Artist Statement: S. Abbas Shobeiri

To tell the mothers' stories after childbirth, I draw from my first-hand experiences with mothers, and I use the media that best fits that particular story. The stories of depression and PTSD after childbirth are sensitive, and countless mothers often tell the same story, proving the authenticity of their shared experiences.

Hearing these heart-wrenching stories imprints itself in my mind, and the vision of the story/stories float in my head for months or years, like ripples of waves on the ocean, and not satisfied until they splash themselves on the media I am painting on. The stories do not belong to me and must be retold in paint to advocate for the mothers. I am frequently working on many projects and many media at once. For the mothers' postpartum depression and PTSD stories project, I often choose large format canvases or boards to draw the viewer into the postpartum world of the mother. The mothers who have previewed my painting universally identify with the subject matter. They often become tearful and want to contribute to the stories by adding their voices. My mothers, in the paintings, are often alone, inviting the viewer to join them for their shared stories. The mothers and the viewers work together in silence through various healing stages. Chronicling mothers' postpartum depression and PTSD journey is not a responsibility I have taken lightly. Each painting is carefully thought through to fulfill its role in advocating for the mothers.

The current painting series encompasses 30+ paintings representing 26 postpartum depression grief resolution stages. The series was developed from almost 30 years of listening to my patient's emotional distress. Looking back, I feel relatively ignorant about how I did not understand my patients for so many years. From childhood, we were hard-wired to view childbirth as a positive event, which was no different for me. 30% of women have some degree of postpartum depression after childbirth, and 3-6% are traumatized to the degree that they qualify as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder victims. Patients' distress is frequently attributed to hormonal changes, postpartum blues, or the mother's inability to cope. Medical school and residency did not prepare me for postpartum maternal issues. I saw difficult deliveries and noticed that if the baby did well, it was a successful delivery, and if the baby did not do well, it was a bad delivery. The mother was a vessel that carried the child. But the vessels break, and sometimes not even the mothers notice it. Besides the visible injury to the perineum and the anal sphincter, the invisible damage to the pelvic floor levator ani muscles is the basis for developing pelvic floor disorders for which 30% of women undergo surgery during their lifetime.

I could not connect the psychological symptoms of mothers to physical injury for the longest time until I pioneered a bedside ultrasound methodology that could be used to screen a large number of patients for hidden muscle injuries. The dilemma was that the ultrasound's observed level of damage did not correlate with patients' stages of distress. As I saw more and more of these injured mothers, I realized I witnessed mothers at different stages of exacerbation or resolution of the PTSD cycle. The literature on postpartum PTSD is in its infancy. Postpartum PTSD can be anything that the patient perceives as traumatic. Over the years, I realized postpartum PTSD healing was similar to recovery from losing a loved one as the patients mourned capacities and functionalities that were now "dead" to them. Trauma to the pelvic floor structures and muscles can manifest as pelvic pressure, pain, discomfort, sexual dysfunction, or loss of bladder and bowel function that rubs the patient of the capacity to function as before.

In this series, I have taken the typical statements and sentiments that the patients have expressed over the years and matched them with stages of recovery from grief. Although postpartum/postnatal PTSD is common, it is rarely diagnosed. The patients feel alone and as if they do not have an advocate and their voices are not heard. I advocate for mothers to have their stories told by painting their emotions.

Learn more:

shobeiriart.com   |     |     |  

William B. Goddard, MD Endowment in Obstetrics and Gynecology

William B. Goddard, MD, was a multidimensional physician. He earned his Bachelor's of Science degree at Princeton University and attended medical School at Pennsylvania University. He did his residency at the University of Iowa and stayed on as faculty attaining the rank of Associate Professor. In 1961, Dr. Goddard was recruited by Denver General Hospital, now Denver Health, as Director of Obstetrics and Gynecology. He then joined the clinical faculty at the University of Colorado in 1963.

Dr. Goddard maintained a tradition of excellence in teaching and outstanding leadership throughout his career. Whether looming over an OR table or philosophizing over a pint of beer, Dr. Goddard’s greatest specialty was teaching others to become outstanding physicians. He was honored with several teaching awards and served as mentor to many trainees and faculty. Dr. Goddard trained over 400 residents and innumerable medical students over the course of his distinguished career, with a forward thinking focus on reconstructive pelvic surgery in a time that preceded the field of urogynecology.

Dr. Goddard also served on numerous ACOG committees and was past president of a number of OB-GYN organizations, including CAOG. He served as an examiner for ABOG and volunteered numerous hours of committee service to the organization. Of note, Dr. Goddard was instrumental in promoting the adoption of laparoscopy, ultrasound, and advanced fetal monitoring techniques, advancing clinical innovation for women's health throughout Denver.

Dr. Goddard passed away in 2014. The accomplished physician and educator is survived by his 4 children: Susan, Jo Anna, Peg Rose, and Norman, along with 8 grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

Today, we honor Dr. Goddard's legacy of excellence and devotion and foresight to advancing urogynecology and reconstructive pelvic surgery before its time with his named endowment. Donations to the William B. Goddard, MD endowment directly supports translational scientific research and clinical innovation to advance treatment options and educational events to promote advocacy for women with pelvic floor disorders. These activities are led by Kathleen A. Connell, MD, who is the Division Chief of Urogynecology & Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Dr. Connell is the William B. Goddard, MD Endowed Professor. Please visit our website for more information on our division's programmatic advancement of pelvic floor disorders!

Donating to William B. Goddard, MD Endowment in Obstetrics and Gynecology

Donations to the William B. Goddard, MD Endowment in Obstetrics and Gynecology directly supports translational scientific research and clinical innovation to advance treatment options and educational events to promote advocacy for women with pelvic floor disorders. These activities are led by Kathleen A. Connell, MD, who is the Division Chief of Urogynecology & Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Dr. Connell is the William B. Goddard, MD Endowed Professor. Please visit our website for more information on our division's programmatic advancement of pelvic floor disorders! Donations can be made in the form of one-time or recurring gifts, pledges, and planned giving.

There are two ways you can make your contribution.

Payroll Deduction (for CU Faculty and Staff)

If you are a CU employee, you can easily make your generous contribution as a deduction from your monthly paycheck, either before or after tax. 

1. Simply navigate to the Payroll Deduction webpage. 
2. Use the "I would like to" drop down menu and choose "Establish a new monthly payroll deduction gift".
3. Fill out the online form.
4. Under Gift Details, type or copy/paste your designated fund name in the "Fund" box. To ensure the funds go directly to William B. Goddard, MD Endowment in Obstetrics and Gynecology please write:
   
   William B. Goddard, MD Endowment in Obstetrics and Gynecology
   
   
5. Enter the amount that you would like to have deducted on a monthly basis.
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7. Check the box to authorize the payroll deduction.

Credit Card Gift (for All Donors)

Make your contribution safely and securely, either as a one-time or recurring gift. Navigate to our CU giving page and complete the form. Under the "Gift Designation" drop down, select the first option of "Write in where you'd like to direct your gift" and type or copy/paste in your designated fund name:

William B. Goddard, MD Endowment in Obstetrics and Gynecology