Intersections of gendered racial trauma and childbirth trauma: Clinical interventions for Black women

Studies suggest that racism affects the type and quality of health care that patients who are Black receive, perhaps in part because poorer patient-provider communication and less provider encouragement of patient involvement have been consistently reported for patients of color. In particular, Black women are 3-4 times more likely to experience dangerous and even life-threatening complications, and more likely to report mistreatment and neglect from medical providers and staff, during childbirth. Experiences with gendered racism during childbirth, which in itself is a vulnerable, intense, and potentially traumatic experience when proper support is absent, may lead to posttraumatic stress reactions. Psychotherapy can help affected clients to process gendered racial and childbirth traumas through: (a) the establishment of a safe, trusting, and collaborative therapeutic relationship, in which careful attention is paid to repairing alliance ruptures caused by cultural misunderstandings or gendered racial microaggressions, and (b) framing experiences and "symptoms" as understandable reactions to gendered race-based traumatic stress during childbirth. In addition to direct therapeutic intervention, therapists should collaborate with doulas and/or medical providers on patient care, and, separately, advocate for systemic-level change, supporting clients' lived experiences outside of the therapy room. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).