"We felt incredibly lucky to have the birth we had spent months planning"

Huge congratulations to Jo and Shaun on the wonderful arrival of their son Mack.

Born 12.11pm at Truro Birth Centre on the 6th January 2023, 10 days after his EDD, weighing 8lbs. Below Jo shares her journey from pre labour, birth experience through to third stage. Jo and Shaun used Hypnobirthing and also had me as their Doula. Jo talks about how this and the supportive midwives at Truro Birth Centre played an important role in her having the birth she hoped for and worked so hard to achieve.

Pre Labour

I finished work for Mat leave on the 15th December and Shaun and I became pretty convinced he was going to come any day from then, even though all info suggested first babies typically come beyond due date (Mack’s was 27/12/22).

Due date came and went and no pre-Labour signs, by January 3rd we were getting pretty impatient and there was lots of talk of sweeps and inductions.

Terri (our doula) came into her own at this point and it was with her reassurance that we trusted the natural process, focusing on relaxing / resting and allow things to kick off more naturally.

Latent phase​

I sensed a change in me on the 4th as suddenly had a lot more energy! 2am on the 5th, woke up to the first part of the mucus plug coming, went back to bed and the contractions started. Pretty intermittent but too strong to sleep through.

Morning came and as Terri predicted (reassuring us that this was normal) contractions paused. So we took the time to rest up, nap and met up with friends for a dog walk inc hitting the lusty steps!

Shaun and I sat down for some dinner about 7ish on Thursday evening and then started playing some monopoly deal which quickly ended when the contractions returned - much to our delight. I wired up to the Tens Machine at this point.

Popped the film ‘Sing’ onto Netflix to help keep the Oxytocin flowing and Shaun started timing the contracts which were increasing to 3 in about 10 mins. Shaun also set up the lounge with candles, clary sage on the essential oils diffuser and I found that standing, leaning on the window sill and focusing on the breathing was the best way to embrace them!

3am came and we were thinking it might be time to head in to the Truro birth centre - spoke to Terri and she said we could if we felt it the right time, but we could still be quite early in terms of stages of labour, and therefore have to come back and might be better to wait a little longer for labour to progress at home.

Active Labour

​We reassessed and opted to stay at home - anything but standing became a bit of a no go and I started to feel quite sick as the intensity really picked up. Shaun made some beans on toast which I managed some of and he was massaging my back through the contractions. I just kept focused on the hypnobirthing breathing and getting to meet our son soon!

By 7am I wasn’t chatting anymore to Shaun and he said things seemed to be getting stronger so we opted to head in. The 30 min van journey was…. wild as I hadn’t been able to tolerate sitting for the last 12 hours - popped my headphones on and just focused on the best hypnobirthing breathing possible, to fuel the uterus muscles with max oxygen and that meaning contractions could be as powerful as possible and we would get to meet Mack in the shortest time!

We arrived at the (nearly full) birth centre in Truro and to my relief I was 5cm dilated, so we could head to a birth centre ‘Marazion’ room (about 9am!) as Terri also arrived!

The midwives at the birth centre were amazing from start to finish - honouring the birth plan we had written and by 9.30am I was in the water and it was an incredible feeling of weightlessness. Contractions continued to increase in frequency and intensity - and that’s where Terri applying back pressure and Shaun’s supporting words, love and hydration made all the difference!

By 11.45am there was a definite change in the contractions to a very intense downward pressure on the pelvis region, particularly the back! It was more intense than I was expecting and timed into the ‘transition phase’ where I had a moment of thinking ‘this is an impossible task, how is he going to fit, can I have some gas and air!’ Terri reminded me that the feeling was normal, and it was great sign of us meeting him very soon and to keep the focus on the breathing.

The midwife prepared the gas and air and I then started becoming very vocal with each contraction bracing against the edge of the pool and Shaun! After about 30 mins, his head complete with intact membrane popped out and then swiftly went back in to Shaun’s surprise! As it went back in my membranes released and there was a notable pressure release. Mack’s head then came out with the next contraction and two contractions later he was born into the birthing pool. The midwives remained very hands off and I was able to scoop him up from the water and Shaun and I got the first glimpses of our son who much to our surprise had his eyes open!

Third stage

We ‘waited for white’ on the cord and asked Terri to cut it for us. Shaun enjoyed some skin on skin whilst I was helped out of the pool. We opted for a physiological third stage and the placenta came about an hour after Mack’s arrival with only a slight bit of encouragement needed from the midwife.

Mack also started breastfeeding pretty much instantly and we couldn’t believe how calm and wide eyed he was!

After an inspection from the midwife, we were all pretty surprised / elated to find there was no tearing - just a small graze on each side. The surprise was due to the amount of blood in the pool, but it was then decided this must have been from the membrane release.

Mack then had all of his checks and they were happy for us to head home 3 hours post delivery.

We felt incredibly lucky to have the birth we had spent months planning towards and that the antenatal learning and prep had paid off (we opted for the daily dates, raspberry leaf tea, lots of yoga & swimming and perineal massage) to bring Mack into the world in the calmest way. Hypnobirthing, Terri’s guidance and chatting to lots of other parents completely changed our outlook on pregnancy and birth.."

Hypnobirthing courses available throughout 2023. Doula availability in July, and then from September onwards. www.cornwallhypnobirthing.co.uk

"I felt the pressure of the baby moving down...so felt confident in just letting my body do its job"

Life flies by and before you know it, your baby is nearly one and you're yet to write your birth story! But it's never too late! This birth story made it's way to me recently after 10 months, which was a wonderful surprise! I worked with Cyd and her partner last year as they were part of one of my group Hypnobirthing courses. Her journey is not without a few hurdles, but she talks about how positive it was and how she enjoyed her labour and felt in control - from being told she couldn't get in the water as she wasn't far enough long, but sticking to what she wanted and getting it; to being told to push, but ignoring the coaching and following her body's lead. Enjoy the read of this honest and powerful birth story.

Iris Esme - Born 12/2/2022 in the water at Truro Birth Centre, 7lb15ozs

I loved being pregnant and although I was looking forward to meeting my baby I didn’t ever have the ‘get this baby out now’ feeling which I think towards the end really helped, I knew the baby would come at some point so I just made the most of every relaxing evening and early night before the baby came. My midwife new the kind of birth I wanted so said she wasn’t even going to mention a sweep or induction until we were approaching the 42wk mark. On Friday 11th February I had a sudden urge to get out of the house, I was 40+5wks pregnant. We decided to go for dinner with some of my family in St Agnes and had a really lovely evening in the pub. When we got home I was having contractions, although as I had braxton hicks every evening this wasn’t unusual although they felt more in my back so I thought it could possibly be the start. We went to bed and at 4am I woke up with a stronger contraction but I woke up smiling. I was really happy this could be the start. I decided to try and get some more sleep and managed to doze on and off until 7am, by this time they were getting stronger. I watched some comedy and sat on my birthing ball for a bit until I got in the bath, although sitting on my bum and having the pressure on my lower back really didn’t help. My partner rang the birthing unit - the Freya app said my contractions were regular and I knew I was in labour.

We made our way to Treliske, the 50min journey wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be, I had my headphones in and had my eyes shut for most of it. I was examined in the birth unit at 11am and was told I was 1cm, I lost my mucus plug in the process. They said to go and come back at 3.30pm to be re-examined. Luckily my Auntie lives in St Agnes so just down the road from the hospital. My mum and stepdad met us there where I spent most of the time bent over her armchair asking for my back to be rubbed. I kept my headphones in and tried to focus on my breathing but by 1.30pm I really felt like I was progressing and needed something to manage the pain. By 2pm my mum looked at me and said we need to get you back into the birth centre so we rang them and they agreed for me to come back in to be examined. The journey back to the birth centre was a different story, I was in the back on my knees and it felt like it took forever to get back there but again the whole time I just tried to focus on my breathing.

I was examined again at 3pm and the midwife said I was 3cm which I was surprised at as it definitely felt like I was already getting the urge to push. As the birth centre was quiet and my contractions were so close together, it felt like I didn’t have any time in between them, they admitted me into one of the rooms. I asked if I could get into the birthing pool but they said as I was only 3cm it might slow down labour but I pushed for it so they said they’d fill the pool up slightly and I could get in. I was also using gas and air by this point. As soon as I got in the pool I felt a huge relief, not necessarily a pain relief but it felt nice being able to float and relieve the pressure. I kept saying I had the urge to push and asked the midwife to examine me again which she did at 4pm, to her surprise I was now 8cm and she said I could give in on the urge to push down which felt so much better. She also said I could now have the bath completely filled up. My contractions were so close together there was barely a break between them, I tried to use the gas and air still but I was concentrating on my breathing through the contractions and it didn’t feel like there was much time to use it. I felt the pressure of the baby moving down and the midwife said the baby was 'stuck' in my birth canal, but I could really feel the head moving up and down. The midwife kept monitoring the baby so I knew they were okay so felt confident in just letting my body do its job. The midwife kept telling me to push, to the point I actually asked her to stop, I couldn’t understand how I was mean to push if my body wasn’t doing it automatically.

Towards the end I felt my body turning with every contraction so I was completely floating in the water. Once the head was finally birthed it then took two more contractions and the baby was in the water. She was born at 4.56pm, I sat back, completely in shock about what had just happened, I’d asked that I got the baby out of the water but I honestly had no idea what was going on so the midwife picked the baby out and put her on my chest. It took a while for the first cry but her eyes were open and she was moving so it wasn’t a panic.

It turns out the reason she was 'stuck' was because she was born with her arm up over her head, my midwife said given how she came out I’d probably need to go over to the ward to be stitched but when she checked I had a tiny tear that only needed a couple of stitches and I strongly believe that this is because I allowed my body to do it slowly, bit by bit rather than forcefully pushing her out.

Although I found it painful I absolutely loved my birth process and couldn’t believe what my body had done! I look back on it really positively and am very grateful for the information on the birth process that Terri taught us as I genuinely believe it was the reason I had the birth I’d hoped for! I knew what was happening and had the confidence to trust my body to do the rest."

This is a great example of how having knowledge of physiological birth, and knowledge of the maternity system and how it works, can really help you to navigate your journey to get the birth that you want. Knowing you can say no to things, knowing you can request things regardless of guidelines. Knowledge is power! You can find out more about my Hypnobirthing course on my free Introduction to Hypnobirthing on 29th January at 7pm, or take the leap and sign up to my next group Hypnobirthing course starting on March 26th in Newquay. www.cornwallhypnobirthing.co.uk/book-online

"I remember telling Terri I was scared and I couldn't do it, and her telling me 'you are doing it!'"

I had Izella at home in water and three months later, I'm still stunned by how wonderfully dreamlike and surreal it was.

My previous birth was quite drawn out and mentally traumatic. I ended up in theatre having forceps after a twelve hour active phase. I thought I had moved on from this (partly with thanks to Terri and her trauma birth rewind hypnotherapy) but it was clear that I was holding onto a lot of fear.

I was strongly advised by my consultant to have a monitored birth in delivery suite due to previous fibroid surgery and risk of uterine rupture, as well as my 'advanced maternal age'. I would only be suitable for birth centre up to 40+2. This was the opposite of what I wanted, which was a natural birth with no unnecessary intervention. I didn't want to be pushed into an induction and I definitely wanted water as I knew from last time the relief it gave.

I did a lot if preparation and refreshing of my knowledge, guided by Terri. I was so fed up of being medicalised that I told my midwife I was considering a homebirth. She was really supportive. Terri accompanied me to see my consultant and when we arrived, the head of midwifery was also present. They listened to my preferences and made a plan for a hospital that was as gentle as they were able, within medical guidelines. We negotiated that I could attend birth centre and use water at any stage as their preference to home birth and that no one would suggest induction unless I requested it.

Up until birth started I still hadn't made a decision between birth centre and home. There is an ambulance crisis at the moment and deciding to step away from instant medical support and resuscitation seemed a monumental decision that could have huge repercussions if things went wrong. I knew that by stepping into hospital the likelihood of intervention increases at every step. I really wanted to trust my body but being a nurse who has seen all the bad things, I didn't know what to do and decided to go with my instincts on the day.

I had a birth pool at home (provided by Terri as part of her doula service) and I set everything up for home and also packed a bag for birth centre. I assumed that even if I started at home I would probably end up in hospital.

On the day (40+2 ironically) I was sore and grumpy and trying to carry on. I had a bath in the evening as I had back ache as usual and when I got out I thought I had become incontinent! I bathed my toddler and was getting him ready for bed when I realised, and felt stupid for not immediately thinking, that this could be baby coming. After some indecision I decided to send him to my sisters just in case and started packing his bag, and scurrying around following the list of things to do to get everything set up, with my husband.

At 9pm Indy went off and I was intermittently surging on my hands and knees and trying to carry on in-between. My husband offered to set the pool up but I snapped at him not to as I thought I would have hours in my living room and wanted the space. By 930pm I could no longer get up and was in the kitchen on my knees with my arms on a chair, having a surge every couple of minutes. My husband wisely moved me to the bathroom, leaning on the toilet (I had a clary sage and rosemary candle lit which was lovely) and he called Terri and started blowing up the enormous pool.

I clearly remember thinking "I'm not moving now unless I'm carried out to an ambulance" and so the decision to stay just happened.

So I was leaning on the toilet, surging away, waters leaking all over the place, boiling hot, having a million thoughts but pretty much unable to communicate anything but the most basic necessities. Terri was unobtrusively there for me and helping with the pool. The midwives had been called at some point and appeared around 11pm (two, plus a student). I said I didn't want any vaginal exams but had a doppler check of baby's heartrate, which was good. The pool was taking a long time to fill and I finally got in around 1150 I think.

The relief from the water was amazing, but my thighs were aching from being on my knees so long, so I floated on my back like a big white seal, which was really weird as I was continually surging and felt I had no control over my body. I remember telling Terri I was scared and I couldn't do it, and her telling me 'you are doing it'. We had frankincense in the diffuser and very low lighting and the midwives were sitting quietly in the room.

I remember starting to feel different and asking Rob to get in the pool. I'm not sure what he was doing but I remember someone telling him he needed to get in NOW. When she started to make an appearance I felt like it was more than I could take. No one had ever told me that the head goes in and out! I didn't push or bear down or really think about my breathing, I just let my body do its thing. After a couple of waves in and out she came out into the water and Rob brought her up into my arms. It was like waking up for me, the pain immediately stopped and I came blinking out of my weird little birth fog.

I said hello to the team at this point, we waited until the cord stopped pulsing and Rob cut the cord with one of the midwives. I stayed waiting for the placenta but the water was quite hot and nothing was happening so Terri suggested sitting on the toilet to let gravity help. I'm not sure how long I was there but I was close to having the injection when she suggested giving it a little tug, which worked. The midwife checked me out on the bathroom floor and I just had a tiny tear that didn't need suturing, so that felt like a massive win too.

We went to our own bed at around 430am and I didn't really sleep but it was the most calm, peaceful few hours. It was amazing to be in my own clean sheets as a beautiful sunny day came filtering through my curtains, just feeling blown away by the night and the new little person in my arms. Izella just appeared into our life with minimal fuss and has been the easiest, most chilled baby amidst the chaos of toddler life!

I couldn't have had this birth experience without Terri supporting me as a doula. I knew that she would look after me and that between her and Rob I could just go inside my head and let it happen without worrying about external things. I was pretty scared but I had done so much preparation that I think subconsciously my body knew I could do it, and my environment was set up to allow it. Having a solid backup plan took away my fear of being denied access to birth centre which also helped. The community team were respectful and I have nothing but positive memories of the whole wonderful experience.

I would encourage every pregnant woman to contact Terri and do some form of birth preparation with her. Knowing your rights and the system you are in gives you the power to deal with whatever happens in an informed way, and the confidence to get in your zone and birth your baby despite any trepidation you may feel. Thank you Terri, you are amazing and will always be a special person in my family's life!