In an emotional debate in the House of Commons in October 2023, then MP Theo Clarke broke down in tears as she described being rushed into emergency surgery after the birth of her daughter, terrified she was going to die. Amazed at the public response, she quickly realised that although birth trauma is a huge issue, 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 the delivery of their babies, with one in twenty developing post-traumatic stress disorder as a result. Despite this, substandard maternity and postnatal care is too often tolerated as normal.

In Breaking the Taboo, as well as telling her own story, Theo presents the experiences of mothers and fathers from different backgrounds that show the undiscussed realities of birth trauma. She also shines a light on what it is like to combine motherhood with a career as an MP, revealing the shocking way new mothers are treated by our political system – something that has serious implications for our democracy.

A gripping memoir of a new mother’s experience combined with a powerful call to arms for change, this urgent book will start a conversation that is as essential as it is overdue.