Breaking the Taboo

Inan emotional debate in the House of Commons in October 2023, then MP TheoClarke broke down in tears as she described being rushed into emergency surgeryafter the birth of her daughter, terrified she was going to die. Amazed at thepublic response, she quickly realised that although birth trauma is a hugeissue, there is still a real taboo around speaking about it. In the UK alone,it’s estimated that up to 30,000 women a year suffer bad experiences during thedelivery of their babies, with one in twenty developing post-traumatic stressdisorder as a result. Despite this, substandard maternity and postnatal care istoo often tolerated as normal.

InBreaking the Taboo, as well as telling her own story, Theo presents theexperiences of mothers and fathers from different backgrounds that show theundiscussed realities of birth trauma. She also shines a light on what it islike to combine motherhood with a career as an MP, revealing the shocking way newmothers are treated by our political system – something that has serious implicationsfor our democracy.

Agripping memoir of a new mother’s experience combined with a powerful call toarms for change, this urgent book will start a conversation that is asessential as it is overdue.