A positive ventouse delivery: Adelaide’s birth story
I was booked in for a planned induction, following the advice of my doctor, and me and my husband really enjoyed the experience - it made it very stress-free. My induction started on Tuesday morning and I delivered Wednesday at 10:45pm. The baby was delivered using ventouse. This was a little scary at first, but thanks to the Happy Parents. Happy Baby. session on ventouse I quickly realised that if they were using the device it was safer for the baby than to not use it.
When they said they could see her hair, I started to cry - though still needing to push! When she arrived it was a very special moment for my husband and I because she came out during the very song my husband would sing to her when she was in the womb. When they put little Adelaide on my chest, I thought 'wow, we have a baby!!' I can still remember the feeling of seeing her face for the first time.
We had skin-to-skin and my partner cut the cord. He was able to stay with us for our entire time at the hospital. At The Portland Hospital, you are given your own room on the postnatal floor for 2-3 nights, and this room had an extra bed for my partner to sleep on. We received excellent care and all the doctors and midwives had to wear a mask, but other than that it was a very supportive and relaxed environment. We were not too aware of the pandemic and didn't really think about it during our experience - the midwives and doctors were so amazing! Even when things might have been stressful during delivery (when the baby's blood pressure started dropping), they stayed very calm and created a very supportive and calming environment during the delivery.
Both myself and my partner both feel that our baby’s birth was the most incredible moment and experience of our lives.
Being home is great! We have settled into a nice routine. We had actually asked our families (before the pandemic) to provide us with two weeks of just family time for the three of us, so these last two weeks have been what we imagined and hoped for. Because we just moved to London in February and most of our friends live elsewhere, I guess we had assumed most people would meet our little girl over Skype :) So that's not too different.
Feeding was hard at first because my supply was low, so we had to top-up with formula. After a week and a half, my supply increased though we still top up with formula at night. The best lactation consultant I met with was very focused on creating a feeding plan that eliminated stress from me while also following my gut as to what the baby needed. This was the most helpful approach. Also, having a lactation consultant who is open to mixed feeding gave us the support we needed.
I found the session on delivery where we went through what it means to use ventouse, forceps and how they prevent third degree tears to be the most helpful during the delivery. I also found the session on how to dress the baby for coming home to be very helpful as well.
Top Tips :
The most important part of my experience was trusting the team that was delivering the baby and feeling like they were supportive. This is so important for the delivery, so if you don't feel like the midwives/doctors are supportive or trusting, then definitely speak up! Also, make all the use of the services at the hospital and the midwives in the early days - no question is a bad question. We even asked if we were putting the nappy on correctly and if it was okay if the baby's leg was curled up in baby grow.
Thank you to the Happy Parents. Happy Baby. community! I loved all the hypnobirthing sessions and yoga sessions on Instagram - it really helped me cope with the lockdown while being pregnant. I can say it was much more difficult to be in lockdown before the baby came, and having these resources on Instagram helped me so much to stay calm and feel supported.
You can read lots more Positive Birth Stories here. We have positive birth stories from all types of births, including homebirths, water births, induction of labour, instrumental deliveries and Caesarean section births.
Download our free birth plan template and other resources for your pregnancy here.
Find out more about our antenatal and hypnobirthing classes in London, Essex and online and book your place here.
Access free hypnobirthing relaxations and videos to support you through your pregnancy on our Instagram TV page here.
