This week’s story comes from a lovely couple who did a course with TCBS Instructor Jenie Scholes in Southport, UK.
I reached out to Jenie when I found out I was pregnant with baby no.2 and set my heart on a natural birth after having to have a caesarean with my little boy due to him being extended breech.
I chose to sign up to the pregnancy package so I could continue with yoga and equip myself with the knowledge I had discarded from last time after the birthing decision was taken out of my hands.
From my first class with Jenie I felt more confident in my decision to decline a caesarean, despite 2 consultants offering me this option and many friends saying it would be the easier option. Just talking it through in a relaxed non-judgmental group of ladies reassured me and Jenie’s nuggets of hypnobirthing gave me confidence I could be a ‘birthing badass’. So when contractions started midnight 20th January I didn’t panic, I started using the breathing techniques I had learnt with Jenie & Sharon to get me through the night without waking my husband or son! I knew baby was back to back but little did I know how painful contractions would be in my back!
By 8am my contractions were 8 mins apart and I was getting excited, feeling completely in control I told my husband to go to work and drop our son off at his Mum’s so I could pack those hospital bags (I thought I had at least another 2 weeks to pack!). My waters burst at 10am whilst unloading the washing machine and we arrived at hospital at 1pm. The midwives were all set to send me home to continue labouring until they examined me and found a foot coming down! This is when I felt like I was losing control but after a quick cry and scan I readjusted my thinking and took control of the now emergency caesarean situation.
My beautiful little girl Harper Rose Roberts was born at 4.34pm on 21st January and whilst it wasn’t how I envisaged it was still perfectly wonderful! Caesareans often get a bad press and many women feel like they hand over control when they occur, especially in an emergency situation, but I can honestly say I don’t feel this way at all.
My best piece of advice is to have a caesarean birth plan ready just in case and don’t forget what you learn, several midwives commented on how well I was managing my contractions using just the breathing techniques… special shout out to the ‘square breathing technique’ it got me through two contractions as my spinal was being done!
Thanks Jenie & Sharon for empowering me!
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