About the ABTA
The Australasian Birth Trauma Association's (ABTA) vision is Safer Births, Better Healing. We strive to achieve this this through advocacy, education, research and peer-led support.
What is Birth Trauma?
The birth of a child is meant to be one of life’s happiest events. But for an alarming number of women and families, it is anything but. In fact, 1 in 3 women identify their birth experience as traumatic, while 10-20% of first-time mothers will sustain long-term physical injury from childbirth. “Birth-related trauma” includes any injury or trauma, whether physical or psychological, sustained at any time in connection with pregnancy, labour or childbirth. This definition is intended to be broad.
Birth Trauma Awareness Week
ABTA wants women and their families to know that they aren't alone and that there is help and support available. See what else we are doing for Birth Trauma Awareness Week 2021.
Birth is wonderful.
But sometimes birth is frightening.
Sometimes birth is physically damaging.
Sometimes birth is nothing like you hoped or planned.
It’s hard to hear, but important to say: birth can be traumatic.
But it doesn’t need to be, and there’s help if it is.
Need to talk about your birth?
Connect with a peer mentor
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THINKNATAL Resources
When the ABTA was founded in 2016, one of our objectives included reducing the rate of birth-related trauma in Australia and New Zealand. Over this time, we have seen an increasing number of first-time parents seeking advice and guidance on birth preparation and we are frequently asked ‘How can we best prepare for our next pregnancy and birth?' by families who have previously experienced birth-related trauma.
In response to this need, and in line with our founding objective, we have developed THINKNATAL, a series of educational resources aimed at providing support and information on a variety of topics that are often excluded or underrepresented in existing antenatal education. This is in collaboration with consumers and a range of clinicians involved in maternity care, such as midwives, obstetricians, pelvic health physiotherapists and mental health clinicians.
Our philosophy is to encourage a collaborative, multi-disciplinary and individualised approach to pregnancy, birth and postpartum care that recognises each person’s life experiences, values, wants, needs and physical health requirements and we encourage our health professionals to do the same.
