We are Naomi and Aiken and we have a 4 month old baby boy called Oak as well as a beautiful husky called Nova. We took the Happy Parents Happy Baby antenatal classes in Norwich.
I found the pregnancy pretty textbook, with the standard nausea during the first 12 weeks and then felt good after that other than a lot of fatigue, tiredness and hip pain. I did lots of walking to stay active and listened to podcasts about positive birth stories during my walks. HPHB helped me to feel confident that my birth decisions were my choice and also helped my partner to understand the different stages during labour and how he could help me. It also helped me to feel better prepared on baby first aid.
It was at the Norfolk and Norwich which was really good. All of the midwives were so lovely and the premature baby doctor was really kind. The midwife who delivered my baby was absolutely amazing and had a hands-off approach which suited me perfectly.
I had my baby early at 36 + 5 weeks and it was completely unmedicated. HPHB made me feel confident that I could have an unmedicated birth, especially by teaching me how to use hypnobirthing which was incredibly helpful during labour. It also helped my partner to understand how to help me, which was so important during my labour (he used counter pressure on my back and kept me calm, hydrated and fed during the labour). My labour was 24 hours in total and I had a second degree tear. Even though it was the most difficult thing I have ever done in my life, I felt so proud of myself and so close to my partner during the experience.
My baby had some struggles with blood oxygen levels and temperature initially but I fully trusted the midwife and doctor who tended to him, they were so kind and reassuring and so thorough. He established quickly and is now doing so well.
Breathing 5/5 – kept my body relaxed which made a massive difference.
Aiken using counter pressure on my back and kept 5/5 – would have struggled so much more without that!
Positions 5/5 – laying down made the pain unbearable so I had to be standing/bending over.
Water/bath 1/5 – just didn’t help me.
Relieved that he was well and crying and so overwhelmed with what I had just gone through. I felt emotional and had the third day emotional drop as described in the course. This helped me to understand it was normal. The sleep didn’t feel too bad as I was running on adrenaline still but everything just felt a daze. The course spoke about doing lots of skin to skin which we did, and which was lovely for bonding. It felt like I was in a dream world to start with and was a bit of a blur.
Going through labour unmedicated with so much support from my partner thanks to the course!
Postnatal anxiety 3 months after birth. It took me by surprise as I thought I had escaped it but I really struggled with anxiety around constant visits to see the baby and a huge feeling of protectiveness over my son.
I am so proud of how I have taken to motherhood, especially with letting my instincts take over. I am also so proud of going through my labour and birth without any medication.
Postnatal anxiety months after birth. I expected to have had it initially after birth but not months later.
I regret letting other people feed my baby (formula fed) within the first few weeks. I wish I had kept it to myself and my partner only for the first couple of months as it gave me anxiety when others fed my baby but I am too much of a people pleaser to have taken that back away.
I have met with them in groups and one to one for lunch and it has been nice to compare our experiences and know that we’re not alone/our experiences are normal.
Lucozade!! I was so sick during labour and lucozade kept me hydrated and energy levels up.
Pot Noodle for sure!
Muslin cloths and knitted blankets – you can never have too many.
Nuby Rapid cool as we have formula fed from birth so this has been a life saver in getting fresh milk to my baby quickly.
Trust your instincts and let yourself feel all of the emotions.
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