This week’s birth story comes from a lovely couple Hannah and Daniel who attended a TCBS Hypnobirthing Course with Jane Longthorn of Mutha Nurture, Leeds.
Thank you for sharing the arrival of Leonardo with is!
“Jane has been a family friend to my husband for a majority of his life – when Jane became a hypnobirthing practitioner I knew straight away I needed her services way before I became pregnant with our 3rd child. And thankfully Jane was up for it.
My previous births were an emergency c-section and a VBAC with every type of pain relief including epidural and intervention!
Leading up to our baby boys birth Jane naturally helped us reflect on our past experiences which totally changed our attitude and self-beliefs when it came to the pending birth. I found myself feeling more on control, politely challenging the birth plan I was being directed towards as I was classed as a high-risk pregnancy. I opted to stay at home for as long as I could and referred myself to the home birth team who welcomed me and my scar (c-section) with open arms.
My labour began – I woke up 2 days before my due date with very irregular tightening, pressure and a noticeable drop in my bump. I completed the school run (whilst crying in the car) and went and picked my husband up from town as he had already gone into work but came home as I was exhausted. At this point I was not aware that I was starting in labour. I used my breathing through my irregular tightening and experienced a stinging pain so called the home birth team. They advised me to come into the lotus suite to be monitored but I was reluctant as I didn’t believe I was in labour. I had a bath, then a shower and left it till around 15.30pm to head into hospital, reluctantly.
My tightenings slowed right down and when on the monitor baby boy had a deceleration in his heart rate when a tightening happened. At around 16.30pm the tightenings started to come regular and stronger, I was examined at around 17.00pm and was 3cm to my surprise. My home birth midwife and amazing student advised to stay and progress on delivery suite as they wanted to monitor the baby. We decided to go for it as the thought of travelling home in rush hour in a taxi was not the on!
My husband left in a taxi to get my hospital bag – that was half packed! And I went to delivery suite at around 17.30pm. Again, they were struggling to track babies heart rate and wanted to put a clip on his head (this happened with my second and I felt stuck to the machine) but this would include breaking my waters (this is what happened with my first baby and she became distressed and ended up in a c section). I instantly became scared but then after a phone conversation with my husband I agreed to it and felt in control and understood the rational. My waters were broken at 18.05pm with a clip put on his head. My husband arrived back at 18.15pm. I remember using my breathe through the tightenings which were bloody intense and then reaching the limit in my head where I asked for an epidural – reflecting now this was the transition phase. I had the anaesthetist on one arm and my husband on the other, then the over whelming feeling to push and get on the floor came over me. I dropped to the floor holding my husband’s hands and my body took over pushing. I remember biting the mattress and finding a bar to grab on the bed. Leonardo Luis was born at 18.53pm with no pain relief and through breathing, screaming and letting my body work with my baby to do what it needed to do.
I am so grateful for Jane and can’t thank her enough for enlightening my husband and I into believing in ourselves!”
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