My Birth Story

I was beyond excited to meet my baby. I had a really simple pregnancy despite two previous miscarriages. I focused my time on eliminating fear, connecting with and trusting my baby, preparing to go through our labour journey together. I went into spontaneous labour at thirty-nine and six, much to my surprise as I was convinced, I would go to forty-three weeks as I had no ‘signs of labour’. Contractions came on thick and fast. Within two hours of my first contraction, they were two-three minutes apart, lasting one minute. So, we headed into hospital. It felt surreal, I was in labour and loving it! The original midwife was amazing, and I felt completely safe. She’d set up fairy lights, clary sage aromatherapy and ran the water. She made herself a cup of tea and said, “I’ll be here, you just do you”. She started heating my babies table for her imminent arrival after a consenting VE that confirmed my feelings of being fully dilated. We waited for the urge, desperate for my OP baby to decide it was time. It was hard, the pressure on my spine so intense. As morning arose and staff changeover occurred, so too did the environment. It was clear no one believed in physiological birth. Another VE caused confusion and anxiety, as now ‘only five cms’. I did my best to bring my baby into the world in a calm way, and I am so thankful I had the knowledge to make the choices I did to remain calm. I knew I didn’t want an epidural; I knew the research of OP labour and epidurals. I knew I didn’t want forceps inside my pelvis. I knew I didn’t need or want any pain relief. If I was having any intervention, it would only be a caesarean section as I knew the likelihood of it ending there anyway. I was not prepared for how the hospital system viewed OP babies as wrong, instead of a variation of normal. I could feel baby was turning, I trusted them. But in the end my choices were MINE. I chose a caesarean. I didn’t get to birth my baby vaginally. I will forever cherish the moment when our baby screamed her way into the world, and we got to see her. “It’s a girl! It’s Pip!”. Our beautiful girl born on her due date.