Eris’ Positive Birth Story
Laura’s Planned Caesarean Birth with Hypnobirthing
This is an amazing story, where my client, Laura reflects on the incredible journey of her daughter's birth. Facing the uncertainties of a third pregnancy after two traumatic births, Laura initially aimed for a VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Caesarean) but ultimately chose a planned Caesarean. Eris’ birth was a positive and empowering experience due to Laura's preparation, resilience and putting her Hypnobirthing tools into practice.
Choosing a Planned Caesarean
With my little ones first birthday coming up, I find myself often thinking back to the day of her birth. I had a planned Caesarean to birth my beautiful baby girl and looking back it was an amazing experience.
This was my third (and last LOL) baby. I had two pretty traumatic previous births, for different reasons, so naturally I had a lot of fear at the thought of having to birth a third baby. I knew that my options were tricky and that in the end, a Caesarean may be the best option, but I wanted to try for VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Caesarean) initially.
Preparation and Anticipation
I'm quite an anxious person and I had major issues with this during pregnancy, so I decided to do a hypnobirthing course.
I had a course with Claire from Through Birth and Beyond, and I cannot thank her enough for all the help and support she gave. My partner couldn't believe the difference in my anxiety levels and Claire worked with me to work through all the things I was worried about.
I felt so empowered, I was in control and whatever happened, I had all the knowledge I needed to make the best decision for me and my baby. The night-time recordings were great, I slept well after them and felt relaxed.
Claire kept in contact and was only a call or message away if I needed her.
Closer to my date I had various appointments at the hospital, and I knew exactly what to ask. The Doctors and Midwives were amazing and explained everything in detail and my old notes from previous pregnancies/births were discussed in detail.
There were some details I was unaware of at the time, so it was great to go through them. I decided that a Caesarean was the safest way to go. It wasn't a decision I made lightly because I really did want to have a VBAC and dreaded the recovery from a Caesarean, but having weighed up all the options I knew that it was the right decision for me, given the situation and complications.
Eris' Planned Caesarean Birth
I used the hypnobirthing techniques daily and then used them during the birth of my baby. I kept calm and focused and had a very different experience from my emergency Caesarean, 8 years before and my traumatic vaginal birth years before that.
It was a great experience! I was there for some time while they fixed some issues from my previous surgery and while I was there I was able to relax and breastfeed my baby, while in theatre. I have so many beautiful photos of me looking happy and relaxed feeding my baby while still in theatre.
I'd suggest it to anyone having a baby
I'd suggest it to anyone having a baby
Looking back a year on I'm so grateful to Claire for the course, I learned A LOT, not just about births but about my own anxiety and how to manage that. I'd suggest it to anyone having a baby regardless of delivery method.
- Laura: 1:1 Hypnobirthing Course