Abstract
In this chapter the author’s research program on traumatic childbirth is the focus. The series of 6 qualitative studies bring visibility to the invisible phenomena of the distressing consequences of birth trauma for women. Posttraumatic stress disorder due to childbirth, breastfeeding difficulties, the anniversary of birth trauma, and subsequent childbirth after a previous birth trauma are the unintended events that some women struggle with as they progressed down this slippery slope. The chapter ends on a positive note with mothers’ experiences of posttraumatic growth following a traumatic birth.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsReferences
Ayers S, Bond R, Bertullies S, Wijma K (2016) The aetiology of post-traumatic stress following childbirth: a meta-analysis and theoretical framework. Psychol Med. doi:10.1017/S0033291715002706
Beck CT (2004a) Birth trauma: in the eye of the beholder. Nurs Res 53:28–35
Beck CT (2004b) Posttraumatic stress disorder due to childbirth: the aftermath. Nurs Res 53:216–224
Beck CT (2006a) Pentadic cartography: mapping birth trauma narratives. Qual Health Res 16:453–466
Beck CT (2006b) The anniversary of birth trauma: failure to rescue. Nurs Res 55:381–390
Beck CT (2016) Posttraumatic stress disorder after birth: a metaphor analysis. MCN Am J Matern Child Nurs 9:76–83
Beck CT, Watson S (2008) Impact of birth trauma on breast-feeding: a tale of two pathways. Nurs Res 57:228–236
Beck CT, Watson S (2010) Subsequent childbirth after a previous traumatic birth. Nurs Res 59:241–249
Beck CT, Watson S (2016) Posttraumatic growth following birth trauma: “I was broken. Now I am unbreakable”. MCN Am J Matern Child Nurs 41(5):264–271
Burke K (1969) A grammar of motives. University of California Press, Berkley
Colaizzi PF (1978) Psychological research as the phenomenologist views it. In: Valle R, King M (eds) Existential phenomenological alternatives for psychology. Oxford University Press, New York, pp 48–71
Grekin R, O’Hara MW (2014) Prevalence and risk factors of postpartum posttraumatic stress disorder: a meta-analysis. Clin Psychol Rev 34:389–401
O’Reilly B (1886) The mirror of true womanhood: a book of instruction for women in the world, 16th edn. P.J. Kenedy, New York
Pragglejaz Group (2007) MIP: a method for identifying metaphorically used words in discourse. Metaphor Symb 22:1–39. doi:10.1207/s15327868ms2201_1
Tedeschi R, Calhoun L (1996) The posttraumatic growth inventory: measuring the positive legacy of trauma. J Trauma Stress 9:455–472
Tedeschi RG, Calhoun LG (2004) Posttraumatic growth: conceptual foundations and empirical evidence. Psychol Inq 15:1–18
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Beck, C.T. (2018). The Slippery Slope of Birth Trauma. In: Muzik, M., Rosenblum, K. (eds) Motherhood in the Face of Trauma. Integrating Psychiatry and Primary Care. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65724-0_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65724-0_4
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-65722-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-65724-0
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)