Birth story - Jenna and baby Astrid

I purchased the positive birth company’s hypnobirthing course quite early on in the pregnancy at around 12 weeks and the skills and tools I picked up got me through the remainder of my pregnancy and helped me navigate my late diagnosis of gestational diabetes.

My pregnancy was pretty smooth sailing, I had quite bad nausea and sickness in the early weeks until around 16 weeks, where I barely ate and was so sensitive to so many smells (including my husband’s aftershave which I still can’t stand, something he can’t forgive me for )

During my pregnancy I used the course to learn how to let go of the fear of birth and see it as an empowering moment where it brought me to the moment of meeting my child. Learning the science behind breathing techniques as well as the physical side of labour was not only interesting but made me feel strong and that I was built for this magical moment. My husband also benefitted greatly from the knowledge and it helped him help me.

Being diagnosed with gestational diabetes at 34+4 weeks came as a shock. We were sent for a growth scan as one week my bump measured quite big but then two weeks later it seemed growth had tailed off and my pulse rate was high, so to be safe I was sent off for a growth scan. This is where they noticed baby was measuring quite big and I had a slightly higher volume of amniotic fluid than normal, so I was sent for the glucose test. I got the results back the same day and they confirmed I had diabetes.

I was shocked and upset as I felt like it was something that I had done wrong, like I hadn’t looked after my body well enough. However, the diabetes team reassured me that it wasn’t anything I had done wrong. Some women’s bodies can’t cope with the amount of hormones late pregnancy brings on and it results in excess glucose levels, bringing on diabetes. My case wasn’t the worst, I was only slightly in the range but I had to manage my diet for the remainder of my pregnancy and test my blood sugar levels x4 a day by pricking my finger

It certainly didn’t make the end of my pregnancy any easier, plus all the hot days we were having, needless to say it took its toll on me mentally.

When medical professionals were discussing birthing options with me after learning about the diagnosis and baby’s birth weight, I quickly learned how to use my BRAIN technique to figure out how I wanted my birth to go.

Inductions were mentioned straight away, and despite me learning through this course and this page that inductions can go positively, my instincts told me that it wasn’t something I wanted. I was warned that big babies can be harder to birth and the risks that could entail such as shoulder dystocia, and felt like requesting a c-section and accepting the harder recovery afterwards was the best option for me and my baby.

We were brushed off initially by a consultant at week 36 who didn’t want to discuss it with us and told us to wait until week 38. This didn’t sit right with me as I felt like time was ticking by, baby was continually growing and my request for a c-section still wasn’t heard. I spoke to my midwife and got quite upset discussing this with her. She could tell my anxiety was through the roof and this needed sorting so she managed to get me an appointment with a consultant at our local hospital at 37+5. The consultant himself was amazing, I was prepared for a battle as I had heard horror stories of them pushing for inductions however our experience was so positive thankfully.

As it was quite late on, he knew we needed to act quickly and recommended baby to be born at 39 weeks. I was happy to do this, I was starting to struggle to remain positive and felt like I needed to bring my baby into the world.

I was placed on a waiting list where we had to wait for a slot to become available and was warned to be prepared to have to ring them up and chase up a slot.

A few days later I had a follow up growth scan and I asked another consultant to chase up the c-section date. At this point it was Tuesday and I was 38+1 so it was really cutting it fine! She did this for me and thankfully the next day, I got a call from the hospital saying I had a date and it would be the upcoming Monday!

The relief of finally receiving a date was incredible and my mood and mental well-being improved dramatically. This is where I am so grateful to the hypnobirthing course. I learned to stand up for myself and follow my instincts instead of blindly excepting what medical professionals say. The vast majority of medical professionals are incredible people, but they are overworked and it is easy for you to become a number and feel like your being churned out or not listened to.

When your instincts are telling you that you are entering a situation that doesn’t sit right with you, you have to take action. I believe if I didn’t I potentially would still be pregnant and would have experienced more anxiety than necessary.

So in the end we got the experience we wanted. Astrid Nova was born by a positive c-section experience, we were kept well informed and staff were incredibly friendly. My husband and I using breathing techniques and positive affirmations to remain calm in theatre and in the run up to the day which helped so much.

Hearing our baby cry for the first time was the most emotional experience I think my husband and I have ever had. The feeling is indescribable.

I was able to experience skin to skin once baby was cleaned up a little and weighed and once again, wow what an experience. I physically felt the oxytocin rushing through my body. It wasn’t until afterwards in recovery that I learned she had to be delivered with forceps as she was bigger than they thought and was just too comfy in there! So once again, I felt validated in pushing for my date and for my c-section because if she had grown any larger there could have been complications.

All in all I just want to say thank you to the positive birth company for empowering me the whole way through from start to finish and to all you ladies who share your story. What an amazing group of women who support one another and provide the network we all need to get through.

Wishing you all the best experience you can have and apologies for the novel of a story