A positive planned c section: Amelia Joy’s birth story
Pregnancy was a difficult time for me and I was quite anxious throughout. We had sadly experienced miscarriages in the past and due to having fibroids my pregnancy was dominated by lots of hospital appointments and scans every four weeks. I was told that I would require a planned Caesarean section and this was something I really wasn’t happy about.
However, my experience of the caesarean was really wonderful. The team at Tunbridge Wells Hospital were fantastic. They answered all of our questions in detail and were very patient; the situation felt very calm. The clinical environment of a C-section is something I was worried about, however because we had been on the Happy Parents. Happy Baby course, we knew there were some tweaks we could make to take control of this. A few days before, I had made a playlist with really calming music, which we had on in the theatre. I also found smelling lavender oil really calming and that helped me to relax. I used the breathing techniques that we had learnt in the hypnobirthing class to really stay calm the morning of Amelia’s birth. Having these tricks up my sleeve was so useful.
When Amelia was born, it was brilliant. I was amazed at how quick it was and I was able to have skin to skin with her straight away - she actually started licking my face! As soon as we were in recovery she started feeding, again this is something that I was initially really worried about, but after the first week where I experienced some pain, we stuck with it and breast feeding is now fully established and a really lovely thing to do.
My partner Richard was an amazing support during my pregnancy. Due to lockdown we’ve had lots more time together as a family, which we have seen as real silver lining to a difficult situation. We both feel really grateful for this time.
Coming on the Happy Parents. Happy Baby course really helped us prepare for having Amelia. There are still lots of things that we talked about that we find useful. Talking through labour and birth and what to expect in the sessions as well as the things we learnt in the hypnobirthing class were all helpful and reassuring. The First Aid session really gave us both peace of mind. Our WhatsApp group has also been a huge support - we’ve been sharing tips and due to lockdown we’ve probably used it even more as we are all in the same boat, it’s so helpful.
Top Tips:
Take a straw! I found this the most useful thing at the hospital.
Try not to overthink things and trust your amazing medical teams.
Please don’t put off going to the doctors during this time - I’ve just found out that I’ve got blood clots in my legs and I was putting off going to the doctors due to the current situation, however if you are worried about something, please do go and seek advice.
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.
