19.5 Emotionally Complex Postnatal Conversations: Beyond Reassurance

Recently there has been a lot of media focus on trauma and difficulties experienced by women after birth, and in a busy service women may also feel anxious and reluctant to ask questions about their labour and birth experiences.Marie Watkyns, former Head of Midwifery and founder of Little Light Support, introduces the L.I.G.H.T. approach to trauma-informed birth debriefing. This session will offer practical insight into supporting emotionally complex postnatal conversations with clarity, compassion and confidence.Hosted by:Sue MacdonaldContributions from:Marie Watkyns, Founder, Little Light SupportBiographyMarie WatkynsAfter 5 years in the Royal Air Force, Marie trained as a midwife — graduating with a First-Class degree and receiving a Clinical Excellence Award.She went on to build a senior career specialising in clinical governance and patient safety, including roles as a former Head of Midwifery.Over the years, she has led and contributed to serious incident investigations, perinatal mortality reviews, and national audits of maternity care.This work gave her a clear view of what happens behind the scenes when care doesn’t go to plan — and, importantly, how often families are left without clear, honest explanations afterwards.Through independent birth debriefs and maternity care reviews, Marie offers something that is rarely available within the system:Clear, evidence-based explanations of what happenedHonest answers without defensiveness or dismissalAn independent perspective