Post-natal PTSD: 'I relived childbirth over and over again' [BBC News]

A woman left with PTSD after the birth of her daughter says she relived the trauma "over and over again" as she cared for her newborn.

Anna Simpson described the emergency C-section as the most frightening experience of her life.

A study has suggested up to 28,000 women a year in the UK could be affected by maternal post-traumatic stress disorder.

NHS England said it was "improving mental health support for new mums".

Ms Simpson, 34, from Wakefield in West Yorkshire, was rushed to an operating theatre with her unborn daughter Macie in the breech position, after two unsuccessful attempts to move the baby in the womb.

"There were a lot of people around me," she said.

"There was an anaesthetist trying to put a cannula in my hand so I felt like it was being attacked, it felt very frightening, I was very scared."

Experts warn that PTSD - commonly associated with soldiers returning from war - is harder to treat the longer it goes undiagnosed.

A traumatic birth can involve unexpected events including the baby's heart rate dropping significantly, an emergency caesarean section and the mother losing several pints of blood after haemorrhaging.

Mothers have a post-natal appointment about six weeks after the baby's birth to assess recovery and check for post-natal depression, but PTSD is not routinely looked for.

Ms Simpson, whose daughter is now 16 months old, said: "I was going through the birth over and over again, it was exhausting and really painful.

"It was physically draining, all that on top of having to look after a new baby was really difficult."

Months after the birth, she noticed her emotions were not fading so tried cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) followed by a successful programme of eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR).

EMDR works on the theory that traumatic memories have not been properly processed by the brain, but can be reprocessed correctly via therapy involving eye movement, aural and physical prompts.

Read the full article: Post-natal PTSD: 'I relived childbirth over and over again'