Logan's Birth
As Sascha was past her estimated due date and was becoming increasingly worried about having to be induced in hospital, we decided to try acupuncture to help things along. It started on Thursday 30 November and she had it every day up to the Wednesday before the birth. The doctor who did the acupuncture said her pelvis wasn't in line properly and might be blocking the final decent of the baby and gave us some exercises to do called 'floating the pelvis' which I had to perform and then place my hands on the bump and visualise and communicate with the baby to move lower each time. We could actually feel him moving and pushing downwards which I found really mind-blowing.
On the Monday 4 December Sascha went to have a membrane sweep by another midwife but it could not be done as she said she just wasn't ready at all! Sascha carried on with her affirmations and relaxation sessions along with the acupuncture. On Thursday morning I woke up and Sascha was already downstairs, when she heard me getting up I was surprised by her bursting into the room with a huge grin on her face and telling me she had been getting some surges since 05.45 and that we might be 'game on!'
We knew it might take a while so we went to Blockbusters to get some films. Whilst paying for the films, Sascha had quite a big surge and the guy serving gave me a very concerned look. I told him she was in labour and he nearly collapsed saying, "What now! Here! Shouldn't you go to hospital!?" I said not to worry we're going home for a home birth but we still want the films. I have never seen anyone process DVD rentals and payment so fast in all my life!!
We tried to watch a film but the surges we getting stronger and at 13.15 we called the midwife as they went from 20 minutes apart to 5 minutes apart. I got on with sorting the birth pool out in the kitchen and laying everything out; towels and music and bottles of water next to the pool. At 18.00 Sascha was lying on the couch listening to her Rainbow Relaxation and Affirmations CD, whilst I munched my way through a Dominos pizza and a Chicken Combo which was fantastic! At 18.15 Sascha turned and said, "It's time - I need to get into the pool." which she did. We had candles lit all around the kitchen and had the birth music playing in the background.
Sascha started her breathing and slowly the surges became more intense until they really kicked in and she took hold of my hand and didn't let go until he was born. Sascha started to make some noise on her exhaling as this seemed to help her keep her rhythm. Her breathing and groaning on exhaling increased really quickly in time with the surges up until about 20.45 when they became really intense and I had to constantly remind her to slow her breathing down and take long breaths, as she began to take really short sharp breaths and was losing her concentration as the surges increased.
She managed to regain her composure losing it from time to time and then regaining it again. In the final 30 minutes the surges really took her by surprise and she started to become tired and losing focus a little. In the final 15 minutes she couldn't maintain her breathing and the midwife stepped in and gave her some gas and air which instantly allowed her to regain composure as she had to take long breaths to get the gas and air into her lungs which allowed her to focus again and relax. The gas and air coupled with the long deep breaths really calmed her down again and she regained her concentration and then at 21.19 Logan's head appeared and then very quickly he just burst out into the pool and was put straight onto Sascha's chest, no crying, just lay there cuddling each other. I on the other hand turned into a blubbering wreck and just cried uncontrollably!! It was the most incredible experience of our lives and I would not have missed it for the world. For me it showed that the birthing partner, whoever it might be, is certainly not a spectator and has a very real and important role to play, and as a husband it provided me with a real purpose that was both appreciated and rewarding in an event where the husband is usually obsolete! The closeness that Sascha and I experienced during the birth is an emotion that I will never forget and always appreciate. It showed us how far we have come as friends, lovers, husband and wife and now as parents and we look forward to our lives together as a family.
Sascha came through with no tearing or stitches and was up and about two days after the birth showing off our new little angel to everyone and anyone. We are happy with our little family beyond our wildest dreams and all in time for Xmas!
The HypnoBirthing allowed for a relaxed pregnancy free from the usual apprehension and anxieties and made Sascha immune to the constant flow of: "Oh my God, my birth was terrible, the pain the pain the pain!" I'd heard and read about pregnant women being like angry 'Silver-Back Gorillas' blaming their husbands because it was raining again or because Saturday comes before Sunday or just because, "YOU DID THIS!"
I'm VERY happy to say that during the last nine months, we did have our moments of course, but on the whole, Sascha and I have just enjoyed the whole experience and grown closer and closer throughout it. Although I know Sascha is chilled out by nature, I also know that the relaxation exercises and affirmations had a very big influence on her attitude throughout the pregnancy which showed in her general mood and outlook on a daily basis, and as a man I thank you very much for that alone!!
Ben's Birth Story
When I was approximately 20weeks pregnant, I entered a competition to win a course of HypnoBirthing® sessions in Pregnancy and Birth Magazine. I received a phone call a couple of weeks later from my HypnoBirthing® Childbirth Educator, Norma Gillett, congratulating me as I had been extremely lucky and won!
Norma telephoned me and we arranged for our first HypnoBirthing session. My husband John was unaware I had entered the competition and was unaware that I had been researching HypnoBirthing. When I told him of my win, he was quite sceptical as basically, he didn’t understand what HypnoBirthing was.
On our first session, we were given a very warm welcome by Norma and we also met two other couples who were also there for the first time. Norma explained HypnoBirthing and gave us our info packs. Gradually throughout our sessions, we learnt breathing techniques and John became excellent at the relaxing back massage.
At home, I listened to the HypnoBirthing CDs on a regular basis. I practised my breathing techniques mostly of an evening, just as I was about to go to sleep. I found it extremely calming and straight away I knew I would be able to have a HypnoBirth. I told myself my labour would last no longer than 5 hours and I was determined to have a completely natural labour with no drugs.
My pregnancy continued fantastically. I looked forward to our HypnoBirthing sessions. I was no longer in fear of the upcoming birth and, at one stage, we were discussing a home birth.
However, when I was nearly 33 weeks pregnant, my membranes released un-expectedly. We drove to the hospital and were asked to wait in the waiting area. I was actually in labour for 3 hours before being checked by the Midwife at the hospital, as I was so calm. When they finally checked, I was found to be fully dilated and they could see Ben's head!
It really is a power of the mind thing. It was only once I was told I was in labour that I started to think I was in pain. I was obviously a bit shocked and worried as I was in labour so early in my pregnancy. I used my breathing techniques to calm myself. Also, John did use the massage technique on my back at one stage for a short while, which I found comforting.
Due to the situation, I did not get a chance to explain that I had been to HypnoBirthing classes and when the midwife was advising me to push. I calmly visualised a flower opening and Ben gracefully came into the world. I did have three puffs of gas and air at the very final stage, which I think was more due to the shock of the early labour rather than the birthing itself.
In total, my labour lasted only 4hours and 38minutes, from start to finish. I did not need any stitches. I was up and about straight away. Ben was 4lbs 3.5oz. As he was whisked away to intensive care due to being so premature, unfortunately I could not have skin to skin contact straight away. But we are making up for it now! He is such a calm and contented little boy. Very much a HypnoBaby!
I would like to thank my instructor, who I now regard a great friend, for all of her help and communication. Hopefully, if I do have another child. I will go full term and be able to use all the HypnoBirthing techniques again (and maybe even get to finish the course as Ben coming into the world so early, I didn’t even get the chance to have my final class!)
Also thanks to Pregnancy and Birth Magazine, if I would not have had this opportunity I’m sure my labour would have been a different story!!
Joseph's Birth Story
Well, it all started on my due date, which I wasn't expecting! I was very active during my pregnancy and did a lot of walking and swimming in the last few weeks in order to try and not go overdue. I had been swimming at lunch time that day and felt a strange sensation as I walked back to my car. I thought nothing of it and carried on my day. Over the course of the afternoon, I carried on experiencing the same sensation, which I would describe as a mild tightening, like an elastic band around my abdomen. I was in no discomfort at all and had now decided that they must be practice surges.
As it was my due date, I had already planned to have curry for tea that evening in an attempt to get my labour started. So I cooked the curry and mentioned to my husband that I was having these tightening sensations but I still thought they were practice surges. It got to around 8pm and the sensations were now getting a little more intense, but still not uncomfortable. I decided that I might be in labour after all! This was an amazing feeling, I was so excited! I stayed calm though as I told myself it would probably be another 24 hours before things really got going. My husband performed some accupressure on me as advised by my HypnoBirthing practioner. This was to make the surges stronger and more regular, therefore moving the labour along. Then I had a relaxing bath with clary sage essential oil, which also meant to help things progress. After my bath, my husband rubbed a mixture of essential oils (clary sage, rose and neroli) over my belly and the soles of my feet. By this point it was 10pm and we decided to go to bed and try and get some sleep. My surges were getting stronger, but I was still very able to cope with them. I listened to my rainbow relaxation CD in bed, as I had done every night since starting the HypnoBirthing course. I did the sleep breathing between surges and the slow breathing to help me through each surge. I found the sleep breathing was fantastic at keeping me calm and relaxed.
The surges got progressively stronger and by midnight I found that lying down getting uncomfortable, so I got up and walked around, stopping to swing my hips during each surge. I was still listening to RR on a loop and doing the sleep and slow breathing. I had also started to visualise waves rolling in and out again with each surge, which helped me to focus and stay calm. By 1am the surges were quite strong and coming quite often. I was not really aware of exactly how far apart they were or how long they were lasting as I was concentrating very deeply on my breathing and visualising. I told hubby that I was going to ring the hospital and let them know that I was in labour. They asked me how far apart and how long my surges were, these were questions which I found difficult to answer! I had not had a show and my waters had not gone, so they told me to take paracetemol (which I didn't do as I felt I was coping well) and try and rest. So I carried on with my breathing, visualising, and RR. I found that I needed to empty my bowels and urinate frequently so I spent a lot of time on the toilet around this time!
It got to around 3am and there was little break between surges. I wished that I had not eaten the curry as it seemed to make me feel nauseous during my surges. My husband got up and rang the hopsital again as my surges were so close together and strong, I had also had a 'show'. The midwives took a little convincing that I was actually in established labour, probably because they couldn't hear any noise at the other end of the phone! I found that leaning forward and swaying my hips, along with the slow breathing, really helped me to focus and stay clam and relaxed. The surges felt like a very powerful tightening that came in like a wave and then subsided like a wave, which is why I found visualising waves rolling in and out very helpful as a means of control. I kept telling myself that I had a long way to go and so I had to stay calm to cope with the increasing intensity of the surges. I was now listening to the HypnoBirthing music without the rainbow script.
The midwife arrived at 3.15am, she was brilliant from start to finish. She read my birth plan and spoke mainly to my husband as my surges were almost non-stop so I was very 'into' myself at this point. She did not insist on examining me and just let me get on with it. I had planned to have a water birth and the pool was blown up but not filled. I asked my husband to start getting the pool ready, however 5 minutes later (back on the toilet!) I needed to push! So I called my husband to get the MW to come upstairs. She told me to get off the toilet as I had the urge to push and moved me to the bed. I had not planned to push as I wanted to breath the baby down. However I couldn't resist the urge and I went with my body; pushing at the start of the surge and then I did the birth breathing until the surge ended. There was no time to fill the pool as I suddenly felt a stretching sensation and an immense pressure, I thought that baby's head was crowning, but it was the waters which came out with a gush. There was less pressure after that and it felt more comfortable. I started to feel myself opening up with the next couple of surges so I visualised the opening rosebud. I was adamant that I did not want to deliver lying down as I had practised squatting for weeks. So the MW and my husband laid out towels on the landing (where there was carpet - only floor boards in the bedroom!) and helped me move off the bed. As soon as I moved positions, the baby came right down and with the next surge, the baby's head crowned. This was a burning sensation, however imagining the opening rosebud helped me to stay calm and not panic. The midwife told me not to push, so I panted (this was the only instruction she gave me throughout the whole birthing experience). The head came out and baby started crying! I moved on to all fours and with the next surge the baby was born at 4.40am, only 1 hour and 25 minutes after the MW had arrived! The MW passed the baby through my legs to me and we saw that he was a baby boy!
It was incredible and still brings tear to my eye as I write this. I moved to the bed to lie down with my baby (skin to skin) to deliver the placenta. I wanted a natural delivery of the placenta, which took around half an hour, with very mild surges. I only had a small tear which did not need stitches, I believe that perinneal massage helped a great deal to avoid stitches. The MW ran me a bath and took Joseph to get weighed and dressed. The whole experience was incredible. I felt so proud of myself and my body; I had achieved the natural home birth that I had dreamed of! I did not get the water birth that I had planned but it didn't matter as it was such a lovely birth. I would happily do it all again, it was amazing to feel the power of my own body and be so 'in tune' with my body and my baby. The MW's words were "That was fantastic, I have never seen a birth like that before!" She has been a MW for 25 years and was amazed at how hypnobirthing really works. I can't wait for baby number two!