24;16(11):e0258170. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0258170. eCollection 2021.