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Labor Experiences of Childhood Sexual Abuse Survivors
Author(s) -
Rhodes Naomi,
Hutchinson Sally
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
birth
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.233
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1523-536X
pISSN - 0730-7659
DOI - 10.1111/j.1523-536x.1994.tb00532.x
Subject(s) - sexual abuse , psychology , clinical psychology , medicine , medical emergency , human factors and ergonomics , poison control
This field study used the ethnographic method to describe and analyze the labor experiences of childhood sexual abuse survivors. The sample included seven sexual abuse survivors, five nurse‐midwives, and three labor and delivery nurses. Data collection included in‐depth interviews, participant observation in labor and delivery over a period of six years, and anecdotal material from the literature. Analysis followed Spradley's Developmental Research Sequence and included domain, taxonomic, componential and theme analysis. Women reported both forgetting and remembering abusive incidents, and described labor sensations reminiscent of sexual abuse. A heuristic for appraising labor styles suggestive of past sexual abuse includes fighting, taking control, surrendering, and retreating. These styles are considered extremes of women's reactions to labor and are directly linked to posttraumatic stress disorder. This study demonstrated that it is important for perinatal caregivers to understand the link between childhood sexual abuse and childbirth so that they can assist women to have a positive birth experience