Alicia
Birth trauma, PNDA
As soon as I met my Gidget Clinician, I knew I was in the right place.
When I gave birth to my son, what was supposed to be a magical day ended up being traumatic. An unplanned caesarean, no immediate skin-on-skin contact, and a birth so different from what I had hoped for left me grieving an experience I felt had been ripped away from me.
For the first 16 weeks of my son's life, I was a blubbering mess with no idea what was happening to me. When I fell pregnant with my daughter, my trauma reactivated and I was reliving my son's birth every time I walked into a hospital.
That's when a friend suggested Gidget Foundation Australia. As soon as I met my Gidget Clinician, I knew I was in the right place. She helped me process my trauma and crucially helped me advocate for myself so I could have a positive birth the second time around.
Birth trauma is different for everyone, and I experienced firsthand how it can be overlooked. If I didn't have the support of Gidget Foundation Australia, I'm not sure how I would have gotten through my second pregnancy and birth.