Childbirth Trauma and Birth Preparation

Renee has worked with perinatal clients for over 20 years, first as a yoga teacher and later as a mental health therapist and yoga therapist. She works with private clients & groups, speaks to parents and trains birthing professionals. 

Renee’s work is rooted solidly in the belief that during birth, we are at the height of both creative potential and vulnerability, and that we should be able to emerge from the experience with a true sense of our power. When things get in the way of that sense of power, it can undermine us–it makes us lose confidence, courage and sense of personal control. We feel like we are not enough.

Add to this that birthing people are often under-supported during this phase of life. We forget about the importance of the “fourth trimester” as an important window of ongoing recovery and support. Or we feel we must “play chicken” with the looming due date and past experiences or beliefs that make it intimidating. 

Often, this big or small t trauma/stress is the most challenging moment we have been through, but others say things like “at least your baby is healthy” and we become silenced by fears of seeming ungrateful. 

Others have suffered a loss, and find that even if people were supportive immediately after the loss, they disappear quickly. For them, the story is over and we no longer have their attention or interest as our pain continues.

Challenging events get locked into the nervous system, and womxn end up suffering postpartum depression, anxiety, or PTSD. 

It’s sometimes hard to pinpoint the original source of the stress. It can be things like protracted morning sickness or breast feeding problems–things that we don’t typically think of as traumas–that end up leaving an imprint on our emotional being. Or perhaps we have a history with anxiety, so we assume this is just our dirty lot in life!

Because it’s hard to pinpoint, we buy into the story that our strong emotions are “due to hormones” and don’t get the emotional care and support we need to move through our overwhelm successfully–we hope it will pass as the hormones re-regulate. The problem is, when we have suffered a threat to our sense of wellbeing, it tends to stick and we need non-judging support to get through.

If any of this sounds familiar or if you would like to sort through what happened to determine if Renee can be of help, schedule a free consultation at.