Traumatic Birth and Early Bonding, a Case Study

Abstract

Motherhood can be a major developmental crisis. But what about when the birth also includes traumatic elements? Physical, moral and psychic suffering make the mother unavailable and disrupt the first mother-baby bonds, the quality of holding and handling. A state of tension in the mother and the baby can be so intense that it can result in a real state of personal and relational crisis, difficult to control. The presentation of a detailed case study shows the intensity and extent of these movements. Listening and careful observation of the mother and her baby reveal how a particular attention work allowed the mother to name the state of crisis and dissolve it.