'It will impact me for the rest of my life' - Worcestershire mum shares her birth trauma story
28-year-old Charlotte Shooter from Droitwich gave birth to her son Arthur last April at the 26-week stage of her pregnancy
Last updated 21st Feb 2025
A Worcestershire first time mum says she feels the trauma she went through from giving birth to her son has left her feeling as though she doesn't want anymore children and it will impact her for the 'rest of her life'.
28-year-old Charlotte Shooter from Droitwich gave birth to her son Arthur on the 25 April last year through an emergency caesarean (C-section) at the 26-week stage of her pregnancy, but says it was far from straightforward.
What is birth trauma?
Birth trauma is an issue that impacts up to 30,000 women every single year, leaving 4-5% of new mums dealing with PTSD, an issue coming at a time people are told will be one of the happiest of their lives.
Each case can be very different. Some reflect very long or very short labours, others are about physical issues while some are to do with thoughts and emotions.
Some birth trauma can be about concerns for baby's health, while others are about issues with the level of care on offer to mums at the time.
Around one in 20 new mums will develop PTSD as a result of their experience, and around 1% of birth partners also develop issues as a result of what they've witnessed from a bedside.
Charlotte's birth trauma story
Charlotte says her waters broke at the 24-week stage of her pregnancy on the 13 April, meaning she was rushed to hospital for checks.
Over the next 12 days, she suffered what doctors thought was a placenta abruption - when the placenta starts to come away from the wall of the womb, leaving her to suffer bleeding and blood loss.
After getting cramps at around 2am in the morning of the 25 April, which she later found were contractions, she was told to rest and wait for test results to come back.
"The pain just kept on getting worse and worse," she said,
"It got to the point where I was literally on the toilet pushing and at this point I was only 26 weeks into the pregnancy.
"Had I actually delivered him on the toilet I don't think he (my son) would be here today."
She was checked over again, where she was told by a doctor she had a foot hanging out of her cervix, and was immediately rushed down to theatre.
Doctors then ran tests to find her son's heartbeat before they started to perform the emergency C-section.
Charlotte says 20 minutes later her son Arthur was born, but the full experience has had a lasting impact on her which has led to her being diagnosed and receiving support for PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).
"I was going through periods of literally not being able to go to sleep at night without having these flashbacks of being on the operating table and having all that done to me," she said.
"It impacts my day-to-day life, I get flashbacks randomly, one of the things that keeps playing in my head is when they couldn't find his heartbeat and all of a sudden I just end up thinking about how he could've died.
"There are times where I'm with my son, who I absolutely love and adore, but it is so difficult because it was such a traumatic event which we both went through, he might not remember it but I certainly do and I think it will impact me for the rest of my life."
Following the birth, Charlotte's son Arthur then spent 120 days in hospital, several of those being in the neonatal intensive care unit.
Eventually they were allowed to take him home on the 25 August, four months on from when he was born.
"He's cheeky, he's funny, he's got a very big personality about him and it's beautiful to see him develop," Charlotte said when asked about how he was doing.
"I can't believe how tiny he was when he was first born to how he is now where he's not only excelling on his corrected age but his actual one as well.
"That goal of getting him home was the only thing getting me and my partner through those 120 days in hospital, he's a very brave little boy and I can't wait for the better weather to come along so we make more memories."
Made in Chelsea's Louise Thompson has also been sharing her birth trauma story, and is on a mission to normalise the conversation about the topic after her experience with her son Leo.
Louise had to undergo an emergency operation, and her new son was delivered by emergency caesarean. To compound the situation he also stopped breathing for a short time and two separate haemorrhages saw Louise lose 'litres' of blood.
Further health complications later meant Louise have her colon removed, and a stoma fitted.
Dr Kim Thomas from the Birth Trauma Association encouraging people who've been affected by birth trauma to talk about it, and to give people ideas around how to listen to those who want to speak out.
Speaking to Louise, Dr Kim said: "It's really important that you speak up, or that other people speak up for you.
"You've been through a really traumatic experience, you deserve to be heard, and you need to be gentle with yourself...I'd really urge people to get help if they can, because therapeutic help is the best way of getting through this.
"One of the things women do say a lot is that people around them say 'you need to get over this' or 'you need to snap out of this' but that doesn't recognise the nature of PTSD which is a mental disorder and you can't just snap out of it."
Where to get support if you're affected by birth trauma
If you've been impacted by birth trauma, and want to see what help is out there, the Birth Trauma Association has email support and a helpline you can call. They can also provide access to a private Facebook group.
Bliss offers support for people affected by sick or premature babies.
And there's more information about birth trauma, and further links to support via Make Birth Better.
If you want to find mental health services where you are, visit the Hub of Hope.