Study title

This collection contains the documentation and raw anonymised data from 1,754 parents whose babies were born/due to be born during the first three months of the UK lockdown. The raw data includes demographic data, psychometric scores, and responses to open ended questions about changes to the perinatal experience.My research investigates the choices pregnant women make when they have previously had a traumatic birth. It is relevant to academics working in midwifery education, obstetrics, social policy, psychology, and sociology, and has implications for midwives and obstetricians in practice. This fellowship will enable me to publicise the findings of my research, and to carry out a small study into an issue which arose during my doctoral research. Traumatic birth is an emerging area of research. Up to 30% of women in the UK experience childbirth as a traumatic event, with many going on to experience some form of anxiety, depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following childbirth (Slade, 2006; Ayers, 2014). Research does exist into why some women experience childbirth as traumatic, and how it can be treated, but there was no research into how a traumatic birth might affect the choices women made in subsequent pregnancies. My research showed that these women might make less usual birth choices, from elective caesarean births to 'freebirths' (choosing to birth without a midwife or other medical professional present), and that they researched these choices very carefully. It also showed that these women benefitted from certain kinds of care, including continuity of carer, and making a birth plan early in their pregnancy. To reach the largest audience, I will publish my findings in three ways - through peer reviewed articles, at conferences, and in publications aimed at a lay audience. The themes of the articles and conference presentations will be related: - Birth plans for women who have previously had a traumatic birth - Relationships between...