The loss of a child is a deeply traumatic event that not only affects the personal sphere but is intertwined with the working and social lives of those affected. Although …
Claudia Ravaldi
Claudia Ravaldi
I am a psychiatrist and a cognitive behavioural psychotherapist. I graduated in medicine from the University of Florence in 1999, qualified as a psychiatrist in 2003, and completed my training in cognitive behavioural therapy at Studi Cognitivi in Milan in 2004. I went on to take a European master's degree in the neuroscience of mood, run jointly by the universities of Maastricht, Bristol, Florence and Tel Aviv, and a master's degree in eating disorders in children and adolescents at the University of Florence. For many years my research focused on eating disorders and mood disorders. In 2006, after our son Lapo was stillborn at full term, my husband and colleague Alfredo Vannacci and I founded CiaoLapo (www.ciaolapo.it), a non-profit association. It was the first organisation in Italy to support parents and families after perinatal loss, to train hospital staff in bereavement care and to raise public awareness of the subject, and its work has brought lasting improvements both in the care families receive and in public understanding. In 2019 we set up the CiaoLapo Foundation, which is devoted to perinatal research and postgraduate training. In 2023 I completed a PhD in Neuroscience at the universities of Florence, Pisa and Siena, with a thesis on perinatal mental health. In 2025 I took a master's degree in the history and craft of children's literature at Roma Tre University. My research and clinical work centre on perinatal psychology, especially perinatal bereavement and pregnancy after loss, as well as perinatal psychotraumatology, mindfulness, and bibliotherapy with picture books and poetry. I have written books and articles on bereavement, pregnancy, parenthood and the first thousand days of life.
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AssociationLife after lossUncategorized
Going through grief: the calendar of meetings for parent members 2026
New 2026 meetings for parent members We will walk together again this year, to go through the mourning Going through grief online meetings, Friday afternoons, 6-8 p.m. Feb. 20: The …
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Perinatal PsychologyUncategorized
Intervision and supervision with CiaoLapo: a space for those dealing with perinatal bereavement
Taking care of caregivers Working in the field of perinatal health, and in particular alongside women, couples and families who have experienced perinatal bereavement, means daily exposure to complex stories, …
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Grieving, at first, takes away our words, takes them away, hides them, breaks them, empties them of meaning. For weeks, months, years, bereaved parents know that one of the most …
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Scientific researchTestimonials
Midwives and perinatal bereavement care: preliminary findings from the Memory Box project
We have been involved in training in Italian hospitals since 2007; in 2022, we launched the Memory Box project, which has already involved thousands of hospital health workers, students and …
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AssociationPerinatal Psychology
“Demeter’s Library”: bibliotherapy in obstetrics and gynecology wards
It kicks off after five years of planning “Demeter’s Library”, the bibliotherapy project sponsored by APS CiaoLapo ETS in the hospital wards of obstetrics and gynecology, aimed at hospitalized women …
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AssociationMemory BoxPerinatal human rightsUncategorized
“Memory Box” online perinatal bereavement training course for hospitalists: results of the first three years
On April 22, three years ago, Ciao Lapo opened the “Memory box” online training course for hospital staff of maternal and child area, employed in the departments of obstetrics, gynecology, …
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AssociationPerinatal Psychology
Books that are good for you: cultivating wellness and taking care of yourself and others with books and reading
On April 23, 2025, on the occasion of World Book and Copyright Day, the “Books that are good for you” project sponsored by APS CiaoLapo ETS in collaboration with CiaoLapo …
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Perinatal human rightsPerinatal MedicineScientific research
In utero death, a silent tragedy: the united nations report
Standing Up for Stillbirth (2024) – Annotated summary of the UN IGME report. Every day, more than 5,000 women worldwide experience the loss of a child before birth. In 2023, …
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AssociationPerinatal human rightsPerinatal Psychology
Hugs of stories: parent voice and reading during hospitalization in intensive care unit and neonatal pathology
The “Abbracci di storie” project was launched in 2023 following extensive experience working with families of children who were severely premature or had congenital conditions requiring hospital stays of varying …
