Birth story - Rebecca and baby Clementine

I downloaded the digital pack almost as soon as I found out I was pregnant last Spring. I follow The Michalaks on YouTube and Hannah’s birth experience really resonated with me.

Anyone who knows me will tell you what an absolute wuss I am when it comes to anything medical so I’ve always had a gut instinct that if I had a baby I’d be calmer if I was at home. I can’t even have my bloods done without fainting which is a cause of major embarrassment! 

Since we were staying with my mum at the time, I asked if it would be ok and she was 100% on my side. I talked to my midwife who said it was fine as long as I was low risk but she doesn’t normally recommend it for first time mums. I’d decided this was too important to have a “trial run” so I stuck to my guns and focused on keeping us both healthy while I was pregnant.

The digital pack gave me the confidence to trust my intuition and to be firm with my midwife to get the birth experience that I wanted. My mum and Husband also watched it and were whole heartedly on board.

I found writing my birth plan really calming because I knew that I had a plan for every possibility. I’d taken the time to research and think about what would be best for me and my baby in each situation. This allowed me to go into the experience without worry or fear of what might happen but with a clear, calm outlook. Knowledge definitely is power.

I had a very straightforward pregnancy. In fact I was surprised at how much I loved being pregnant as I never had myself down as a naturally maternal type. As my due date came and went, I tried not to dwell on the texts and messages asking if there were “any signs yet?”

My husband and I spoke about the possibilities of induction after my 41 week check and I had this overwhelming sense of calm and said, “Don’t worry. I’m having the baby on Tuesday.” I’ve still no idea why I said it! 

I put off having a sweep until I was 41+3 and went first thing on the Monday morning to have it done reasoning that I’d like to have given baby every opportunity to come before I starting thinking about intervention. The appointment lasted a while as baby’s head was so low and my cervix was tilted. The midwife wasn’t hopeful but she and her student did their best as I’d explained about wanting to give birth at home. 

I walked back to the car having mild period pains but ignored them as I’d been having them on and off for weeks and went to work.  The cramps kept coming and going but I stayed at work (I work for myself and my mum was with me!) and tried to keep upright and busy. 

I went home and had food, watched some tv then said to my husband that I wanted an early night. I took two paracetamol and went to bed just after 9pm. Looking back I must have known I was in early labour but didn’t want to admit it out loud in case it was a false start! 

I woke up at about 11:30pm with stronger surges so got up and went to watch tv with my tens machine downstairs. After a while I suddenly felt nauseous and was really sick. I couldn’t even keep water down but the surges were manageable so I decided to run a bath with my essential oils and listen to the meditations to pass the time.

By 2am my surges were getting stronger and I felt like I needed to walk around so I got dressed and went to wake my husband and mum. It was almost eerie how calm we both were. He gave me a kiss and cuddle then went downstairs to set up the birthing pool with my mum. 

I attached my tens machine again, rang the midwives to let them know I was in labour and they said my midwife would be over in a couple of hours. I was quiet during my surges doing my up breathing and I later found out that they didn’t think I was in labour because I was so calm and coping well.  

My brother arrived at my mums just after. He happened to be staying over that night as he normally lives in Manchester and he was so excited to be there when it was happening! He went off to bed as he’s cabin crew and had worked a long shift and we promised to wake him if anything happened.

My midwife arrived at 4am and I consented to being checked. The surges were so much more intense whilst laying on my back but I was 4cm along so got into the pool. 

The warm water was amazing! The next few hours I rode out my surges using my up breathing and by staying UFO over the side of the pool whilst my husband held me and one of the midwives massaged the bottom of my back. I remember that QI was on the tv and that I was sort of watching it between surges.

By 7am my surges started to slow and I felt tired. I still couldn’t keep down water or food and the two puffs of gas and air that I had tried had also made me sick. 

My midwife mentioned about emptying my bladder and asked if I wanted to stand up to try to go. As I stood my surges suddenly got more intense again but I wasn’t able to go for a wee. 

At 9am I said I’d try to go upstairs to sit on the loo - the midwife had mentioned a catheter and I wanted to do anything I could to avoid it! I was so tired that my husband force fed me two strawberry laces and this time they didn’t make me sick! I’m not sure how, but I got to the bathroom after having two really strong surges on the landing. 

As soon as I sat on the toilet I felt baby’s head descend and my waters went. Hubby was crouched beside me and I whispered that I could feel the head. He got the midwife to check me and bless her, she said that I could still have the baby in the pool and that they’d get me downstairs. I suddenly felt really overwhelmed and asked everyone to leave me alone for a minute. I know now that this was the transition!

At this point my own midwife had come onto duty and had come over to the house as she wanted to be there when I gave birth. It was really nice to see a familiar face and it relaxed me as I knew she was very experienced. She remembers my mum from antenatal clinics when she was pregnant with my brother!

I decided I wasn’t going anywhere so my brother, who was sitting out of the way in my old bedroom next door was kicked out and the midwives prepped the room for me. 

My husband pretty much carried me out of the bathroom and I knelt on the bed hanging onto the headboard and felt my body begin to push. I heard the midwives saying that it would be a while yet but I just focused on my body and tried to down breathe. 

With two surges, my daughter, Clementine Alice was born at 9:59am with my mum and husband with me and my brother waiting on the landing!

I was so convinced I was having a boy that I didn’t even check and was so surprised when I was totally wrong! 

We had a cuddle and delayed cord clamping then I needed to be seen to as I’d lost some blood. I used BRAIN and opted to have the injection to deliver the placenta then made the decision on the recommendation of the midwife to go to hospital to get checked over. Hubby came with me and my mum and brother got Clemmie cleaned up and followed me to hospital 1/2 a mile from mums house. 

Although we didn’t get our golden hour straight away, I’m so grateful that my family were so involved in the experience and that they were on hand to help and of course they were thrilled to be there!

We also had a quiet couple of hours in hospital (turns out I was fine!) as just the three of us which was lovely. 

In the ambulance the midwife who had been with me all night admitted that this had been her first home birth and that it was an amazing experience for her as well as us. She commented on how lovely and calming the surroundings were with the lights dimmed and my aromatherapy candles burning and that she couldn’t wait for her next home birth. She also said how she couldn’t believe how calm and focused I was for a first time mum. She was truly amazing and I’d never have guessed that she hadn’t delivered a baby at home before. 

My daughter, Clementine is now 10 months old and I am honestly still on a high from her birth. I’m so proud of myself for ignoring the outside comments and going with my gut instinct. I’m also so grateful that I was fully present in the experience. I never ever thought I’d manage a completely drug free birth or that birth can be so empowering! I can hand on heart say that it was the best experience I could have hoped for. I can’t wait to do it again!