The Birth of Ambrose

I was pretty grouchy towards the end of this pregnancy. My first son was born at 39+1, so every day beyond that felt as though I was overdue. I was having pretty strong Braxton hicks contractions for days, and so I was staying close to home as I had a very quick first labour. My husband had taken my eldest, Albie, to a fun fair during the day and I lay in bed barely able to stay awake, feeling guilty for not being able to go with them.

On the night of the 16th, I put my Albie to bed with lots of cuddles. I was having contractions but just assumed they were Braxton hicks. I watched some TV curled up on the sofa, then felt the need to go upstairs and get a very early night and listen to my relaxation tracks.

Within half an hour, I started timing the contractions out of curiosity, and discovered that they were 5-10 mins apart, pretty consistently. This was confusing to me, as my first labour had started with my waters breaking, and intense contractions 3 minutes apart from the start.

I pottered downstairs and talked to my husband about what we should do. By now it was around 2am, and I didn’t want to wake the midwives up unnecessarily, but I also had my previous 3 hour labour in mind and also didn’t want to freebirth! We waited another half an hour or so, then made the call. It’s good that we did, because instead of the community midwife, the call went through to the hospital. They didn’t know why it had been redirected, so it took us a good 20 minutes to work out that there were not enough midwives available to offer home births that night.

We were both incredibly disappointed (especially as the pool had been set up in the kitchen for nearly a week!) However we didn’t have time to think about that as we needed to get to the hospital and find someone to come to the house to be with Albie.

Thankfully my brother in law picked up the phone and jumped in a taxi, and within 25 minutes he had arrived. I think he was expecting to walk in on a scene from the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, with me screaming at the sky on all fours, so he was pleasantly surprised to find me pottering about in my dressing gown with my TENS machine round my neck (!)

We got to the hospital at around 4am and contractions were consistent but still quite far apart. This bit I found really boring! I wish we had brought a pack of cards or a game to play, because we didn’t really know what to do with ourselves between contractions! The contractions were completely manageable with breathing and my TENS machine. I also used the comb, and it helped to have something in my hands to fiddle with.

My waters still hadn’t broken, so part of me still didn’t believe that I was in labour. At around 7am, they finally went and things started to get more intense. I was hanging off James during contractions, and gently swaying. The midwives were amazing and pretty much left us alone, other than occasional observations. When the intensity increased, a midwife just sat in the corner of the room making notes and I barely noticed she was there

After a while I started to get contractions that would peak, then peak again, and I knew it was time to get the pool ready. One benefit of being in the MLU is that the pool takes 5 minutes to fill, instead of the 45 minutes/1 hour that the inflatable one takes at home. I put my nightie on and got in the water, and there was immediate relief. It took me a while to find a good position, but once I did, I started to feel baby moving down, and knew that he wasn’t far away.

Transition this time was funny. I found myself saying things like ‘this isn’t fun’ and ‘I don’t want to be doing this’ which sounded so ridiculous that it helped to keep everything light and spirits high. After half an hour or so of pushing, I scooped my sweet water baby up out of the water. I hadn’t specified that I wanted to do this, it just happened that way, but it was the most magical, healing experience to be the one to catch him.

We had done a lot of prep work on the immediate post natal period, having had some issues last time. My midwife, Maddie, was incredible and really supported my wishes, even when there were some compromises that had to be made. I lost 500ml of blood, which was a borderline PPH, and that meant having the injection and getting some help removing the placenta. It wasn’t what I had hoped for, but Maddie talked me through it and encouraged me to do a little push to get it out, which meant that I maintained my agency over the process and it really felt like she and I were working as a team.

I needed a few stitches, which Maddie did, and meant that I got to enjoy some gas and air while Ambrose had cuddles with James. Overall, even though we didn’t get our home birth, it was a straightforward and smooth experience, where I felt heard and supported. Our postnatal experience has been completely different this time. Ambrose took to feeding straight away, has been rapidly gaining weight and thriving since the moment he arrived in the world! I feel incredibly lucky that this was the experience that completed our family.

Amy’s review: 

I’m so grateful to Mollie for supporting James and I in creating a really clear, specific plan for the immediate postnatal period. Her birth plan template was brilliant, and meant that we both felt completely confident advocating for what was important to us. We also had all the information that we needed to be able to make compromises and be flexible as the birth unfolded. Her relaxation tracks were my companions through my third trimester, and I found myself returning to those affirmations throughout the labour.

Listening to Mollie talk about birth is also an important reminder of how magical, natural and miraculous it is. She cares so deeply about each of her clients and their outcomes, and the process of birth itself. Her passion and care shines through as you follow her course. Thank you Mollie xx

James’s review: 

Nothing can prepare you for every eventuality in pregnancy and birth, but I cannot imagine a warmer, better-informed or more professional person to get you as prepared as you are ever going to be! My wife and I did a couple of evening sessions with Mollie a month or two before our second child was born for a reminder of what to be doing and what to expect.

I admitted I was probably a little complacent after the first birth went so relatively smoothly! Mollie was able to adapt her content and approach seamlessly to our experiences and where we were – I would thoroughly recommend her for anything from a personal one-off ‘top-up’ on birth prep or a full group course.

Thank you to Amy and James for allowing me share the birth of beautiful Ambrose.

If you’re thinking of prioritising your knowledge and preparation for birth, you can book online or in person personalised private birth prep support like Amy and James did. See The Complete Birth Preparation Course and The Hypnobirthing Essentials Workshop. 

If you are local to Somerset, then why not join one of my upcoming Group Birth Preparation courses in Taunton? Find out more here… Hypnobirthing Antenatal Classes in Taunton.