Isabella’s positive birth story
Emma’s Hypnobirth in her car!
Read the extraordinary story of how Emma gave birth to her second baby in her car with only her husband and sister for support until the paramedics arrived. It’s an incredible story!
Knowing things were ‘happening’
I’d been having on-and-off contractions for a couple weeks and was thinking I’d be in it for the long haul, but at 2.30am at 40 weeks pregnant I woke up to a small leak of waters. I put a pad on, and the water continued to trickle so I phoned triage to get checked. My mum came to watch my little boy and we went to Wishaw General Hospital where it was confirmed that it was my waters releasing. I asked for an examination as my contractions were every 3 minutes at this point, but I was 1cm with a posterior cervix and the midwife said I could go home to hope things progressed, or I’d have to come in at 1.30am to be induced and put on antibiotics.
I was hoping for a water birth like my first so wanted to labour at home as much as possible. I knew things were happening as I was having contractions every few minutes, and this continued through the morning. I was absolutely starving at 8am, so I had porridge, fruit and cake and watched some movies when my little boy went to nursery.
Being put off by the professionals
I used the breathing techniques I had learned when the contractions came, and a wave comb my sister had got me when they were particularly bad.
At 10am I called the midwife as my contractions were now every two minutes, and I also asked my sister to come back over as I felt things were getting really intense. I was struggling with the contractions and at points they were coming every 1 to 2 minutes. The midwife told me to have a paracetamol as I might just have an irritated uterus from the waters breaking and have a bath, then call back if it was still as intense.
The bath really helped, and my sister and partner helped me breathe through the contractions. They were coming every 2 to 3 minutes still, and I felt myself go inwards and want to turn off all the lights.
At this point I phoned back into the hospital and said my contractions were coming very regularly and getting very intense, but I was using my breathing techniques. I had two contractions on the phone and the midwife said it sounded like I was coping with the contractions, so why not have some lunch and come to hospital in an hour.
Feeling the pressure!!
At this point I think I knew I was close but, as she said I was coping through them, I thought surely, I wasn’t that far on. It was 6 hours since I had been 1cm, and each time I called they said I seemed fine.
At 11.15 I knew I was running out of time and shouted, “I need to leave now!” I felt a lot of pressure and was struggling to breathe through the contractions.
As we headed out, I had a contraction and knew she was coming soon. I said to my partner and sister, “I won’t make it,” (the hospital was 20 minutes away) and we went back inside. After speaking with my sister and partner we agreed we had to try get to the hospital.
I got in the car and about 5 minutes later I started to feel her travel down the birth canal, and I breathed through the contractions while telling my sister to pull over. My breathing techniques and comb helped at this stage, and I felt really calm as I came to terms with the fact that she was coming now.
My sister pulled over and went into doctor mode. She got me in the back seat and removed my clothes as I got an overwhelming urge to push. My partner phoned the ambulance service and went to a house nearby to try get towels and something to tie the cord with, as per the ambulance caller’s request.
I could hear that the ambulance wasn’t sure where we were, neither was my sister and partner as it was a small farm road off the main road.
I knew that the ambulance wouldn’t make it in time, so I used my Hypnobirthing app to help breathe through the contractions. I felt her head ready to come out, and my sister held her head as I got ready to push her body out.
I tried to breathe slowly at this point and breathe her out and tried to talk myself through it while my sister spoke to the ambulance call handler.
After 6 pushes she was out, and my sister held her. She gave a wee cry, so we knew she was ok, and then she settled into my sisters’ arms. The call handler told us to keep her level with my vagina, so my sister had to crouch at the door while I sat on the seat. We waited about 15 minutes for the ambulance and kept her as wrapped as we could in jumpers and muslins.
The cord was pretty short, so we had to be careful not to tug it. A lovely lady who lived on the road came with a shoelace and towels to wrap us in, as I was pretty cold at this point. We tied the cord, but I was happy as it was fully white, and we’d had optimal cord clamping.
I still hadn’t been able to hold her, so the paramedic let my partner cut the cord. They immediately took her to the ambulance with my partner to check her which panicked me a wee bit until I was reassured as soon as they got me on the stretcher, I could hold her.
Once we were in the ambulance my partner handed me my baby and I immediately latched her on to my breast, and she fed straight away as if she was starving. She fed the whole ambulance ride, about 35 minutes including all the checks they had to do to me.
We got to hospital where they helped me deliver the placenta and have some stitches. I had some gas and air at this point.
I’m so glad I had the course with Claire to help prepare for the birth
I’m so glad I had the course with Claire to help prepare for the birth
I was just so relieved that my baby was ok, and despite it not being the birth I had hoped for I’m so glad I had the course with Claire to help prepare for the birth and trust my body to birth my baby. The resources also helped my partner prepare beforehand. Once all the checks were done, we got to go home. She was delivered in the car at 12.11pm, and we were home for 6.30pm.
Paula - Corporate Hypnobirthing Course