Birth Coaching Company News & Birth Stories

Hi Maureen,

Wanted to let you know that we now have a gorgeous baby boy called Henry. He arrived 12 days after his due date, on Saturday morning.... at home!! I can't tell you how happy I am that we managed the birth at home and how lovely the whole experience was. I am so grateful that you encouraged us to go for it.

After hiring the birth pool and making all plans etc, once I started to go more and more overdue, I was wondering if the home birth was going to be possible afterall. Luckily my midwife was really positive about it and kept on telling me not to count days.

On Friday, when I was 11 days over, I started having mild sensations in the afternoon.I kept it to myself though as didn't want to tempt fate in case it was a false alarm. I had a big sleep in the afternoon to conserve energy. When I woke up about 8pm the sensations had gone so I was a bit down hearted. Anyway I couldn't sleep then so after Paul and Violet went to bed, I lay awake watching Downton Abbey. By the 3rd episode (about 2.30am) I was having mild period pains. I didn't want to wake Paul until I was sure. He woke about 20 minutes later and I was pretty sure things were really happening. We phoned my mum, who was going to be on hand in case Violet woke up and to be around for me too. By the time she arrived, just after 3am, I was having painful contractions and was using the tens machine. Paul was filling the pool so I knelt on some cushions and leant over an arm chair. Mum called the midwife and by the time she arrived, I was well and truly in my 'birthing body.' I was concentrating on breathing and everything around me seemed to disappear. Paul was great and knew exactly what I wanted.

My midwife was fantastic and just allowed me and encouraged me to take control of the whole process. The house was pretty much in silence for the whole time.

About 5.30am something changed, the pain was worse and I lost control of a couple of breaths and I needed something different so I got in the pool. I was glad I had waited until then because the warm water was just what I needed and I had a renewed energy. After a little while in the pool, I started having some gas and air. I started asking Chris when I should push. She was great and put the control back in my hands. She said only I would know what to do and to just do whatever my body needed. She said my body would do it for me if I just carried on breathing. Just before 7, I knew the baby was coming. 3 contractions, and he swam up to me. I got out of the pool and delivered the placenta.

Violet had slept through everything. Normally she is awake and in our bed around 6.30am, but she slept in until about 7.45. Perfect timing. She got to see Henry and me and Paul and to open a present from the new baby. I think it was quite magical for her to have gone to bed and woken in the morning to find her new brother downstairs.

Henry was 9.3lb and is a very hungry baby. I am feeding him constantly but thoroughly enjoying it. It is great not to feel discomfort like last time after having forceps and godknows how many stitches. Also, the feeling of satisfaction at having the birth I hoped for has put me n a high. Even the trip to hospital afterwards did not detract from the positive birth.

Thanks for everything Maureen. The Hynobirthing course definitely helped me and Paul in giving us the confidence to feel totally in control of the process.

Love

Ruth x

Hi Maureen

Hope you are well. So sorry it has taken me so long to write our birth story for you, but hope it's better late than never. I've attached some pics as well including a recent one of Archie so you can see how he's grown!

Thanks for all your help, which made it a wonderful birth.

4 days after my due date I realised that something was happening & spent the afternoon on my birthing ball. When Steve came home from work at 6.30pm we went for a walk and then settled into the birthing room we had set up in the dining room of our house. The lights were dimmed and we had relaxing music playing. I used my birthing ball as well as keeping active, camel walking around. I leant over furniture and circled my pelvis to deal with my surges and had Steve massage my lower back. I also kept sniffing my Clary Sage soaked tissue, concentrated on my breathing and repeated my hypnobirthing affirmations.

About an hour after the midwife arrived, I got into the birthing pool. Initially I thought my surges were more intense when I entered the pool, however once I had settled in, I found that the water was soothing and helped with the surges. I settled into the position of kneeling up and leaning forwards over the side of the pool and again circled my pelvis, breathed and sniffed my way through surges. Steve was amazing throughout and kept me calm and relaxed.

I just knew when the baby was coming and told Steve that the head was there. I think the midwives thought I was too calm at that point for baby to be coming, but I trusted my body and was right. I breathed baby out and at 3.05am this gorgeous little thing floated up to the surface of the pool. Steve and I received the baby and brought it up for skin to skin contact. We were just content the 3 of us hudded together, gazing at each other and indulging in every second.

Finally, it was brought to our attention that we didn't even know what we had yet! We precariously moved baby into a position so we could see and there, we had a baby boy - Archie. We allowed the cord to fully finish pulsating before Steve cut it. Once out of the pool, Archie and I cuddled on the sofa in the living room and I breast fed him.

Steve was reluctant to have a home birth for our first child, but the more we looked into it, the happier he was with the idea and we are both so proud that we had a wonderful, drug free birth at home. The hypnobirthing helped immensely and allowed us to stay calm and in control and to trust that my body would do what it is designed for and it did, beautifully.

From Amy, Steve and Archie Evans x

Hello Maureen,

Hope you're well? Just thought I'd update you that I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy on 2nd January at 9.16pm at home and with only paracetamol!

I was exactly 42 weeks pregnant on 2nd Jan and was due to be induced that day, but after having a scan and finding that everything was fine with baby and I health wise I cancelled it. And I'm so glad I did! I started having mild surges a 4am every 15 minutes but these would stop and start, so we went to Morrisons and stocked up on food during the day, had a sleep and by 4pm the surges had returned. By 5pm they were 10 minutes apart, and by 5.30pm they were 5 minutes apart. Rebecca (our amazing midwife!) arrived sometime around 6 ish and at this time I felt like there was no break in between the surges as they were lasting about 2 minutes. I got into the birthing pool at about 8.30pm and by 9.16pm Euan Patrick Kelly had arrived very alert and very peaceful (and with no stitches required for me!).

The black and white photo is Euan 1 hour old, and he is still a very calm and content little man at 9 days old today. We're both doing well and just wanted to thank you for all your help and advice in the hypnobirthing classes. Chris and my Mum were a massive support throughout labour and without them and the hypnobirthing techniques we learned in class I don't think I'd of managed to have the labour that I wanted - at home, and as natural as possible.

Hope you're well, and hope this is another birth story you can share with future pupils to prove the power of hypnobirthing.

Carla & Chris Kelly

Hi Maureen

How are you hope your well!

Well...we had little baby George Henry last Saturday at 11.46 he weighed 6 pound 2 oz. He is just a dream, such a beautiful boy, we are over the moon and feel so lucky to have him. We cannot believe how alert he came out, the picture I have attached is just minutes after birth!

Birth was lovely. Started getting niggles at 11 am but wasnt sure whether it was anything, so went for a walk and it really kicked in about 4pm when I got home. Breathed through it all, never breathed like it before, had a bath and then got on the bed with a hot water bottle.

We rang the hospital as they were coming every 3 minutes and lasting about 30 seconds and they told us to come in at about half 7. They checked me over when we arrived and discovered I was 8 cm dilated! So I was made up. They insisted I went on a monitor as they were concerned baby was small, so no water pool but by that point i was comfy on the bed with my music.

The rest just happened really quickly and he came just before midnight. It was great and couldn't have wished for anything better. I was able to go home the next day and this week we have been enjoying being a little family. He is amazing!

So it really did pay off for us, thankyou so much for all your help as it really was down to you and your knowledge that made us calm and excited for the birth.

Claire xx

Dear Maureen

We're proud parents to Emily Grace Lewis born calmly, and safely on March 21stat 10.14 am! I was 39 weeks and 2 days.

We'd like to thank you for changing our perception of childbirth; without your Hypnobirthing sessions we definitely wouldn't have had the birth we had.

Here's our birth story...

We went to bed as normal without any thoughts that baby could be arriving, then my waters broke at 1am and my surges started at 2am. Nathan and I stayed in bed with the lights off and I had a hot water bottle on my back, and as a treat we brought our little border terrier up to bed for cuddles! All three/ four of us lay in bed feeling calm and relaxed as I practised my sleep breathing and surge breaths . At about 6.30am I went to the bathroom and felt a massive urge to bear down. I had a few more of these feelings, I started to feel confused at this point as I thought it was far too early for this and I hadn't been in enough 'pain' to have reached this stage of labour. I asked Nathan to call my mum and the maternity ward, and then at 8am Nathan and my Mum bundled me into the car to make the 20 minute drive to the hospital!!! I kept my eyes closed for the entire journey and continued to practise my breathing techniques and asked Nathan and my mum not to speak to me! The feeling of wanting to bear down continued while I was in the back of the car, but again I managed to keep quite calm considering the situation! We arrived at the maternity ward where they examined straight away and told me I was 9.5 cm dilated and that I could go for it!!

There was no time to read birth plans, but the midwife asked me what me wishes were and I said that we were practising hypnobirthing methods and that I wanted a natural birth. Our midwife was amazing and respected our wishes. So an hour and half later Emily was born naturally without any medical intervention, and after about four hours of keeping my eyes tightly closed, the first thing I saw was our beautiful daughter! Our midwife was really impressed and said that I could come again! She also said that next time I should have a home birth... And throughout the labour, Emily's heartbeat was strong and steady showing no signs of distress.

Thinking back, and reading the labour chapter of my pregnancy book, maybe I must have been in early labour running up to the 21stbut I just hadn't realised??! During the weeks running up to the birth I'd been listening to the relaxation CDs, practising breathing techniques, saying the birth affirmations which were hung up around the house, drinking Raspberry Leaf tea, taking Evening Primrose capsules and keeping activity- particularly with preparing our 'nest'! The hypnobirth sessions and the birth preparation exercises at home definitely gave us the confidence to stay at home, and I think it was being at home in familiar surroundings which allowed me to progress so quickly and without pain.

So I'm spreading the word about hypnobirthing!!!

Thank you again for all your guidance. Nathan and I really enjoyed our sessions with you, we found them really interesting and informative. Before we started to learn about hypnobirthing, I had been researching how to have a scheduled c-section as I was so pertrified of giving birth. But you opened up my mind to how wonderful childbirth can be, and even if our birth had turned into one with 'special circumstances' ; we still would have considered your course to have been invaluable as hypnobirthing enabled me to enjoy my final weeks of pregnancy free from fear.

Love and best wishes,

Jade & Nathan Lewis