Louise Thompson: Maternity care is bleak! Mental and physical scars of my traumatic birth

About this episode

<p>Everyone deserves a safe and dignified birth, but when Louise Thompson gave birth to son Leo, she was left with post-traumatic stress disorder.</p><br><p>In this chat with Fearne, Louise talks through how her PTSD manifests, the way she disassociates, and the therapies she’s tried to work through it, including CBT and EMDR.</p><br><p>She explains why her own experience has led her to petition the government. She wants to appoint a Maternity Commissioner to improve maternity care for mums and babies in the UK.</p><br><p>Four years post-birth, Louise is reflecting on the ways she’s grown from her trauma, and is exploring how she can allow herself to slow down while maintaining her ambitious nature.</p><br><p>Louise and Fearne also both share how they use busyness as a distraction from their uncomfortable thoughts, and wonder what being ‘likeable’ even means...</p><br><p><a href="https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/751174?fbclid=PAVERFWAPddIJleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xMjQwMjQ1NzQyODc0MTQAAafFvdhanDY7JOR2-S5IkW1a0k3xGnsdwWZlg1WvsVfyzkZVXYFO63RFr5qbCg_aem_rCYda_OXdKrLGRRtXDfNqA" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sign Louise’s Maternity Commissioner petition here</a></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>If you liked this episode of Happy Place, you might also like:</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><a href="https://pod.fo/e/309799" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Davina McCall</a></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><a href="https://pod.fo/e/2d0aa1" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Liberty Mills</a></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><a href="https://pod.fo/e/2d721d" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ellie Simmonds</a></p><p><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>