Birth story - Shipra and baby boy

I genuinely feel it could have been such a different experience without the Positive Birth Company. I would have gone down a negative mindset; especially during lockdown & If we are to have another, I would redo the course with my husband!

When we found out we were pregnant on NYE it was definitely a happy surprise, my husband and I felt so excited and ready for this new chapter in our lives..not knowing within a few months we would be challenged to navigate our pregnancy through a global pandemic. 

At 25 weeks my friend recommended that my husband and I look into hypnobirthing, so I did some research on it and decided to go ahead with The Hypnobirthing digital pack from PBC. This was amazing & had so many benefits. My husband and I did this together and we felt that we were mentally ready to deal with what could come from this pregnancy and how to remain positive. I wanted to feel in control and we wanted to have relaxed minds where we could make the decisions that were best for us and our baby. I wanted my husband to play a more active role during labour due to hypnobirthing. I practiced the breathing technique with my husband on a daily basis and I would listen to the MP3 affirmations every night as it helped me sleep, as well as meditation music. On top of this, I was working out daily and doing yoga which helped prepared me for labour and I was just excited and felt ready. 

At 35 weeks I went in for a checkup and was offered a sweep which I had declined and was told that an induction would be discussed which I also declined but I was told I would still need to fill in the paperwork. 

At 39 weeks, around 3pm I decided to go to bed because I was tired and I felt shooting pains in my stomach so I ignored it and presumed it was Braxton Hicks and tried to sleep. I could feel it becoming more intense so I went downstairs, told my husband, and we got the Freya app and starting timing the surges and he helped me with my breathing. I tried to relax so I had a curry, my sister made, and I ran a bath.

3 hours later I started bleeding and due to having low platelets I was advised to go into hospital as soon as I could. We arrived at 8pm and the surges were becoming stronger. As soon as I got there I was checked over to find out I was already 8cm dilated! My husband and I were surprised and thought it was going to go very quickly. I was laid on the bed & my husband was helping me with my breathing technique and he had the affirmations playing in the background which calmed me and relaxed me. He talked me through the wave of each surge, reminding me to stay focused and relaxed and that I was in control of the experience. When he reminded me to relax I found the intensity lessened!

From my arrival I still hadn’t taken any gas and air or pain relief as I didn’t want too and was happy to carry on without even though the midwife was asking me if I wanted to take it in between every surge. I explained that I was aware it was there and that I would take it if I needed it..I didn’t need to be told in between every surge. 

As the hours went on, further blood tests were taken due to my platelets and due to the lack of communications between the doctors and midwifes. It was now 2pm and I was still in the same position but I was 9-10cm dilated. Baby’s heartbeat dropped so I had to continue to be monitored & my surges were slowing down. My vision was to be able to walk around during labour and have a water birth. However I was told on arrival I could not have this, due to my platelets being low, even though I only had spoken to the doctor the day before who confirmed it should be fine to be mobile. 

As the hours went on the midwife admitted that she hadn’t read my birth notes, despite which my husband and I remained calm. I had gone through all this without pain relief and they decided that I should now push. As I was pushing they came to realise that the baby had turned slightly &, due to my platelets being low, I was limited on what pain relief I could take, including epidural. It was decided I needed an emergency c section under general anaesthetic.

Once I was in theatre I did feel scared as, due to the pandemic, my husband was not allowed to be with me. He has been there every step of the way and I needed him but I knew I had to stay strong. Shortly after going into theatre, our baby arrived at 5.09am weighing a healthy 7.13lbs. He was taken to my husband as I was still In theatre.

Once I came out of surgery they brought my baby next to me and I asked if I could hold him & he was placed on my chest. I remember saying it’s ok with tears dropping down my face as that was the first time I had heard him cry and a moment I will never forget. 

I never imagined this birth story for myself but it’s our story and for me it’s perfect even with the complications I had to overcome before and after birth. It took me a over a year to share my story but I wanted to share that even if your birth doesn’t go to plan it is still possible to make it a positive experience. Only you can do that, so thank you to the Positive Birth Company for preparing both me and my husband & for helping us remain positive in difficult situations and helping us to stay calm in a global pandemic. 

Thank you for giving me the confidence to believe in myself and have my own positive birth experience.