Advocacy has become incredibly important to me.
Through my involvement with Birth Trauma Australia, I have had the opportunity to contribute a consumer perspective to conversations about how women and families affected by birth trauma can be better understood and supported.
The more involved I have become in this space, the more passionate I have become about raising awareness of just how far-reaching birth trauma can be. Its impact can extend well beyond birth itself and can affect a woman’s emotional wellbeing, confidence, relationships, work, motherhood and sense of self.
There is so much preparation for pregnancy and birth, but I believe the conversation about what happens afterwards is just as important.
How do we make sure women know where to turn for support?
How do we create environments where women feel comfortable speaking about how they are feeling?
How do we better support families navigating the emotional and practical impacts of birth trauma?
And how can the voices of women with lived experience help shape better care for the future?These are the conversations I want to be part of.
Being involved in advocacy has also shown me the incredible power of women supporting women. Sometimes simply knowing that there is a community that understands can make an enormous difference.
For me, advocacy is about looking forward. It’s about contributing to greater awareness, better understanding and positive change for women and families.
If using my voice can help another woman feel less alone, encourage an important conversation, or contribute to improving the way birth trauma is understood and supported, then I believe that voice is worth using.
What I Hope for the Next 10 Years
My hope for the next decade is that awareness and understanding of birth trauma continue to grow, alongside meaningful support for the women and families affected by it.
I hope women’s physical and emotional wellbeing following birth receives the attention it deserves, and that women know that asking for help is a sign of strength.
I hope conversations about birth trauma become a normal part of maternity and postnatal care, and that women and families know where they can turn when they need additional support.
I would love to see healthcare professionals, workplaces and communities continue developing a deeper understanding of the many ways birth trauma can affect a woman’s life.
I also hope lived experience continues to have a meaningful place in shaping the future. There is enormous value in bringing women, healthcare professionals, researchers and advocacy organisations together and listening to different perspectives.
Most importantly, I want every woman affected by birth trauma to know that she is not alone, that support exists and that her voice matters.
Ten years of Birth Trauma Australia represents something incredibly powerful — a decade of raising awareness, creating community, supporting women and families, and contributing to positive change.
I’m incredibly proud to contribute to that work and to be one of the voices advocating for the future.
And I hope that ten years from now, women and families affected by birth trauma will feel even more informed, understood and supported because of the conversations and work happening today.
Finding Purpose Through Advocacy by Kulbinder Luchi
