"When I was pregnant with my beautiful son, I dreamt of taking him for a walk in the pram and playing with him. But after a long and difficult labour, I was left with debilitating injuries and was couch-bound for the first three months of Bobby’s life." - Amy

Australian women like Amy are falling through the cracks when it comes to the diagnosis and treatment of birth-related injuries. As many as 1 in 4 first-time mothers experience a birth injury which can impact quality of life, limiting a woman’s ability to care for her children, exercise, work, socialise, be intimate with her partner, plus it can affect her emotionally and psychologically as she struggles to come to terms with her condition.

The Australasian Birth Trauma Association (ABTA) is calling on the Australian Government to fund access to women’s health physiotherapy for birthing women, including support before and after giving birth.

Following the birth of their children, women are living through physical injuries - that are largely invisible - and are impacting their day-to-day life. They are receiving delayed or incorrect diagnoses, which causes extended pain and dysfunction. Sometimes, women with third or fourth-degree tears are experiencing symptoms four year later.

Moreover, treatment for birth-related trauma can be difficult to come by. Over three quarters of women were required to access this care privately, spending thousands of dollars on out-of-pocket expenses for treatment of physical and psychological injuries. Access to postnatal care is especially difficult for those in remote and rural areas and those from culturally diverse backgrounds.

This is why we are calling for preventative pre and post natal physiotherapy intervention that can ensure better pathways to healing. It can support women to cope with not just the physical complications, but also the mental health impacts of birth trauma.

Prenatal women’s health physiotherapy contributes to better birth outcomes. It can reduce rates of postnatal urinary incontinence, assist with birth preparation by teaching how to relax the pelvic floor and push in labour, and can help identify those at higher risk of pelvic floor muscle dysfunction - all of which supports increased self-confidence and a reduction in birth related anxiety.

Women who can’t afford these services live their lives with chronic conditions which impact on their identity, relationships, health and ability to generate an income.

Please sign and share this petition to break the taboo around birthing trauma and protect women from its debilitating impacts.