Birth debriefing can be a starting point to begin to understand, and process grief and loss associated with your birth, allowing for integration and healing over time.
The way women birth matters. Recent statistics reveal increasing rates of women who experience complicated and traumatic births. This can also be a result of how women felt during pregnancy and after their birth experiences, not just the birth. It is important that a woman feels safe & supported, nurtured, cared for, respected and listened to throughout her pregnancy, during and following the birth, that will allow her to move forward confidently into her journey as a mother. If this experience was not one that felt safe, respected and cared for, women can experience a range of feelings and symptoms that can have long-lasting effects and contribute to perinatal anxiety and depression.
Birth debriefing can be a starting point towards being able to understand, process and integrate your birth experience, which supports healing and change over time. A birth debrief may also benefit from further exploration of the emotions and feelings connected to your birth experience over a number of sessions.
At MAMA, we offer a couple of different birth debrief options.
Sessions with Rhea Dempsey
Rhea Dempsey offers both couples and individual counselling, as well as birth debriefing.
Clinic: MAMA Kensington or via Zoom
Days: the second Wednesday of each month
Cost: $220 for two-hour debrief; $120 for 60-minute counselling session
Sessions with Anna Chanty Welsh or Sarah Thijs-Smit
Anna is our counsellor (and women’s health physiotherapist) and offers birth debrief as part of her ongoing counselling sessions or as a one-off session.
Sarah has done the mentorship “The Art of Birth Debrief” with Lael Stone and B from Core & Floor Restore, is a trained a midwife and also works as a Lactation Consultant at MAMA. Sarah also offers birth debriefs at your home for an additional cost, as below.
Clinic: MAMA Kensington or via Telehealth
Days: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Clinic / Telehealth Cost: $175 for 90-minute debrief
Home Cost: $290 for 90-minute debrief plus travel cost of $0.92 per km (only available with Sarah and for clients within 30 minutes of MAMA Kensington); Please call the clinic at 9376 7474 to arrange a home visit.
Working through Birth Trauma Circle
We also offer a circle which is led by Anna Chanty Welsh at MAMA Kensington and offers a chance for you to connect with other birthing people as you work through your experience.
More information is available here.
