Show support on social media
Spread the word on social media by sharing these images.
Don’t forget to tag @birthtrauma.org.au and use #BTAW2023 in your social posts.
Birth Trauma Awareness Week (BTAW) is held in July each year. The theme for 2023 is Postpartum Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Postpartum PTSD remains largely unknown and mis/underdiagnosed despite it occurring in up to 15% of parents in the first six months post-birth. This means that women, birthing people, fathers, and non-birthing parents are still falling through the gaps in healthcare and may not be receiving the best treatment for their needs.
Let’s come together to address this issue, support those affected, and bridge the gaps in healthcare. Our calendar for the week is coming shortly.
This July, step forward for safer births and better healing by joining our first annual BIG Step Challenge. You can go solo or grab some friends and family and challenge yourself to take 110,000 steps during Birth Trauma Awareness Week 16-23 July. That’s one step for every family impacted by birth-related trauma in Australia each year.
During the week will be fostering meaningful conversations and raising vital awareness about birth-related trauma. We’ve planned a series of interviews with experts, who will sharing their insights. The lineup of online events will explore the complexities surrounding birth-related trauma. Here’s what’s planned:
1 in 10 women emerges from childbirth with PTSD. The devastating impacts of this type of trauma suffer from a lack of awareness and progress, meaning that families continue to suffer in silence.
We will spread evidence-based information so that we can better prevent, diagnose and treat this type of trauma.
We aim to elevate the voices of parents and health professionals impacted by this silent epidemic by sharing their stories and real-life experiences and getting them in front of as many people as possible.
We want impacted individuals to know that they do not need to suffer in silence.
Postpartum PTSD is probably more common than most people realise. For some, symptoms of trauma may be treated as depression or anxiety. For others, ongoing symptoms aren’t noticed until some months after the birth – they may have been managed until they become too difficult to cope with. Lots of people may not realise they have trauma until they are pregnant or trying to conceive a second time.
We advocate improving screening and access to treatment, including greater access to affordable treatment options and, ultimately, better outcomes for all those affected.
As a volunteer-led organisation, we rely on donations so we can continue working towards our vision for physically and psychologically safer births and better postnatal care.
Spread the word on social media by sharing these images.
Don’t forget to tag @birthtrauma.org.au and use #BTAW2023 in your social posts.
PO Box 403
Buderim QLD 4556
0412 445 770
support@birthtrauma.org.au
The information on this website is not meant to replace advice provided by a health professional.
Copyright © 2022. All Rights Reserved.
Artwork kindly provided by Hayley Wills
Recommended by Health Direct
0412 445 770
support@birthtrauma.org.au
The information on this website is not meant to replace advice provided by a health professional.
Copyright © 2020. All Rights Reserved.
The ABTA acknowledges and pays respect to the Traditional Custodians of the lands, waters and communities across Australia, on which our Volunteers and our community live and work, and to their Elders, past, present and future. ABTA recognises the special status of Māori as tangata whenua in Aotearoa New Zealand.
