It had been three months since I pushed a seven pound baby out of my vagina when I first heard of the book, When Survivors Give Birth (WSGB). Today, more than six years later, I facilitate my own WSGB sessions.
All in When Survivors Give Birth
Asking the Right Questions Part I: Space
When you truly want to connect with patients, you must consider the space in which you want the connection to happen. This is especially important to connect with a population that has a harder time with trust, like abuse survivors.
Everyone is a trauma survivor
Everyone is a trauma survivor, whether or not they have a diagnosis. Everyone is a trauma survivor, even if they never mention the incident. When you assume past trauma about the person in front of you, you are in a better position to meet that person where she is at, instead of where you think she should be.
I cannot accept blaming women for a chronic health condition. But that's not only counter-productive and alienating but short-sighted. Do we blame girls for the abuse that they suffered? No. Then we cannot blame those same girls as adult women.