Midwives' response to traumatic stress

Midwifery is recognised as a profession with a heavy psychological toll (Hunter et al, 2019; Taylor et al, 2023). Many midwives leave the profession before the usual retirement age because of this strain (Royal College of Midwives, 2016; Hunter et al, 2019). Mental health diagnoses and suicide rates are higher than would be expected for this demographic (Kinman et al, 2020). However, there has been a reluctance to address this on a systematic or preventative level (Kinman et al, 2020). This article looks specifically at an uncustomary perspective of post‑traumatic stress disorder in midwives.

As defined by the American Psychiatric Association (2022), post‑traumatic stress disorder is characterised by exposure to a traumatic event, which leads to disruptive symptoms persisting longer than 1 month. Symptoms fall into four different categories, all of which must be represented for a diagnosis: