EDITOR’S LETTER
When it comes to giving birth, all mums have a story. And while each experience is wildly different, there’s one crucial truth: no matter how many videos you’ve watched, articles you’ve read or classes you’ve attended, nothing can prepare you for the real thing. I’m the perfect case in point. Having just turned 40, my pregnancy was labelled “geriatric” (can the medical profession please banish that term forever?), so my doctor insisted I have a C-section. Every detail was meticulously planned: it should’ve been a cinch, right? Um, not quite. Seconds after my daughter was born, I haemorrhaged, passed out, suffered an internal seizure, and ended up spending a few weeks in hospital in acute pain. That definitely wasn’t in my perfect birth plan. Afterwards, I was given little info, emotional support or follow-up care once at home. Compared to many, my experience was hardly horrendous – my baby was healthy and I slowly recovered – but the point is, giving birth is a big deal and the physical and emotional needs of new mums should always be prioritised, but often aren’t, most likely because we stay silent and push our feelings aside.
For this month’s “We Need To Talk About” column, actor Zoe Naylor lays bare her own experience of a so-called “normal” birth that left her feeling traumatised, vulnerable and alone. She goes further to say Australia’s maternity system needs a major, urgent overhaul. She believes it’s fear-driven and overly medicalised, and insists midwifery care should be available to all women during pregnancy, labour and postpartum. Of course, there are many maternity medics doing miraculous work, but it’s definitely a conversation worth having as these stories are sadly all too common.
Which brings me to this month’s cover story about Vanessa Kirby, who currently stars in Pieces of a Woman, a film about a couple whose child dies during a home birth. The actor, who dazzled us as Princess Margaret in The Crown, hopes the film will spark conversation and allow women to more effectively process their grief. Thankfully, we’ve seen the conversation open up recently, with very public outpourings from Chrissy Teigen and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. While they initially endured criticism for discussing their miscarriages, the overwhelming result was to open the floodgates for women to talk about this once-taboo topic. One in four pregnant women will miscarry, so why shroud this subject in secrecy? Millions of women are traumatised after giving birth, so why not speak out in order to fix the system? Women must feel confident to discuss all aspects of pregnancy and birth, good or bad; only then will their mental and physical health thrive, and together we can change the course for future generations.