Birth Story
There have been several defining moments in my life; but none that I
have been so overwhelmed by, nor under-prepared for, than the birth of
my son. Indeed, I was not really prepared for the pregnancy test to turn
positive. I had never planned to be a mother, and I had no idea how I
would cope. I began, as I suppose most people do, by registering with
the midwife at my local health centre. At this point, I was hoping for
a home delivery.
I did not have a particularly enjoyable time. As my pregnancy progressed,
my nausea progressed with it, I started having some horrible shooting
pains and my nerves began to fail me. NHS staff were helpful, but busy
and overstretched. My consultant was concerned that I was "not sufficiently
excited to be having a baby", and in view of this, my age (35), an increased
risk of bleeding following the birth and the fact that it was my first
baby, advised that I should deliver in hospital. With all this laid before
me, and the pains becoming almost intolerable, I became convinced that
I could not 'do' labour at all. I requested a Caesarean. My consultant
suggested an independent midwife.
Meeting Lynn changed pregnancy from a nightmare situation to an experience which, if not pleasant, was at least tolerable. Having discussed my situation at length, she agreed to a home delivery. She supported me during some of my most frantic weeks, assuring me that I was normal. She introduced me to Sharon, another very special midwife, who would back her up at delivery. After speaking with both of them, I became convinced that I wanted a water birth, so we hired a birthing pool which took up the majority of the space in our dining room!
