10 Reasons to Share Your Birth Story – You can even share it HERE!
Childbirth is an incredible accomplishment, no matter how it happens. Every birth is SO different and no two women have the same experience, which is why your birth story is important and special.
Do you have to share it with the world? Absolutely not. Should you write down what the experience of childbirth was like for you?
It may seem daunting to begin
Here are 10 reasons why you want to write down and share your birth story!
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1. To Remember
Your birth story will be with you for your entire life, but you may be surprised how quickly the details and emotions fade.
Even within the first few days, you’ll notice details jumbled and feelings changing. As soon as you feel ready, start! And even if it’s been a while, write down what you can remember and the things that were important to you.
You can write your birth story in your journal, on your blog, on a birth story blog, in a google doc, on any scrap piece of paper to fold and put in an envelope, or any other way you can think of! Go back and relive the experience any time you want! Remember details that slipped through the cracks and look at photos to jog your memory of that special day.
If you choose to write it on a blog, it’s so fun to you see your story all written up with beautiful photos and laid out in an story format. If you want some inspiration, click the photo below to read birth stories here on the New Little Life Blog!
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2. Process & Reflect
Childbirth is an emotional roller coaster. It is helpful to reflect on your birth experience and just get it out! Have you noticed when the topic of birth comes up, almost everyone chimes in to share parts of their experience? That’s because it’s helpful in mentally processing the experience to get the story out and provides a sense of closure.
Writing it down is an easy way to process your birth experience. You may also like to share you story verbally with a trusted friend or family member. Be careful when talking through your story with others that were present with you at birth before you write down your own experience. Other perspectives can change the way you remember what happened!
Fun Idea! You and your partner could write down your experiences and then share them with each other! It’s so fun to see what parts each remembers and it is valuable for you and your partner to share your thoughts, feelings, and emotions around a monumental experience you share. ***This would be an especially fun thing to share on a blog! For more information on how to do that, see below.***
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3. Change perceptions about birth
Think of the last birth scene you saw on TV, what was it like? Is that REALLY what birth is like? Likely not!
Do you know how many live births the average person has witnessed? For most expecting mothers/couples that number is 0. ZERO! Can you imagine going into such an emotional, physical, and challenging event having never seen it in REAL life? Sharing your birth story is a start to giving accurate accounts of real women giving birth in real life today.
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4. It’s Fun!
Who doesn’t love sharing something AWESOME they did! It’s even cooler when you made the awesome thing yourself! Even if your experience didn’t go as planned, be proud of what you did and share it with others.
People, especially that love you, really enjoy having a small peak into your life. If you’re comfortable, sharing your birth story that you’ve written can be a fun and bonding experience for you and others!
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5. To Heal
If you wrote a birth plan, it’s almost guaranteed it didn’t go exactly as planned! If you didn’t, there were likely things you weren’t expecting. Some women struggle when remembering parts of their birth and writing it down is helpful to work through anything you might feel questionable about.
Saying “This happened to me, and this is how I feel about it” is extremely powerful. Just putting words to your story takes a load off your inward self and places it outward, where it’s less heavy.
Don’t ever be afraid to share
Birth trauma (or post-traumatic stress disorder after childbirth) is more common than you’d think. You don’t have to be diagnosed with PTSD or have had major complications to experience birth trauma. If the
mothers perception of trauma can cause flashbacks, intrusive memories, feelings of distress or panic. If you feel sick when you think back on your birth memories, avoid things that trigger thinking of a memory, feeling guilty about your birth, feeling hypervigilant or low and unhappy you might have some form of birth trauma.
**Did you know: This also happens to partners. Imagine watching someone you love
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6. Your point of view matters!
No one has gone through childbirth with your thoughts, feelings, history, relationships, or mindset. Everyone experiences birth in a different way and there is always something to learn from your point of view. You might be interested to find out that others share your same thoughts and feelings! The good ones and the bad ones…
Hearing what moms are experiencing now and discovering common trends is how changes are made in the standards of care. Without women willing to share their thoughts, feelings, and experiences about birth its difficult to make positive changes.
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7. Help and inspire others
Imagine you’re a
Imagine you’re in the middle of birth and your doctor says you need a c-section. Wouldn’t you be glad you read through a couple stories that didn’t go as planned so you had an idea of what to expect?
You never know what ripple effect telling your birth story might have. Don’t be too afraid to share it that you miss out on an opportunity to help someone who is going through the same thing you did.
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8. For your child
I would love to read my mothers account of my own birth. I remember occasionaly asking her over the years details about when I was born. Thankfully she kept a journal and was able to access those memories with ease! Maybe your child won’t care, but what if they do? You’ll want to have something written down to jog your memory of that day.
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9. Tired of telling your birth story?
Ok, maybe you don’t want to tell your story a million times! That’s understandable too. Telling your story on a blog or in written form is a great way to share your experience with close friends and family in one big swoop! Put all your thoughts, pictures, and information in one spot and share it. Done!
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10. But… but…
“I don’t have pictures!”
“I’m not a good writer…”
“So many women are giving birth, my story doesn’t matter.”
“I had a boring (traumatic, c-section, atypical, typical, uneventful) birth.”
None of that matters! Just tell your story. At the very least, write it down for yourself. Memories fade quickly and childbirth is one of the most momentous and incredible moments in your life. Tell your experience to a trusted friend, write it down, and if you want to share it with so many others, you can do it here.
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I want to share my story, but I don’t have a blog…
Guess what, I DO! And even better yet? I WANT to hear your story, and so do others.
Ready to share your birth story? You can share your story RIGHT HERE on the New Little Life Blog!
You won’t ever regret writing down your birth story as soon as you can after childbirth, even if it’s just in your own journal. You did an amazing thing and you should be proud of yourself! Don’t ever forget the strength it took to bring new life into the world, no matter what that story looked like for you.
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Comment below and tell me what’s the biggest hang up for you in writing your birth story?
~ All things for you and your new little life ~