Unexpected Beginnings

I had been on the phone to my mum and dad early evening on the 20th and towards the end of the call I mentioned I had some discomfort in my back, I didn’t think anything of it as I often have back ache however little did, I know this was the start of Michael’s arrival.

I headed to bed about 10ish, but I didn't sleep much as I still had some discomfort in my back and twinges in my stomach. After a couple of hours, I noticed they were coming and going in waves, at that point I thought that it was maybe the start. I got up at 12ish, Chris was still up so I went through to him and said I wasn’t sure but think something was starting. Shortly after that I went to the toilet and that’s when my show passed. I was sure things were starting now so I started recording the contractions with the Freya App and focused on the breathing techniques we learned on the course.

Hypnobirthing at Home

At 1.30am I was sure I was in labour, I called the hospital, explained the events so far and that we had done a hypnobirthing course and were happy to stay at home. They were really nice and said that at any time if we wanted to come in, we could but that the longer I stayed at home the better it was for us, which we knew from the course.

So, this was it after waiting a long 9 months it was finally happening, I didn’t realise at the time but looking back at this point we were both buzzing with excitement. We had been carefully managing our expectations the whole way through this pregnancy due to a previous miscarriage and a scare at the beginning of this pregnancy. It was a long 9 months and we were both so excited!

Journey to the Hospital

Chris went about checking bags and loading the car. While I was kneeling on the bedroom floor and leaning on the bed getting used to the contractions and using the app. After a while I moved through to the sitting room and settled on my birthing ball. This part was actually really nice, I feel like we eased into this first stage really easily as from the course we knew exactly what to do and both were calm. Chris fell asleep on the sofa. It got to about 4.30 when I woke Chris and said that I thought we should head to the hospital soon. The Contractions were coming between 5/6 mins and 3 or 4 mins apart. I called the hospital to let them know. I was still very calm, and we took our time, I didn’t feel like there was any need to rush. On the way there was the most beautiful sunrise, the whole sky was alight with orange and with the quiet roads it made for such a lovely journey into the hospital.

Intense Moments in the Pool

We arrived at the hospital around 6am, I was already 6cms dilated which I was so surprised and pleased about. Chris set up the room with our candles and put our music on and we settled in. At first, I just sat on my birthing ball, however I was having back pain, so I got into the birthing pool around 9:15 for a while, the warm water soothed my back. I just breathed through the contractions, when things started to get more intense, I asked for the gas and air however I found it a bit of a hassle to use whilst in the pool, I stopped using it after a while and found it better to just focus on breathing through the contractions. I didn’t use the gas and air for the rest of the labour.

Then things started to slow down, I had been pushing for some time, I was getting tired, and the midwife said the baby was too. It seemed like he changed his mind and just didn’t want to come out. I was out of the pool and trying different positions. I got to the point where I didn't really know what to do and so ended up back in the pool which helped me relax, my waters broke in the pool which was handy. I was now getting very tired and got out and onto the bed. The next while was pretty intense, and my dignity was certainly left at the door. I was worried Chris wouldn’t feel involved but there was no need as by this point, he was right in the thick of it, supporting me emotionally and physically, think I squeezed the blood out of his and the midwife’s hands.