Ricki Lake claims in a new book Your Birth that childbirth can summon up memories of the trauma of abuse, according to a US report.

Lake, who was herself abused at the age of six, explains the theory that loss of control of one’s body during childbirth can trigger memories of trauma.

“You can feel violated. I mean one in three women are sexually assaulted in some way, so those are a lot of women giving birth,” she said.

She urged caregivers to be very gentle with women during labour, because they are experiencing a loss of privacy and comfort level.

Ricki Lake said she has always been modest about her body and that she felt safer giving birth at home.

Lake had a midwife to assist in the birth of her now seven-year-old son, Owen, which was featured in a 2008 documentary The Business of Giving Birth.

She ventures into some taboo areas, discussing nipple stimulation by a partner to help start labour, as well as orgasms, noting: “I can’t say I had an orgasm when I gave birth. I did not have that.”