Author Sharon Stoliar received March 2023 Literary Titan Gold Book Award for groundbreaking debut novel exposing the silent epidemic of birth trauma

Announcement posted by Ocean Reeve Publishing 16 Mar 2023

Sydney-based author, Sharon Stoliar, has received the Literary Titan Gold Book Award [1] for her debut novel Scars of Gold, which aims to raise awareness of the prevalence of birth trauma and its long-term impacts on women and their families. One in three women are reporting their experience of childbirth as being traumatic [2]. Stoliar's message is targeted towards maternity care providers, calling for them to reflect on their actions, words, and behaviours and to practice conscious maternity care. She also encourages women to use their voices to demand change in the care they receive.

‘It felt like it was the final piece I needed to do—to put it together into a book. I felt my story needed to be told, to be heard. [Because] I didn’t feel heard. I wasn’t listened to when I was a birthing woman in that hospital bed.’

The release of Stoliar's book is timely, as birth trauma and obstetric violence [3] are becoming increasingly prevalent in the news, including an ABC broadcast released recently, Why we need to talk about birth trauma [4]. The author's motivation for writing this book stems from her belief that sharing her story in a book has the potential to catalyse change in the way maternity care is provided to women and contribute to ending birth trauma from disrespectful maternity care.

In addition to being an author, Stoliar is currently working on her PhD in the experiences of pregnancy and birth in women who are midwives. She has published three papers and has been a guest on several podcasts.

Stoliar's book highlights the ongoing impact of birth trauma on women's lives, which is often not captured in hospital birth records. As the author notes, ‘My story is just one of the many other stories of birth trauma. Too many women (1 in 3 births) around the world are reporting their birth experience as traumatic.’

Stoliar's book serves as a call to action for maternity care providers and women alike to reflect on their experiences and demand change in the care they receive. The author can be contacted through her @sharonstoliar and @endingbirthtrauma Instagram accounts, where she shares information and raises awareness on the topic of birth trauma and its impact, and through her website:

https://www.sharonstoliar.com/.