In a groundbreaking parliamentary report, the UK's Birth Trauma Inquiry has unveiled a disturbing picture of the healthcare system's failures when it comes to supporting women during childbirth. Drawing on harrowing personal accounts, the inquiry has shone a much-needed spotlight on the traumatic experiences far too many new mothers have faced - from being ignored and dismissed by medical staff to outright bullying and loss of control over their birthing process.
Here are some key statistics on birth-related PTSD in the UK
1 in 3 women in the UK reported having a traumatic birth experience Source: Survey by the UK's National Childbirth Trust:
45% of women felt their decisions were not respected during labor and birth Source: NCT, "Birthplace and post-natal care: Experiences of first-time mothers", 2018
1 in 12 women (8.33%) experience birth-related PTSD in the UK Source: RCOG, "Maternal Mental Health - Women's Voices", 2017
1 in 10 maternal deaths in the UK are by suicide, often linked to birth trauma Source: MBRACE-UK, "Saving Lives, Improving Mothers' Care", 2017
This damning report lays bare a culture of cover-ups and lack of transparency within hospitals, where devastating mistakes and substandard care have been hidden from public view. Expectant mothers have had to fight to have their voices heard, only to be met with doubt and disregard by the very professionals tasked with protecting them.
“Women frequently felt they were subjected to interventions they had not consented to, and many felt they had not been given enough information to make decisions during birth. The poor quality of postnatal care was an almost universal theme. Women shared stories of being left in bloodstained sheets or of ringing the bell for help but no one coming.” These interventions include:
Cesarean sections
Episiotomies
Forceps deliveries
Vacuum extractions
Inductions of labor
Augmentation of labor with oxytocin
Rupture of membranes
Internal fetal monitoring
Repeat vaginal exams
Administration of pain medications
Delayed skin-to-skin contact
Early cord clamping
Separation of mother and newborn
The report makes it clear that women were not given adequate information about these various interventions, nor were they granted the opportunity to provide true informed consent.
Failure to respect women's autonomy and decision-making is a profound violation of their human rights during one of life's most vulnerable and profound experiences.
The implications of these findings are profound, not just for the UK's healthcare system, but for women and families around the world. Maternal mortality and morbidity rates in developed countries remain shockingly high, and all too often, the experiences of birthing mothers are brushed aside. This inquiry serves as a wake-up call that can no longer be ignored.
As a somatic healer and womb alchemist who works with adults to release the imprints of birth trauma from their nervous systems, the harrowing accounts detailed in the recent Guardian report are important to address. The truth is, I've seen first hand the lasting impact that traumatic birth has on the nervous system. If it doesn't affect families immediately, the child and mother often hold these fear imprints and levels of trauma in the nervous system even decades later, resulting in a range of mental health conditions that are often mis diagnosed. It's clear that our healthcare systems are failing women in the most fundamental ways, and most mental health professionals do not dive deeply enough into their clients in utero and birth experience which is in my view, a gross oversight.
The stories shared in this parliamentary report are truly gut-wrenching - women being ignored, dismissed, and even bullied by medical staff during what should be one of life's most vulnerable and miraculous moments.
The lack of transparency and the culture of cover-ups within these institutions is even more horrifying. How can we entrust our most precious lives to a system that refuses to be accountable for its failures?
I work with clients who carry the physical and emotional scars of birth trauma in their bodies, minds, and spirits. The pain, fear, and disempowerment they experienced can become deeply imprinted in the nervous system, leading to ongoing challenges like anxiety, depression, relationship difficulties, and even chronic health conditions caused by nervous system dysregulation.
What's most heartbreaking is how alone and invalidated these women feel.
So many of them fought to be heard, only to be brushed aside by the very people who were supposed to care for them. That kind of betrayal can shake a person to their core.
Through nervous system and energy healing work I've helped many people release and heal. It's a profound process of reclaiming the body's own innate wisdom and capacity for healing. But it shouldn't have to be this hard.
Mothers deserve to feel safe, supported, and empowered throughout their birthing experiences. They should be able to fully trust the medical professionals tasked with bringing new life into the world. And when things go wrong, there needs to be true accountability and a commitment to learning and improving, not just clumsy cover-ups.
This report is a clarion call that we can no longer ignore. The time has come to demand a radical transformation in our healthcare systems - one that puts the needs and experiences of mothers at the absolute forefront. No more excuses, no more delays.
It's time to heal these wounds, once and for all. But that journey has to start with systemic change. We owe it to all the women who have suffered to fight for the safe, supportive, and empowering birthing experiences they deserve.
What My Clients Say
I came to see Safa to heal childhood abuse and severe birth trauma that I had carried my entire life. I had tried other healing modalities but nothing seemed to work.I felt my trauma was affecting my relationship with my young daughter and also my marriage with my husband.Safa enabled me to heal at such a deep level that I thought nobody would ever be able to meet me at. As an energy healer myself I can say that I have learnt so much by directly experiencing the unique depth that Safa works at. I feel I was guided here, towards this healing. I am so grateful for what I have transformed and learnt. I am now confident, grounded and more aligned that I have ever been in my life. My family and relationships and stronger. My spine and midline and clear and my third eye has opened up more, allowing me to see more clearly within myself and my own energy body. Thank you for your healing, for what you teach me, and for myself for doing this programme ❤️
-Jessie, USA
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I came to see Safa after struggling with my physical health, my emotional wellbeing and my connection to my child after going through a traumatic birth. I would have never thought Safa would have been able to help me the way she did. She provided me with all the tools and guidance to actually heal myself! I can say with confidence that my trauma is all gone now, and my toddler and me are in sync again! Mentally, emotionally and spiritually I'm on a higher level now. My womb has also healed. I will forever be grateful to Kimiya Healing!
Anon, USA
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Since I first met Safa she has not only helped me, my body and my soul but has become a vital part in my son's recovery. Every time I take Leonardo to Safa, he relaxes instantly and is happy to co-operate with her despite his young age of 21 months. Safa knows how to connect with my son and has done amazing work in getting him to release not only his physical tension and pain but also to let go of some of his birth trauma. Alongside his very complex medical history and ongoing health issues, Safa has become his safe haven. You can clearly see the relief in his face and the amount of smiles he shares with her says it all. I could go on and on but I will finish up by saying that my son is at his most peaceful state during and after a session with Safa. I am so grateful to witness this healing miracle every week. Thank you Safa / Kimiya Healing!
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I was born through an emergency C-Section and I was a planned adoption. I believe my adoptive parents collected me when I was only two weeks old. I entered Womb Room with an open curiosity and also some trepidation. I wanted to know more about how I came into this world and why it was so difficult for me.The first days of being in Womb Room resulted in huge releases from my nervous system. On one occasion it felt like ‘stuff’ was being pulled from my body because it was no longer needed. Through the journey I started to feel the expansive, spacious and nurturing Womb space which was totally new for me.The answers I had been looking for, in relation to my birth and biological mother were not there. However, there was now a deeper a sense of knowing that ‘not knowing’ was perfect, it was part of my path and mystery. I felt like this Womb that I came to know, was always there for me. I finally felt safe. Through this journey I have become more deeply embodied in my own womb, I have released trauma and fear imprints from in utero. I am more at one with the universe and myself. I accept that I am my biological mother, even though I don't know her, just as she is me.With this embodied knowledge I feel limitless freedom.
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There's no words for this amazing healing experience.
I now feel so much lighter and more connected. I healed so much trauma from my childhood and birth of my children.
I had the most amazing bonding experience with my son who’s 7yrs old; he woke up at around 11:30pm, came in and gave me the most beautiful hug - just like he used to when he was a toddler.
Jodie, UK
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It was insane! It was the maddest experience I have ever had and I loved every minute of it!
I saw the universe stars everywhere. I was being birthed from the universe into human form. It was the most upsetting & distressing feeling i ever had. I didn't want to go. So scared & alone. Then I was in the womb. My mother was "not feeling good enough.. "The contractions started, stubborn pain in my right shoulder (which i had forgotten about from previous rebirth). I could hear the Drs. saying "its not good enough" I told them to Fuck Off. Then I laughed hysterically when I saw the shock on their faces.Calm. Thinking is this time up, thinking, thinking. "Stop thinking feel into your heart Safa has your back."Then I started to fill with light. The light of the sun. Then luminescence filled my cells and healed them. I don't know how you do it Safa. But THANK YOU for your dedication to being a 5th Dimensional Warrior in this Galactic Universe You have definitely helped me heal!
Massive love and hugs sent your way ❤⭐I am Buzzing!
-Orla, Ireland
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Felt like I birthed my babyself, and was holding my babyself so sweetly. I felt so connected to my ancestors on both sides!!! And felt the magic of my parents being in the field too, and I just feel so supported and like the luckiest girl in the world. With so much light behind me, and coming into me. I feel more like myself than I have in a long time. I feel so at peace. But I know this is just the beginning. As I write all I can feel are overwhelming tears of gratitude and awe for it all truly!! I am in love with the evolution of being me, I am in love with my journey, I am in love with my life. Yes, there is always stuff to clear but just like a flower I will continue to shed and bloom, and that is breathtaking in itself. Thank you so much Safa, I love you!!! Thank you thank you!! 💜 Your gift, your love is a gift.
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Wow!I felt the initial spinal work; securing me to the earth. I felt safe. I was then taken back to being in utero, to my birth and then to a mirror image of the innocence in the young toddler I once was. Suddenly, I felt such huge love! In that moment, the love engulfed me. It came without judgement and was so forgiving! I hugged my dad and then my mom, playfully climbing all over them and feeling the energy of emotional holding from them that I have been missing in my lived childhood experience.I then travelled back and felt the heaviness of huge expectations placed on my paternal grandmother's shoulders at such a tender young age. I was able to comfort her and show her that it was not her fault. Through this I got in touch with the generational trauma held in my maternal line from the beginning of WW2 that affected my maternal grandmother, my own mother and her sister. These events were all experienced as sensations associated to the stories I have (for the most part) known my whole life. The stories themselves, drifted in and out of my consciousness, but the feelings were the forefront of my experience. I had tears, anger, sadness and grief, but through it all, was anchored by the image (which was revisited several times) of the young toddler (me)- innocent, pure, and capable of SO MUCH LOVE!I felt all forgiving, and filled with empathy for all those in my maternal line who came before me in patriarchal societies- suppressed from showing and using their own intelligence, and capacity for creative life force energy.At the end of the session, I felt a very balanced pulse (left and right flow) in my womb. I felt completely aligned.Leaving this session feeling very free and joyful.I have now been in touch with the limitless love that I am.I now have a lived experience of knowing that there is always a safe place that I can go within myself for renewal.Huge gratitude! I can't wait to paint into my new found power!
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Some of the things that I brought with me to the womb room, were a long-standing tension in my right side (most likely connected with birth trauma), and a sense that I might not be fully in contact with my pelvic area, I wondered if I was slightly numbed there and whether there was an impact on my sexual experience.The healing sessions were extremely powerful, the most impactful I have experienced, unwinding long standing tensions and allowing me to feel more into the womb space.One of the biggest effects so far has been getting to know my pelvic floor. Recognising the tension that was held there and seeing how I can soften here and begin a relationship of appreciation with it. This enabled feeling much more into the whole womb area and getting closer to sensations there.Seeing and feeling into the link with the womb, heart and throat has also been incredibly enlightening and helpful.Another big and unexpected outcome for me has been about the divine masculine.My experience in womb room has helped me to understand more about the divine masculine.I am excited to explore this more and move towards embodying this more. I am so grateful for this aspect, I sense it also enables a greater embodiment of the divine feminine too.The incredible library of supporting resources Safa has offered up as well is overwhelming and just so juicy! I'm looking forward to reading over lots of things and reading lots of new things, putting exercises into practice and listening to podcasts.The space that Safa facilitates and holds so incredibly clearly and safely is phenomenal.The depths people were able to dive into and move through demonstrate her skill and love.I remember reading some testimonials from previous room wombs and whilst I could sense they were true, they also seemed just too good to be true! But now I can completely believe them!It was beyond anything I could have imagined or expected. I feel so blessed that I found my way to you and Womb Room. With deep respect for your commitment to your own path that revealed who you truly are and for your generosity of spirit to share it this way.
Thank You xxxxx
-Belinda, USA
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