Birth story - Melissa and baby Wynter

Hi Siobhan, I would like to share our story with you and try and emphasise how forever grateful we will always be to you and The Positive Birthing Company! (Sorry about the delay but it’s been hard trying to find the exact words! And nursing a newborn whilst completing my degree is time consuming ️)

The beginning of last year we were lucky enough to be given the chance at IVF and with success announced our pregnancy! We created a euphoric experience through IVF, with mindfulness, personal playlists and calming environment. With all the horror stories flooding in after our announcement we were consciously wanting to recreate a similar experience for our birth, this is when I found you, thanks to Instagram! I had read all the beautiful birthing stories, listened to a few of your MP3’s and knew this was what we had been searching for! Suffering with anxiety and being a first time mum, I really had no idea what labour was about but one thing I knew was that this miracle we had been given deserved the calming and positive experience of entering the world, as this might be our only chance.

We completed and soaked up every last ounce of knowledge you shared with us through the digital pack and we felt completely at ease and so confident. People would ask me, “Are you scared of labour?!” And I would confidently reply “No!” And continue to tell them all about hypnobirthing. We were confident in wanting a natural birth with no interventions, this was tested when it was found that our baby had a dilated kidney at a growth scan at 38 weeks. This is when the ‘professionals’ began putting pressure on us to intervene and started throwing LOTS of options our way...

Supported by a network of midwives we discussed the risks and declined all interventions. We were due to go back for an assessment with the consultant on Wednesday the 5th of December, a day after the 40 weeks due from date. Monday the 3rd of December I agreed to have a sweep to keep this as natural as possible but try get things moving! On the 4th of December my surges started at 2:30am... these progressed until around 8:30am when my waters broke and at this time we decided it was time to get to the hospital.

We had our mind set on a water birth as water had helped with Braxton Hicks throughout my pregnancy. At the hospital it was confirmed I was 6cm dilated and went through to the birthing pool. We created the perfect environment and I was managing with my surges. The midwife was so professional and respectful of our birthing plan. I then decided I needed a little help with managing my surges and decided to get out of the birthing pool and to reassess our options, remaining as natural as possible. We decided on diamorphine to help, after a few hours of rest and enjoying my snacks. At 5pm I listened to my body and decided it was time to push. I turned onto all fours over the hospital bed and felt most comfortable and in control. After listening to my body and embracing my surges we were delighted to welcome our surprise baby daughter, Wynter Reid at 5.57pm weighing 7lb 5.