Laura and Mike - second baby, following anxious first birth

 

I started my hypnobirthing journey at 25 weeks pregnant. It was my third pregnancy and I was very anxious. I had previously had a miscarriage and then my rainbow baby (Harriet) was born at 28 weeks, weighing 2lb 13, she spent 8 weeks in NICU.  Although I was under consultant care for this pregnancy, there was still a risk that I could have another premature baby and this made me anxious and a nervous wreck.

 

I hadn’t been in control of my labour with Harriet and I wanted this pregnancy and labour to be more enjoyable and for me to stay in control.

 

As soon as I started the classes with Helen I knew this was the right thing for me and the classes would help me.

 

I became more relaxed and confident about being in control. I used the MP3’sto help relax each evening and to help me feel more confident when I had appointments with the midwife and consultant, as I was already feeling like I might not get my choice of using the pool for a water birth or the midwife led unit as I was considered a high risk pregnancy.

 

After 2 weeks of the course with Helen I had to have the dreaded GTT test to see if I had gestational diabetes; I had previously had it when pregnant with Harriet. To my disappointment I received the dreaded phone call to say 'yes' I had it again and would need to check blood sugars every day and change my diet.

 

At first I was really upset and annoyed that yet again I couldn’t have a normal smooth pregnancy. I listened to one of the MP3’s and thought positively about the situation. I decided I could do this and stay diet control without the intervention of medication if I thought positively and used the techniques of the course. The diabetic nurse was impressed with my  positive attitude and determination to stay diet controlled.

 

Both my husband (Mike) and I felt the course was really beneficial and he was 100% engaged in the techniques, reading the birth partner script, relaxing me with the soothing strokes and listening to the MP3’s.  He wanted me to enjoy this pregnancy and could already see the difference the course was having on my attitude.

 

At 27+5 weeks I met with my new consultant who looked after the diabetic ladies. I was very anxious as we were getting close to 28 weeks (Harriet’s gestation). I thought about what I had learnt from Helen and used BRAINS to help me ask questions and discuss my concerns. The consultant was very good and explained everything and was impressed that we had lots of questions. She admitted me to hospital straight away for steroids to help strengthen the babies lungs, just in case this baby decided to make an early appearance. I did panic at first, but after listening to my MP3’s I calmed myself down and saw it as a positive this would help protect my baby.

 

During my 2 night stay I listened to my MP3’s to ensure I stayed focused and positive on what was best for keeping my baby safe and inside for as long as possible.

 

We had several false starts between weeks 30-34 and several times the midwives thought I was in early labour as I was having surges and showing signs of preterm labour. One particular day I was 34 weeks I had gone in for my monitoring on the CTG machine (this was now a regular every 3 day event as I was unable to feel baby moving a lot) when on the machine it picked up I was having surges every 3 minutes and they were quite painful taking my breath away.   As I listened to my MP3’s and used my breathing techniques Mike massaged my back using the soothing strokes learnt in class which helped me relax and stay focused.

 

After 6 hours everything stopped. The doctor carried out a special examination and test to see if I was in preterm labour which both myself and Mike used BRAINS to decide whether the examination was what we wanted. We decided to have the test and luckily it came back negative, it had just been a false start.

 

I continued to be monitored every 3 days on the CTG monitor and had a growth scan every 2 weeks due to the gestational diabetes. I was enjoying this pregnancy more and felt more in control. I was told that due to the gestational diabetes and my previous history I was a high risk and this ruled out the pool and midwife LED unit. At first I was disappointed but after discussing the reasons with 2 of the SOM I understood why and agreed that it wasn’t the right option this time, but they agreed that I would be able to remain mobile even if I went on the sliding scale for the diabetes. I impressed the diabetic nurse and my consultant as my positive attitude allowed me to stay diet controlled and I wasn’t put on any medication.

 

At 34 weeks I met with my consultant who booked my induction for 38+2 weeks this was due to the gestational diabetes and also several blood tests had shown my liver function kept rising and falling, which was a concern as this could turn into pre-eclampsia.  Again I used BRAINS to discuss what the benefits and reasons for this were and what would happen if I didn’t. After discussing it at length we decided we would go ahead with the induction.

 

Mike couldn’t believe how I was questioning the consultant and how I had changed since completing the course. What would normal of made me an emotional mess and panic over I was taking the event in my stride and questioning if it was the best situation for me.  Even family and friends had noticed a change in my attitude and my positivity, even those that made fun of me doing the hypnobirthing.

 

At 38 weeks, after a day at Blackgang I went up to bed to discover I was bleeding. I called maternity and they asked me to go straight up. I wasn’t concerned about leaving my 3 year old as I had organised everything to ensure my parents were looking after her and I didn’t need to worry about what was happening at home.

 

We arrived around 11pm and about midnight they put me onto the monitor. I started having surges every 5 minutes and was feeling a little uncomfortable. They decided to keep me in labour ward as my little girl arrived quickly last time and they wanted to make sure that like I had written in my birth plan I wanted to be calm and in control not panicked.

 

I listened to my MP3’s (birth affirmations and relax to nature), carried out my breathing techniques and mike massaged my back using the soothing strokes, I also walked around the room a lot and bent over the bed. I was really focused and soon couldn’t feel the surges being painful. The midwife examined me at 1am and I was 4cm and having surges every 2-3 minutes she couldn’t believe how chilled and focused I was, she said I didn’t seem to be in any discomfort and I was really focused.

 

At 5am I was examined again and was 6cm but my water’s were still intact. We went for a walk around the hospital to see if we could help things along. When we got back to the labour ward I told the midwife my surges didn’t seem as frequent or as uncomfortable so back on the monitor I went. At 7am they suggested I was examined again to see if I had dilated anymore. Unfortunately I was still 6cm, my surges were now every 10 minutes. They gave me the option of having my waters broken to help restart labour as it had slowed right down. We discussed the benefits and alternatives and the impact on the baby. I decided to have my waters broken.

 

The Midwives then swapped shifts. I was lucky as my friend is a midwife and I was able to call her and she came in and took over my care. She discussed with us that if my surges didn’t start up again then I would need the drip as an intervention, again we discussed what was the impact on the baby, what alternatives were there. By 10:15 I was on the drip as my surges had gone and there was concern baby might become distressed. 

 

At first I was able to continue moving around the room and doing everything I had at the start allowing me to stay focused. My midwife was very good and used the word surges all the time, she didn’t ask if I wanted pain relief as she knew in my birth plan I wanted to use hypnobirthing. It helped having my friend as my midwife as I felt more relaxed. So far I had felt in control at every stage.

 

At 1130 the drip really kicked in and the surges became more intense and frequent. I went to the toilet and had 4 surges as soon as I got back into the room I knew baby was moving down. I didn’t want to be on my back like I had last time and I took control and decided I wanted to be on the bed on my knees leaning over the bed.

 

I started to hum my baby down but soon my body was telling me to push so I was doing both humming and pushing.  Mike was telling me constantly that I could do it and that my body and baby knew what to do, he also used the soothing strokes.  Having him tell me I was in control and was doing everything my body needed was a great support and allowed me to focus on meeting my baby. After a while I felt uncomfortable and was feeling a little dizzy (due to blood sugars), the midwife could see the head and she suggested I change position.  At first I said 'no' as I didn’t want to be on my back, but after the next surge I decided I wanted to lie back. On the next surge my baby’s head could be seen but also they noticed that one of my waters was still intact and a bit of my cervix was hanging down. As they broke my waters and pushed my cervix up I continued humming and pushing and in my head going over the birth affirmations.

 

The next surge and baby’s head was out and then on the next surge my baby arrived. She did have her cord wrapped around her neck twice, but loosely. I asked for the cord clamping to be delayed and then Mike cut the cord and my beautiful baby girl was placed on me. Hannah was born at 12.15 weighing 6lb 12oz.

 

The whole experience was so different from my first daughter's. I remained in control the whole time and was focused on meeting my baby. I surprised myself and everyone that knows me that I didn’t need pain relief as I don’t usually have a high pain threshold but using the techniques helped me hum and push my baby out naturally with no medication.

 

The whole experience was magical and that was down to the hypnobirthing.  Although I had a lot of bumps on the way and I didn’t get the original birth I wanted I couldn’t have asked for a better birth experience. I didn’t need to be induced and every step of the pregnancy I was in control and my anxieties disappeared and I could enjoy my pregnancy and labour which was what I wanted from the course. We now have a very happy and contented baby girl to complete our family.

 

Laura and Mike attended group classes with Birth Wight in January 2017