Traumatic childbirth experience refers to »a woman's experience of interactions and/or events directly related to childbirth that caused overwhelming distressing emotions and reactions; leading to short and/or long-term negative impacts on a woman's health and wellbeing.« (Leinweber et al. 2022, 687). The purpose of this study was to address two research questions: 1) How do women with traumatic childbirth experience perceive childbirth, and 2) How do they experience the postpartum period. The study included 12 women who had given birth for the first time within the last two years and who perceived their childbirth as traumatic. The participants’ mean age was 31.0 ± 4.6 years. They completed questionnaires on demographic data, childbirth circumstances, and childbirth experience, as well as participated in a one-hour semi-structured interview. The data were analysed according to the principles of interpretative phenomenological analysis. With regard to the first research question, the analysis yielded four overarching themes: 1) The most horrible experience of my life, 2) I did not expect this, 3) Healthcare providers, communication, and medical procedures, and 4) The partner’s role. With regard to the second research question, five overarching themes emerged: 1) Rollercoaster of emotions and memories, 2) Captive of one’s own body, 3) Mother–child relationship, 4) Relationships and support, and 5) Postpartum period as an opportunity to heal the wounds left by childbirth. These findings contribute to the existing body of theoretical and quantitative research by providing an in-depth qualitative perspective.
|
