Motherhood
Natural birth pressure harming new mothers’ mental health, research finds
Pressure to have a natural birth can cause lasting psychological harm when labour does not go to plan, new research shows.
The study found that the messages women receive during pregnancy are directly linked to the shame and self-blame many feel when those expectations are not met.
For the first time, the research provides an explanation for why unmet birth expectations contribute to psychological harm.
Several women involved in the research said they felt they had not given birth “properly”, even when medical intervention had saved their lives.
Rebecca Matthews, lead author and PhD researcher at the University of Reading, said: “These women were not failed by their bodies, they were failed by the messages they were given.
“Birth trauma does not begin with birth. It begins in the ideology sold to women throughout pregnancy.
“For the first time we can explain precisely how, by showing how birth culture creates a moral standard for women that defines what a good mother does and then leaves them to blame themselves when birth does not match that.
“Until we reform the way we prepare women for birth, we will keep seeing the same devastating consequences for mothers and their babies.”
The researchers interviewed 21 first-time mothers in the UK whose births did not go as planned.
From NCT and hypnobirthing classes, to social media to midwives, the researchers heard how women are surrounded by messaging that frames natural, unmedicated vaginal birth as the “gold standard”, not just medically preferable, but as a mark of being a good mother and the first test of maternal worth.
Research shows around half of women report their birth differed significantly from their expectations, and for the women in this study, all of whom experienced exactly that, the psychological consequences were profound.
Women judged themselves against the internalised moral standard that this ideology had created.
The researchers are calling for antenatal education to stop treating one kind of birth as the goal and to present all birth outcomes as equally valid routes to motherhood.
They also call for better postnatal screening for women whose births did not go as expected, specifically targeting the shame, self-blame and identity disruption that this research identifies as mechanisms underlying birth trauma.
The findings align with and extend the conclusions of the Kirkup, Ockenden and Birth Trauma Inquiry reports, all of which documented how the institutional pursuit of “normal birth” contributed to preventable harm.
This research provides the first theoretical explanation of how that ideology generates individual psychological harm and points to antenatal messaging as the primary site of such preventable harm.
System C has completed the national rollout of BadgerNet Maternity across all seven NHS Health Boards in Wales. This is the first time any UK nation has unified its maternity care under a single digital record and patient-facing app.
With approximately 26,000 babies born annually in Wales, BadgerNet connects maternity information across organisational boundaries in the country.
Expectant parents can access their records, maternity appointments and key updates digitally through a single app, wherever they receive care while clinicians have secure access to the right information at the point of care.
The national three-year agreement across all Heath Boards replaces a patchwork of separate local systems and eliminates the need for paper hand-held notes.
Anthony Tracey is director of digital at Hywel Dda University Health Board, the final of the Welsh Health Boards to go live with BadgerNet.
He said: “The rollout of BadgerNet across Wales is a vitally important step forward in modernising our maternity services and providing a consistent service across the country.
“By giving expectant parents direct access to their information and enabling clinicians to share data more effectively, we are strengthening safety, transparency and consistency in maternity care nationwide.”
For expectant parents, the single digital maternity record transforms how they engage with their care.
Instead of carrying paper notes and repeating information at every appointment, parents can access key details, appointments and updates digitally, supporting more informed conversations and shared decision-making.
The result is greater transparency, fewer administrative frustrations and a more joined-up experience throughout pregnancy and into the postnatal period, regardless of which health board they fall under.
For clinicians and Health Boards, the joined-up approach reduces duplication and streamlines handovers across teams and sites. Information is digitally captured once and made available securely wherever it is needed, helping to minimise errors, reduce time spent tracking down notes and support more efficient multidisciplinary working.
At a national level, linking maternity data across Wales creates a foundation for safer, more consistent care.
Aggregated, standardised information enables earlier identification of trends and variation, supports evidence-based policy decisions and enhances long-term service planning.
With a comprehensive view of maternity activity and outcomes across the country, Wales is now better positioned to raise standards for parents, babies and families.
Guy Lucchi, managing director of healthcare at System C, added: “Delivering a truly national approach across all seven Health Boards is a significant achievement for Wales.
“One shared system means information flows with the patient, not the organisation.
“That reduces duplication, supports earlier identification of risk and frees up valuable clinical time.
“Crucially, linking maternity data at a national level provides powerful insight to drive improvement. Health Boards can benchmark, plan services with greater confidence and ensure resources are targeted where they are needed most, while expectant parents benefit from clearer communication and a more connected experience of care.”
Early birth may cut serious complications and stillbirth risk in high blood pressure pregnancies without increasing caesarean rates, a Cochrane review suggests.
Planned early birth after 34 weeks cut serious maternal complications by nearly half compared with watchful waiting, the findings suggest.
It also likely reduced the risk of stillbirth by about 75 per cent, although the authors said this should be interpreted with caution.
Catherine Cluver, senior author of the review and researcher at Stellenbosch University and Tygerberg Hospital, said: “These findings give clinicians and women clearer guidance about the timing of birth when high blood pressure develops in pregnancy.
“For women with pre-eclampsia in particular, the evidence supports offering planned early birth from 34 weeks, and no later than 37 weeks.”
This Cochrane review, led by King’s College London, pooled data from six randomised controlled trials involving 3,491 women.
The trials compared planned early birth after 34 weeks with watchful waiting in women with one or more hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.
Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, including pre-eclampsia, gestational hypertension and chronic hypertension, are the second leading cause of maternal death globally.
For women with pre-eclampsia, early birth remains the only definitive treatment, as the condition is driven by the placenta and will only resolve once it is delivered.
The trials took place in the Netherlands, UK, US, India and Zambia.
The review found high-certainty evidence that serious maternal complications were nearly halved in women who had planned early birth compared with those managed with watchful waiting.
The finding on stillbirth was based on moderate-certainty evidence and was driven by a single trial in India and Zambia, where stillbirth rates are higher. No stillbirths were recorded in the high-income country trials.
The review also found that planned early birth likely does not increase neonatal unit admission, although this finding was also based on moderate-certainty evidence.
The authors said the maternal benefit held across both high- and low-income settings, suggesting early birth reduces complications even when women are already receiving appropriate monitoring and care.
Alice Beardmore-Gray, lead author of the review and obstetrician at King’s College London, said: “Judging when to offer birth is the question that we battle with clinically every day.”
The authors added that in two of the trials, more than half the women allocated to watchful waiting ended up needing emergency birth before 37 weeks.
They typically gave birth just three to five days later than women allocated to planned early birth and often experienced more complications.
Beardmore-Gray said: “A common misconception is that by waiting longer, mum and baby are gaining more time, but often what you are doing is just delaying an inevitable emergency birth, when both may be in a worse condition.”
The review found high-certainty evidence of no increased risk of caesarean section associated with planned early birth.
Beardmore-Gray said: “That is the first question anyone asks when you offer them an early induction: won’t it increase my risk of a C-section?
“Being able to clearly answer no is a really important piece of information to give women when counselling them about the timing of their birth.”
The authors said the timing of birth should take into account the woman’s preferences and the severity of her condition.
They said these findings are consistent with and reinforce current international guidelines, which recommend that all women with pre-eclampsia should be offered planned early birth no later than 37 weeks.
Women with gestational hypertension or chronic hypertension without severe features may choose to continue with careful monitoring, with planned early birth considered from 39 weeks onwards.
Further research is needed on longer-term outcomes for infants born late preterm and on the long-term cardiovascular health of mothers affected by hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.
Motherhood
Women’s HealthX marks World Maternal Mental Health Day with lineup of maternity care leaders
By Women’s HealthX
In recognition of World Maternal Mental Health Day, Women’s HealthX is placing a spotlight on one of the most urgent and under addressed areas in women’s health: maternal mental health and maternity care innovation.
Worldwide, 1 in 5 new mothers experiences a perinatal mood and anxiety disorder, yet up to 7 in 10 hide or downplay their symptoms.
Even within established care frameworks, this creates challenges for timely detection and treatment, highlighting the need for additional tools, insights, and system-level support to prevent long-term consequences for both mother and child.
Women’s HealthX convenes 750+ senior leaders from across the women’s health ecosystem, including pharma & biotech, hospitals, digital health innovators, solution providers, payers, enterprises & policy makers to explore how telehealth, predictive analytics, and digital health platforms are transforming maternal and postnatal care – from AI-driven early risk identification to remote monitoring solutions that keep mothers cognitively and emotionally supported long after they leave the clinic.
Key sessions on Maternity & Maternal Care with key industry leaders:
Key sessions dedicated to maternity and maternal mental health will address critical system challenges and opportunities for innovation, including fragmentation in care delivery, health inequities, and persistent maternal mortality rates in high income countries.
Featured speakers include:
Christina Pardo, medical director, women’s health, Weill Cornell Medicine NewYork Presbyterian, on “Bridge Existing Healthcare Gaps Caused by Fragmentation Between OB/GYN And Birth Workers.”
Gayatri Setia, director of preventive Cardiology, NYCHHC, on “Improve Patient Access to Prevention in Equalities and Discrimination in Maternity and Maternal Care”
Catherine Monk, founding director, Center for the Transition to Parenthood, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, on “Leveraging Developmental Neuroscience to Provide Improved Maternal Care”
Danielle Johnson, chief medical officer, Lindner Center of HOPE, on “Understanding the Scope of Disparities in Perinatal Mental Health”
Kimberley Sampson, chair of OB GYN, Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, on “Why Maternal Mortality Persists in High-Income Countries”
Erica Smith, VP value and access, Chiesi, on “Empowering Mothers, Advancing Equity, and Improving Outcomes in Premature Care”
A Call to Action for the Femtech Ecosystem
As femtech continues to mature, maternal mental health represents a critical frontier where technology, data, and clinical insight must converge.
Women’s HealthX provides a platform for collaboration and knowledge sharing to accelerate the development and adoption of solutions that deliver measurable impact for mothers and families.
From predictive analytics to personalized, continuous care models, the event underscores a central theme: meaningful transformation in women’s health begins with better data, stronger evidence, and cross sector collaboration.
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Only 9 days left to register for your chance to win a therapeutic massage at Encore Boston
Women’s HealthX is where the transformation of women’s health begins at its true foundation: data, science, and evidence.
About Women’s HealthX
Women’s HealthX is where the transformation of women’s health begins at its true foundation: data, science, and evidence.
It’s the leading event dedicated to closing the sex difference data gap and accelerating breakthroughs through science driven, real world case studies.
Taking place on December 3 to 4, 2026 in Boston, USA, the exhibition will bring together more than 750 healthcare leaders, including clinicians, payers, employers, investors, and policymakers.
7 different stages across 2 days with 150+ expert speakers taking an holistic approach to women’s health.
From fertility, maternity, sexual health, cognitive health, menopause and chronic disease, we address care at every stage of a woman’s life.
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