Birth Stories

“Your body is fully capable of giving birth. It’s your mind than needs convincing” - Adreienne Reed

Jo and David’s birth story 

It was just the most magical day, we have a lovely birth story, especially for first timers, a few hairy moments, but hey that’s childbirth for you.

I or David, hypnobirthing helped him to understand what to expect from labour and childbirth and made him more relaxed and prepared for the big event. The script helped the first 4 hours at home. He was helping me through surges as if he was reading the script again.

For me, hypnobirthing kept the fear of childbirth away. I now have amazing meditation skills which I can apply throughout general life and it’s bought me and David even closer together. We used hypnobirthing in such an intimate way. David became my protector. I remember him asking the midwife not to cut me, they listened, and he was right, because I got the head out very soon later with no complications.

We made a really good teamwent into labour at about 1.30am Thursday morning, just a few contractions, we thought they were Braxton Hicks.

Anyway a few hours later we realised I was in labour and I instantly said to David, “I don’t want a home birth today” (as previously planned), so we came to the birthing unit about 6am when contractions were two minutes apart.

I was already 6cm dilated when we got there, wasn’t in any pain, just breathed, bounced and danced through contractions. Midwives were shocked that I was 6cm and so calm.

Then we laboured in the pool until I was fully dilated. Hypnobirthing worked a treat, we had our tracks playing throughout. David was an amazing support and helped me to remain calm and breathe through any discomfort and then would tickle me in between contractions so that I went into a really deep relaxation.

We had a wonderful midwife who fully supported all our wishes and was amazed by our partnership. She said we were her couple of the year and couldn’t believe we got to fully dilated so calmly. She said she had never seen anything quite like it. I didn’t manage to deliver in the water and had to get onto a bed to deliver him as his little head was getting stuck.

This was fine by me as I still felt really comfortable and dignified. Head took a little more effort than expected to get out. 

We stayed the night in the birthing unit as he came out with his poo (we don’t think he swallowed any) and he’s also below the 10th centile for weight on the personalised growth chart, so they just wanted to monitor blood sugar overnight.

We were so happy to be in the birthing unit overnight as we had no idea how amazing it would be to get so much support with breastfeeding and just general parenting. The staff on the birthing unit were phenomenal. We met with the director of midwifery for Queens the next day to retell the story and give the much needed praise for the incredible care that we received and she became really emotional.

Absolutely, feel free to share. We are both so proud of our birth story. We know there were a few hairy moments, but they were so well managed, and only make up a very small part of the entire journey we have been on.

For me, hypnobirthing kept the fear of childbirth away. I now have amazing meditation skills which I can apply throughout general life and it’s bought me and David even closer together. We used hypnobirthing in such an intimate way. David became my protector. I remember him asking the midwife not to cut me, they listened, and he was right, because I got the head out very soon later with no complications.

We made a really good team.

Baby Charlotte’s birth

Hi Anne,

I hope you are well! I just wanted to give you the latest news on the story of the huge giant baby that wasn’t allowed in the birthing centre!!

My waters broke at 1am on Sunday night and so I stayed in bed until 8am when I phoned Queens triage and was told off for not ringing and going in at 1am to be assessed- but what good would that have done! Anyway they assessed me at 9am to confirm that yes my waters had broken and to come back when either labour had started naturally or to be induced later that night.

I carried on as normal and even went to my nail appointment! I only felt the braxton hicks type cramps I’d had in the weeks leading up to the due date so was happily carrying on as normal. When I got home at 3 I could feel that it was starting to get uncomfortable to sit down so I sent my mum and dad home as they had been round decorating. I told them I needed to feel safe and have a quiet relaxed place to prepare and I only wanted M with me. My mum thought I was mad but I managed to get rid of them!! By 4 I was in the bath listening to my sea of serenity MP3.

By 5 I’d started to feel like things were definitely starting so asked M to start timing on his phone. According to the log he kept they were 4 minutes apart and I’d logged them as mild. I thought this was the early stage of labour as they were just like cramps so I asked him to prepare the tens machine by the time he’d done that they were 3 minutes but I’ve still logged them as mild!

After an hour of that he suggested we go to the hospital as I couldn’t talk through them and thank God we did. By the time I got to triage at 7 I was 8cm dilated, contractions were a minute apart and I was ready to give birth on the floor of the lift if necessary!

Obviously because I didn’t realise how far I’d got I hadn’t phoned ahead to ask for the one pool they have in the labour ward so they were reluctant to put me in it but I refused to get on a bed and so they quickly filled it up and I practically dived in!

Within what seemed like minutes of getting in the pool at 19:56 our baby had been born! We didn’t have time to discuss our birth preferences ahead of time but we delayed the cord clamping and I delivered the placenta naturally- exactly one hour after the baby which was the deadline they gave me!

We enjoyed skin to skin in the pool and M took her while I delivered the placenta. She weighed 9lb- not that big at all!!! And had it not been for the fact she decided to come out first the midwife said I wouldn’t have torn because I was managing my breathing perfectly.

The two midwives who were with me were so surprised at how quickly I’d progressed without any pain relief and I’d only got to the medium level on my tens machine before getting in the pool!

I didn’t have time to play any of my MP3s while at the hospital- it was over far too quickly and as we were in the labour ward everyone was very monitor heavy.

Which actually didn’t bother me- I just went into myself told M to dim the lights and ignored all the fuss and words of push going on around me.

I had a trainee midwife in the room with me and I was her 40th birth before she could be passed off to the next stage. She said it was an absolute pleasure to witness and she couldn’t have wished for a nicer birth for her last one! Probably because it was so quick!

I am so convinced that hypnobirthing helped me remain calm, even though I couldn’t listen to the MP3s. The fact I was able to carry on as normal through the early part of labour and only use the Tens machine at the end rather than from the beginning is testament to how painless labour can be if you know how to breathe through it. I know that listening to the MP3s leading up to the birth will have helped my subconscious to relax me even without the music playing.

Thank you so much for all your guidance and support, it gave me the confidence to push for the birth I wanted when all around me people wanted me to give in to inducements, epidurals and caesareans.

On the day it allowed me to be tough and argue my case for a water birth even when not being able to speak through contractions! I can’t thank you enough for providing me with the tools to have the right birth for me and my baby.

I’ll be promoting the benefits of hypnobirthing to anyone who will listen and everyone who knows me is astounded at how I went through labour without any pain relief as everyone thought I was a wuss!

With lots of love and appreciation, baby Charlotte, M and M xxx

P.s. I’ve read through my notes and it said my labour started at 19:20 with delivery at 19:56, so that must be the time I was admitted to triage and the time I actually gave birth! We cut it quite fine