Breaking the Taboo

In
an emotional debate in the House of Commons in October 2023, then MP Theo
Clarke broke down in tears as she described being rushed into emergency surgery
after the birth of her daughter, terrified she was going to die. Amazed at the
public response, she quickly realised that although birth trauma is a huge
issue, there is still a real taboo around speaking about it. In the UK alone,
it's estimated that up to 30,000 women a year suffer bad experiences during the
delivery of their babies, with one in twenty developing post-traumatic stress
disorder as a result. Despite this, substandard maternity and postnatal care is
too often tolerated as normal.



In
Breaking the Taboo, as well as telling her own story, Theo presents the
experiences of mothers and fathers from different backgrounds that show the
undiscussed realities of birth trauma. She also shines a light on what it is
like to combine motherhood with a career as an MP, revealing the shocking way new
mothers are treated by our political system - something that has serious implications
for our democracy.



A
gripping memoir of a new mother's experience combined with a powerful call to
arms for change, this urgent book will start a conversation that is as
essential as it is overdue.