Sam’s Birth Story
Sam’s first baby was a water birth in hospital.

When I found out that I was pregnant with my fourth baby, I couldn’t wait to tell Michelle. We had previously hired Michelle with our 3rd baby and had such an amazing experience, that there was absolutely no hesitation about hiring her this time. Knowing that I could have Michelle again played a big part in the decision to have another baby, so my Husband has her to thank for our manic household!

Michelle became very dear to me during my last pregnancy.  Zak had a few abnormalities detected and it was a really worrying time for us all. Michelle was a rock. She had been so supportive and caring. We had stayed in regular contact since Zak’s birth, so this time it was just like having a friend for a midwife. 

This pregnancy went very smoothly; our antenatal appointments were more like having a coffee and a natter, rather than a medical issue. They were never rushed and always lasted around an hour. Michelle was always very professional though, never presuming that just because this was my fourth baby that I wouldn’t have any concerns or worries. She always explained what the blood tests and scans were for.

Zak, at first was a bit wary about what Michelle was doing to me when she was taking my blood pressure etc. She always got the equipment out and left it on the floor for him to investigate in his own time. It didn’t take long for Michelle to gain his trust and he soon enjoyed her visits, and emptying out the contents of her bag when our backs were turned! I never forget, one day after Michelle had finished listening to the baby’s heartbeat, she put the sonicaid down on the floor and he picked it up, sat down on the sofa, lifted up his top and put it on his belly. It was so funny!

My pregnancy flew by. I found it quite exhausting this time, what with having a toddler to look after. You can’t just sit down and have a rest when you feel like it. We tried to prepare Zak for our new arrival by showing him pictures of babies and telling him that Mummy had a baby in her tummy. Towards the end of the pregnancy Zak used to point to my tummy and say ‘Chelle Baby’.

At around 34 weeks Michelle organised a Birth Art Cafe. This is what I would describe as an ‘alternative’ antenatal class. It was nice to get out for a couple of hours and meet other expectant Mums. We used to chat about any worries or concerns we had, then we would do some relaxation breathing. Finally, we would then paint, draw or create something with the modelling clay. I’m no artist, but it wasn’t about how good you are at drawing, it’s about expressing your feelings through art. I found it very relaxing just to sit and draw, sometimes not of anything in particular. One session I just painted a load of coloured squiggly lines, but that’s how I was feeling that day.

We arranged to do a belly painting again. We had done this when I was pregnant with Zak and the kids had enjoyed it. Michelle came round one Sunday afternoon with her body paints and away they went. My due date was 2nd November, but we were convinced that baby was going to arrive on Halloween so the kids chose to paint a pumpkin on my belly. It looked fantastic! The colours were really vibrant.

5 days before my due date, I was loading the dishwasher after dinner at around 7pm and I had a really strong shooting pain that took my breath away. I didn’t really think too much of it as I had been experiencing shooting pains for the past couple of months. I carried on loading the dishwasher and a few minutes later I felt a surge. I carried on having them about every 5 minutes or so for about an hour, which was when I decided that this was it. I told Adam and the kids and they were all excited. Adam got Zak ready for bed while I rang Michelle. She came over with Jackie who is a student midwife that was going to observe the birth. We had met a few times previously, so we had got to know one another. Michelle checked my blood pressure and listened to baby’s heartbeat, which was all fine. We had a cup of tea and a chat and then I realised that I had not had a surge since they had turned up. Ok, so this little man is playing games I thought. Michelle told me to get some rest and that it was quite normal for things to start and then stop. I agreed to call her if things started again. We all went to bed around 10pm.

I woke around 2.45am shaking from head to toe. I wasn’t cold, I just couldn’t stop shaking. I had never experienced this before and I was quite frightened. I woke Adam and we went downstairs and phoned for Michelle to come over.

Adam had filled the pool earlier in the evening. We had remembered from last time that it takes quite a while to fill so we wanted to make sure we were well prepared.  Michelle and Jackie arrived at around 3.15am by which time I had stopped shaking. I felt that I could relax now that Michelle was here. I had a feeling that this labour would be really quick and that she wouldn’t get here in time. My older 2 children had come downstairs as well and Adam made us all tea and toast. Surges were quite irregular but definitely getting stronger. I wouldn’t say they were painful at this stage, but I had to breathe through them.

It was around 4.50am now and the surges were getting stronger and more frequent now. I kept going to the loo as I was really conscious about opening my bowels during the ‘pushing’ stage. Adam and Michelle were giving me light touch massage on my back during the surges which provided some relief. By this time Kayleigh had gone back to bed and Mitchell had set up camp behind the sofa and fallen asleep.

Adam was busy topping up the pool with hot water to get it at the right temperature. The surges were now becoming quite intense and I had to really concentrate on my breathing now. I had Adam holding one hand and Michelle holding the other through each surge. Michelle was using positive language and telling me to just relax – which you always seem to forget to do when you’re in labour!

It was now around 5.15am and I had starting to be a little vocal now with the surges.  I decided now that I wanted to get into the pool. Up until now I had been quite happy standing and swaying through the surges and hadn’t really had the urge to get into the pool. The water felt lovely and warm and it provided some relief from the discomfort. I decided to kneel down and lean forward over the edge of the pool. This is the position I had used last time when I had Zak, and had found it the most comfortable. Jackie was pouring water over my back through each surge, which felt really nice and kind of distracted my attention away from the discomfort. Michelle asked me if I was feeling any pressure in my bottom yet. I wasn’t but I knew it wasn’t going to be long before I did. I was becoming quite vocal by this point.

I vividly remember looking at the clock at 5.45am and thinking I have about an hour left before Zak wakes up. Goodness knows what he would have made of it all. He had been using the birth pool as a bouncy castle for the past couple of weeks. If he had seen it full with water, he would have started stripping off and throwing in the rubber ducks! Not really what you need when you’re about to give birth. Shortly after that thought, I felt pressure in my bottom but not the urge to push yet.

In the meantime, Jackie had gone running upstairs to wake Kayleigh as she wanted to be there for the actual birth. At 6.00 am my waters broke. I hadn’t felt them rupture during Zak’s birth as I was in the pool, but I definitely felt it this time. It was such a relief. It actually eased the pressure. Then I had another strong surge and I could feel baby moving down. This time I didn’t have the urge to push like I did with Zak, I actually breathed him down, which I had wanted to do during Zak’s birth but I just couldn’t fight the urge to push with him. It actually felt really nice and calm as opposed to feeling like you’re going to burst a blood vessel because you’re pushing with all your might! Along came the next surge and I could feel his head crowning – ouch that stung, as Michelle later informed me that he had his hand on his cheek. One more surge and little Lewie was born at 6.11am weighing 8lb 13oz. I lifted him up out the water and on to my chest – perfect, another truly amazing experience.

There’s no feeling in the world like giving birth. Adam was a little bit emotional and Mitchell had slept through the whole thing. I stayed in the pool just staring at our beautiful little boy. He had loads of hair and was covered in vernix. Michelle clamped the cord at 6.30 once it had stopped pulsating. She asked Adam if he wanted to cut the cord. He said no at first as he had not done so with any of our other babies, but I encouraged him to do it as he WILL NOT get another chance! He agreed and he cut the cord.

I chose to have a physiological 3rd stage as I had done with Zak. I tried pushing a few times, but nothing, so Michelle said to try coughing which I did a couple of times and out came the placenta.

Michelle examined me for any damage down below, but I only had a small graze which I was pleased about. Zak was awake. Adam went upstairs to get him and brought him down to meet his new baby brother. We introduced him and all had a cuddle. Michelle and Jackie (student midwife) went out into the kitchen to give us some time alone and make some well deserved tea and toast. Lewie had his first breastfeed.

After tea and toast, I went and had a lovely bath. Jackie came up and washed my hair for me. I felt human again. In the meantime, Michelle had whizzed home to get her emptying hose for the pool. We came back downstairs and within 15 minutes the pool had been emptied, cleaned and deflated. It was 9.00am now and Michelle and Jackie were leaving. We all gave hugs and kisses and they said they would come back later today.

You can’t beat having a homebirth. I love it. It’s so relaxing being in your own surroundings and having all your own things. I feel truly blessed to have experienced not 1 but 2 amazing homebirths and even more blessed to have met Michelle......she’s fantastic xx

Rachel’s Birth Story: I always imagined the birth and my labour would be a happy & peaceful event at home, but I didn’t know how I could have that. Before I met Gareth I didn’t now how accessible Independent Midwives were. And I had a lot of preconceptions about labour.

Gareth had previously used an Independent Midwife with one of his children and so was all for using one again, but I was happy to use the NHS services, although I knew a home birth might not be so easy. The local midwife was on holiday when I was 1st supposed to meet with her so I met with the lady covering, but when I tried to arrange an appointment with my midwife I was unable to make an appointment, I was told she was too busy!! At 18 weeks I was due to fly for my honeymoon and my NHS midwife was still too busy! I was angry and so Gareth suggested that we try meeting an Independent Midwife, which would allow me to have a home birth without too many obstacles.

Gareth contacted Michelle and setup a meeting. I was a bit nervous but within minutes of meeting her I knew I wanted to use her knowledge and experience. I was very relaxed and healthy all through my pregnancy, which I partly put down to knowing Michelle was there when I needed her.

Before my labour started I couldn’t imagine how it would feel – I’d been told things I’d feel and how it would go but I still couldn’t imagine it properly as you can’t describe a feeling. Until I’d had a few surges I didn’t really know that I was having them – they were uncomfortable but I thought I would be able to manage them. I didn’t have backache and I didn’t think they felt like period pain – but then I never really suffered with period pain.

I had my first surge while driving the evening before, I didn’t think it was my labour starting, just that he’d moved quickly or something, I had a few more during the evening/night before bed and it wasn’t until I’d had quite a few that I realised my labour was beginning. My surges woke me at night, they were short and didn’t last for long, I did mange to sleep between some of them, but as they got more intense and longer they started to keep me awake at 5.30am I needed something to take my focus away from it, so I had a nice warm bath. It didn’t work so well!  I couldn’t get comfortable in it for very long because the bath was too narrow for me to roll over in during my surges! Also I kept needing the toilet. As my surges came closer together it briefly crossed my mind if I could do this at home with no pain relief – which were my original intentions.

Gareth was very reassuring and helped me with my breathing and then began setting up the pool. We had already called Michelle – she was on her way. I again felt uncomfortable and wanted to get into the pool there and then, but it wasn’t ready so I tried another bath but couldn’t stay in. I knew my boy wasn’t hanging around and was coming, I could feel him. I can’t say how but I was so in touch with him and my body, I knew we could do this and he was going to be in my arms in no time! I propped myself up leaning on the side of the bath. I was as comfortable as I could be; I had a draft from the window keeping me cool. Gareth was talking to me and making sure I was breathing in pattern with my surges – it worked really well. My surges were coming quicker and quicker, as I was panting and trying to breathe I heard the neighbours dog whining – he knew something was happening, which made me smile!

My surges were intense and getting closer together. I felt like I had no time in between to recover from one before the next one started. I had begun to think ‘where is Michelle’, I didn’t want to have him without her there, even though Gareth seemed really calm or so I thought – he told me after that he thought I was going to have him there on the floor in the bathroom!

Then magic to my ears, Michelle was here! She was so calming, her voice, she rubbed my back while Gareth was sorting the pool out. Michelle said it was going really well and I believed her. Within the next few surges I was helped downstairs and into the pool. It was so warm and I found it so comfortable in a kneeling/lying forward position, with Gareth at my head/side rubbing my back and whooshing the water over me when I asked him to. I didn’t use any pain relief, I didn’t even think about it during labour, the warm water must have been good enough, I wasn’t fighting with my body, I just listen to it, I knew when I needed to push and when to just breathe. I was very aware of the time and that Craig (my eldest step son, aged 11) was due to leave for school, I can remember how proud I was of him, he must have got himself up and ready for school so well, I wanted to shout out to him to have  a good day but couldn’t! Gareth and Michelle told me that they’d spoken to him and that he was fine and had gone to school.

After he had gone, time flew. Michelle told me the head was crowning and if I felt down I would be able to feel it, It was nothing like I expected it to feel like, it was warm, and jelly like, a bit ‘icky’, but I’m glad I felt him. Right near the end, I knew I needed to push but it was so hard to, I could have just flopped into the water, but I remember Michelle saying weeks before, that right at the point you want to give up is when your baby is coming out, so I focused on that thought and used my energy to push just a bit harder.

The last time I looked at the clock it was about 8.15am, a while later Michelle saying that my boy will be here in about 10 minutes or so – I looked at the clock it was 8.50, then with my next surge I had to push, I felt his head coming out, the surge faded a bit but I could feel another one coming so I kept pushing, he came out in one go! All warm and slippery between my legs, I had a moment of worry, because I couldn’t tell where he was underneath me, Michelle told me to roll onto my back and she lifted him up to the surface of the water. Michelle lifted him into my arms – he was so beautiful.

I tried to feed him in the water but couldn’t sit up enough, I wanted to naturally deliver my placenta and it was quite uncomfortable to sit up. Gareth cut the umbilical cord and had some skin to skin contact with him.

Michelle kept asking me if I wanted to eat anything, I didn’t but after a bit of persistence I had a jelly baby – It was really nice!!  I still didn’t want to get out the pool until I delivered my placenta.  It took ages but at about 10am it came out, it hurt a bit, but I felt far more relaxed once it was out.

I was helped out the pool and given my dressing gown, I sat on the sofa and tried feeding again, he latched on well and drank eagerly! It was an amazing sensation.  Gareth had rung around and sent message out to let people know that our baby was here and healthy. My mum (a teacher) was given some time out of school, she wanted to pop over. I was happy to let her – Michelle said she was happy to wait for mum to come and go before she would check me for any tears.

During the birth I had torn and was bleeding quite a lot. It was deep and I was very uncomfortable when Michelle examined me, she said she’d suture me at home but as it was a deep tear and I was so uncomfortable she recommended I transfer into hospital just to be sorted out then to come home. She arranged everything and came to the hospital with us and brought us home. I had gas and air while being stitched; I didn’t have any waiting around at the hospital.

My birth story is just how I wanted it. I thank Michelle for that.

Michelle suggested I ran a nice warm relaxing bath and hopped in (or in my case straddled the side of the bath and manoeuvred myself in as I was absolutely huge). It felt lovely in the water, Michelle had offered me a birthing pool, but I’d declined as I most definitely wanted this baby in hospital. Every time I had a contraction Michelle was there to rub my back and say soothing words that made me feel relaxed and assured everything was going to be fine. I lay on the bed for a while and Michelle put her head down on our sofa. I can’t really list what happened between then and early morning, but it was a mix of pacing the floor (trying not to wake the boys) jumping in the bath and laying on the bed. By the time the boys woke, I was getting quite a lot of pain. Rob rang our neighbour Celia, who was the nominated carer of the boys whilst I was otherwise engaged (my parents live an hour away and didn’t want to worry them until the last minute) and asked if it was okay to bring the boys round (I think this was about 7.00am). I managed to wave the boys off through gritted teeth, and Rob took them round next door, which caused a lot of curtains to twitch and neighbours running over to Celia’s in dressing gowns, asking “if this was it?”. Celia made the boys toast (that included Rob) and they seemed quite excited about the prospect of coming home from school to a new sibling.

I was puffing and panting next door and Michelle decided this was it, I needed to make a decision, if it was hospital then we needed to go now and get myself settled in. I suddenly decided (I think I shocked myself) that I wanted this baby at home. Michelle put her arms in the air and then gave me a big squeeze (I think she was secretly delighted I’d opted for a home birth). Now the decision had been made we had to make some preparations. Off Michelle went for the gas and air and a few more bits and bobs, Rob was in charge of towels and something to protect the bed with (the pink recycling sacks came in very useful!). Michelle also rang her colleague Sue Kinross, who had looked after me whilst Michelle was holiday and was lovely, to come over as a ‘back up’ midwife. Incidently, Michelle had only come back from holiday a few days prior and had already delivered one baby. So there was me puffing and panting, but really enjoying the gas and air, Michelle rubbing my back and talking me through every contraction, Rob in charge of sandwiches teas and coffee (and being very supportive), and Sue.

I insisted on having Talk Sport on the radio, absolutely no idea why, but it took my mind of things a bit. Also, I forgot to mention we had the gas man, no not in the room, but just the other side of the bedroom door! Rob had rung them in the morning as there was a problem with the water. Poor man, I hope I haven’t scarred him for life as from what I can remember I was bit loud! By midday I was feeling very tired, I really thought I’d have had the baby by now, Michelle said the baby was lying at an awkward angle, but everything would be fine and to try and have something to eat to keep my energy levels up. I had a jam sandwich. Rob was brilliant, a real star, encouraging me all the way.  We did have a giggle and everything was very calm and relaxed. I was still hopping in and out the bath, walking around when I wanted to and Michelle was with me all the way. I started to have the urge to push, and poor Michelle was in the wrong place just as my waters broke and soaked her! Just as I was started to panic that the baby wouldn’t arrive before school finished, I had that big urge to push and out popped the head! Thank god! Michelle took one look and said “right, let’s get this baby out”! It seemed like an eternity before the next contraction, but when it finally came I gave one big push and out the baby popped into Michelle’s hands.

I think all of our mouths dropped at the size of the baby (bearing in mind I’m a petite 5 foot 2 inches tall). Rob and I said “he is massive”, Michelle replied “shall we see what he is” and turned the baby round. He was a she, our mouths dropped for the second time within 60 seconds. It seemed ages before we could speak, Michelle had popped her onto my chest and she felt huge, she was absolutely gorgeous with black hair and a lovely reddish complexion. Suddenly there was snap, snap, snap, Rob with the camera. We couldn’t believe it was a girl, I’d have bet every last penny it was going to be a boy.  She weighed in at a whopping 9lbs 7ozs and we named her Elsie Elizabeth May Collins.  Elsie after my late Nan, Elizabeth after Robs late mum and May, just because I liked it.  I asked Michelle what the heaviest baby she had delivered at home was, she replied 9lbs 7ozs. We just couldn’t stop staring at her. It was as if she knew she had to be out before the kids came out of school, bless her. When the boys came in they were absolutely thrilled with their new sister Elsie, who looked as if she had walked out! Rob went off and made the usual calls, texts, emails, my mum shed a tear, the fact that I’d had a girl and the fact that I named her Elsie after her mum, we all felt very emotional.

As I’d had the baby at home, meant that we could keep everything normal with the boys, George still went off to his rugby training and Ted was in a school play in the evening, which I was supposed to attend but Celia next door went on my behalf and filmed it for me. I was able to have a bath straightaway, in my own bath and have something eat. Michelle and Sue cleared up (you wouldn’t have known I’d had a baby at home), they changed the sheets wiped round the bathroom, poor Rob was busy loading the washing machine and hanging the washing out. I did require a few stitches, but apart from that I felt absolutely fine, just a bit sore!

Later on in the afternoon the surges started again and I coped with them using a TENS machine.  It was at this point that we had a phone call from Michelle asking if she could come round as she wanted to discuss something with us.  Michelle had been in contact with her colleague about my progress.  It transpired that, from their experience, a start/stop labour like I was experiencing more often than not, results in a transfer to hospital right at the end of labour and an emergency C-section under stressed conditions.  They therefore recommended that I transfer into hospital now while I was in a good physical state to make the journey in comfort.  This honesty and frankness from Michelle was something we really appreciated.  Although her philosophy is never to tell women what to do, when it really mattered, she advised us as to what she felt was the right course of action.

After a manic ten minutes of packing, we left for the hospital around 6pm.  Michelle knew our preference was to go to Oxford as they have private rooms with facilities for partners to stay over.  Michelle followed us in her car on the hours drive.  When we arrived Michelle found out where we had to go and stayed with us right up until we went into the operating room.  Our son, Digby Charles, was born at 10.23 that night weighing 7 pounds 6 ounces.  After the operation, Michelle accompanied us onto the observation ward and helped me to feed Digby.  She also came back early the next day to check we were ok.

Although I didn’t get the birth I wanted, I feel very positive about my birth experience.  This is mainly because, even though I didn’t have a straight forward pregnancy, we were still able to make decisions about the type of birth we wanted.  This is something I am convinced wouldn’t of happened if we had had NHS ante-natal care as I believe I would have been pressurised into having an elective c-section.

I cannot extol highly enough the benefits of having an independent midwife.  The continuity of care and non-rushed approach made me feel confident about my birth and took away any anxieties I may have had.  I would highly recommend to anyone to employ the services of an independent midwife, and in particular Michelle.

Lorraine's Birth Story: Ever been told that you can’t do something and it makes you even more determined? That’s what I felt like when I was told that when it was time to birth my second baby I would have to go into hospital when I made contact with the midwife.

In 2004 I had a c-section with my first son Oliver. It was something I wasn’t fully prepared for even though I considered myself aware of all the outcomes, I guess its something that you just hope won’t happen so you don’t fully deal with it. We had practiced hypnobirthing, which I found was fantastic for relaxing me and keeping me calm, and we were hoping for a home birth, but being 3 weeks + overdue, I found myself unable to follow that route and got pushed down the NHS drug route when my waters finally broke. Oliver’s head never fully engaged and we finally decided to have a c-section as we felt we had exhausted all the avenues we thought we had open to us at the time. One of my main midwife contacts at that time was Tess Lovely and it was her enthusiasm that gave me the confidence to even pursue the homebirth option. Her attitude was so positive to childbirth, rather than it being a painful and daunting experience which I picked up from other health professionals. After the birth Tess was fantastic and gave me so much support, from baby sleeping to breast feeding.

When I became pregnant again, it took me a long while to seriously think about how I wanted to birth my baby. It was at about 30 weeks when I talked to my NHS midwife about options and I was told “I had none, as I was considered ‘high risk’ as I had a previous c-section”. My health is good, I'm reasonably fit and my previous c-section was due to Oliver not wanting to come out of his cosy environment rather than an emergency heath issue. I found the concept of being ‘high risk’ difficult to deal with logically. I tried to find Tess again to seek some positive thoughts and was told that she had moved into private midwifery. I managed to get her number and emailed her as an initial contact via her website. The thought of spending £3000 was difficult to palate and I guess put me off making phone contact as I wasn’t sure whether we wanted to, or could afford a private midwife.

Tess came to visit me at home and we discussed the options available, as it happened my due date was right at the start of a 3 week holiday to Australia that she had already planned. She suggested that I contact another independent midwife Michelle Twiselton and so the relationship with Michelle began. By talking to Tess and Michelle, I made my mind up that if I wanted to have any options in the birth of my baby I needed to opt for private midwifery, so we took the plunge. Because of the due dates I ended up having a split service. Tess would be available if I went into labour before my due date and Michelle was available afterwards.

Both Tess and Michelle visited, together and separately before my due date. I was about 34 weeks when I finally engaged their services, so I fully believe it’s never too late! They took the time to understand me, my thoughts around the previous birth and what I wanted this time round. I had some hidden demons around my first birth that I hadn’t dealt with and when ever I actually tried to talk about the birth I cried, but didn’t actually know why. They listened, offered hardly any obvious advice, but provided comfort and understanding. By the time I was ready to go into labour I felt that I had released the issues that I’d squirreled away in the back of my mind. It was just about talking it through and realising that what happened in my first birthing experience was the best that I could have done and ultimately although the ride was uncomfortable we arrived safely at the destination… I had my beautiful baby son.

My due date came and went, I knew I would never be on time and Tess went on holiday. I never felt like that was an issue and the time I had spent with Michelle created a strong bond of trust. Not just for me but also for my husband. She had also taken the time to get to know my son Oliver who was now two and a half. I so wanted a water birth, to be at home in the calm and relaxing surroundings of my home rather than the hospital. We had a birthing pool ready and had undertaken some review sessions for hypnobirthing. I felt empowered and relaxed about the birth. I felt that I had a choice now rather than being told that I had to go into hospital at the first sign of baby’s arrival. It took such a weight off my mind and I could concentrate on being pregnant again rather than worrying about what was going to happen. I knew that Michelle was available at any time for me and that didn’t feel like that just because I was paying for a service, it felt like she actually cared.

My waters broke around 10 days after my due date, it was a Monday, and my little boy finally arrived on Thursday. I spent the time in between mostly at home, without Michelle’s help I would have been in hospital and followed a different path. My contractions started at around 5 to 10 minutes apart and I started my hypnobirthing to remain calm and relaxed. I was in pre-labour and was so relaxed that I fell asleep and when I woke the contractions had stopped. Michelle came and checked on baby and had waited until I was comfortable and confident that I was OK. The next day the contractions started again, we started hypnobirthing again, I relaxed and I ended up falling asleep again. The hypnobirthing made a difference, when I concentrated on the techniques the surges were fine, if I didn’t then I could certainly feel them. During this time I had been in and out of the birthing pool for relaxation and had the privilege of being at home rather than being in hospital. Michelle had made me fully aware of the protocols around waters breaking and inducement and had given me the opportunity to make an informed decision about my next steps.

On the Wednesday afternoon the contractions started again and were reasonably strong. When I followed the hypnobirthing training the contractions were completely manageable. Early evening I was in the birthing pool and I felt a pop and a sudden gush of fluids, from this point onwards the surges were around 3 minutes apart and strong. Although I tried to remain relaxed and calm I felt like I didn’t have time to collect myself between surges and the discomfort eventually got the better of me. Throughout this time, Michelle stayed in the background, unobtrusive, but still there for support. My husband was fantastic, he was my support throughout and the main reason for having Michelle was that he could completely concentrate on me rather than having to fend off medical staff during birthing.

My mum has been very sick with MS and cancer for sometime, and to me Michelle was more like the mother that I wish could have been there for me. When I say mother, it’s about someone who supports what you want to do, without just accepting what you say, but trying to understand why. What my mum would have done if she were able. Late on the Wednesday night the surges were too strong for me to cope with and I decided that I needed pain relief. Again Michelle was there to support me in this decision and facilitated the trip to the hospital via ambulance. At this point I felt that I had tried all the options available to me and I had made the decision when I wanted to go to hospital rather that being told. Or should I say my baby decided what and when things were going to happen.

When I arrived at hospital I didn’t have to worry about being told off for staying at home so long against Milton Keynes hospital protocol with regard to waters breaking and antibiotics. I knew Michelle would sort that out. James was left to be with me and support me. The ‘high risk’ label didn’t leave me, but I could manage that as I felt more in control of the choices I had made. I eventually had an epidural, but that just slowed the surges. We made the decision to have a c-section as we felt that we had considered and tried all options, the baby wasn’t engaging and there was no progress…. De-ja-vu of my first birth, but this time we felt more empowered and in control of the decisions.

The baby was back to back, we didn’t find this out until he came out, the little monkey certainly kept us on our toes! Whilst we were in hospital, Michelle couldn’t act as a midwife and was more of a doula, but because she is known in the hospital and has worked there I truly believe that our experience was less traumatic. Even down to the fact that she went and got toast for James so that he didn’t have to leave me! Fantastic service!

Ethan was born on 12th April at 12:12 pm. Michelle was in the theatre with my husband, taking pictures and keeping a watchful eye. I felt scared but calm at the same time. I knew that we had made the decisions this time rather than being pushed down a route we didn’t want to follow. We have some fantastic pictures of Ethan’s first moments with us.

The hospital experience was as I expected, when I thought I was able to leave on the third day I suddenly had a barrage of physicians and midwives trying to force me to have Vitamin K and antibiotic injections given to Ethan. I had researched the vitamin K benefits and felt that it wasn’t necessary, the hospital staff had other ideas based on ‘what normally happens’ and I felt bullied into changing my mind. I stood my ground, only because I had discussed the issues with Michelle and felt happy with my decision. She was there to provide support afterwards.

As a second time mum you don’t get the same grace as you do first time round, the time to relax and the pampering. Everybody knows you’ve done it before and assumes you can get on with it on your own. This excludes my husband, James; he was fantastic; he supported me with all the decisions we had to make and talked it all through with me. He, like me was sceptical of needing a private midwife, but now agrees with me. Michelle was there for me after the birth, when I got home to ensure that we had the help we needed. Ethan is now 5 months old and I feel that if I needed help, Michelle would be there to try and help. I was initially concerned about being able to afford the fees of a private midwife, but having been there I now know that every penny was well spent. If you want to be able to make choices, in my experience you need to consider opting out of the NHS system for midwifery care.

I can’t thank Michelle and Tess enough for my healing birthing experience. I know things would have been very different.

I thought initially about hiring an Independent Midwife (IM) but after speaking to one IM decided to see how it went with the NHS.

By 26 weeks I was hacked off. I had seen 4 different midwifes since I got pregnant and was aware of numerous suspensions of the home birth service in the Bedford area due to a shortage of midwifes. My absolute worst case scenario was phoning up in labour and being told I couldn’t have a home birth and having to go to hospital.

So I decided to try IMs again. I sent an email to various names I got from the IMA website and that is how I found Michelle. I knew straight away when we met for our initial consultation that she was right for me and luckily she thought she could work with me too!

I was more relaxed knowing I would get the home birth I wanted (barring medical issues) but there were also other benefits that I hadn’t really counted on.

Every antenatal appointment was held in my home at a time convenient to me and my family - and they usually lasted at least an hour. We spent a long time talking about the birth and what I wanted and also the postnatal period so Michelle really got to understand what was important to me - I didn't have to write a birth plan it was all in her head and discussed in detail beforehand.

It also meant I no longer had to drag my other two (M 3yrs and L 20 months) to the GP surgery or go without them. They got involved in the pregnancy ‘helping’ Michelle to find the baby’s heartbeat and finding their own as well! She made the experience ‘real’ for them without it being scary. We also had antenatal appointments in the evenings so my husband could be involved, a first for him as he had never attended an antenatal appointment before, so he got to hear Sophie’s heart beat before she was born and Michelle also gave him a crash course in palpating my stomach to feel the position of the baby!

It was also great to know I could call any time with my pregnancy queries. And I did! Michelle was able to come over at short notice when I was especially worried about anything to take a look or just reassure me.

By the time we got to the birth I felt I knew and trusted Michelle totally and she had made me more trusting of my own instincts. The fact that I knew she would attend the birth relaxed me completely.

Needless to say the birth was fantastic. It was very straightforward and Sophie arrived on my living room sofa in just over 5 hours. Michelle was actually only there for about an hour and a half of the labour as I was so at ease I did most of it with just my partner. But I have to say when she did arrive I was very relieved!  She followed my wishes to the letter, a first in my three labours!

She took pictures for us, her and a colleague cleared up beautifully, they made the best tea and toast ever and then left us to it. (oh, and she did take the placenta away too!!)

And then another major benefit kicked in - the postnatal support. Once again everything was done at home, Michelle visited me as often as I wanted and stayed for at least an hour, she did all the tests at home (heel prick, anti-D etc) and I didn’t have to take Sophie to a single germ infested clinic!! And she supported me with breast feeding.

Again the boys got involved in weighing Sophie (and their Bob the Builder toys!) and we all looked forward to a visit (especially as Michelle is a great football player!). She also made me feel like I was important in the process and took great pains to make sure I rested enough and took care of myself.

During one memorable visit I was stressed out about how much I still had to do for Luke’s second birthday party and she helped the boys make the jelly while I rested with Sophie – now that is service!!

I had my last visit when Sophie was 10 weeks old! At the visit Michelle presented me with a photocopy of all my notes which will be a wonderful record of Sophie’s birth and early life. And they were beautifully wrapped up in home made paper and made into a gift.

Although an IM is not cheap I have to say that it was worth every single penny. I guess they operate how midwives used to before time and money constraints kicked in – but with added jelly making services!

From the moment we started working with Michelle we felt a change in our antenatal care. We could have our appointments when and where we wanted them. Every meeting with Michelle lasted for at least an hour and she got to know us really well. She is warm and understanding but also has an air of professionalism about her that inspires confidence so I trusted her completely. Her advice was always balanced and she presented us with many options as she doesn’t have an agenda. All this put me at ease. Once I had a minor bump in the car and was very upset, she was round to our house within half an hour and she totally reassured me.

During the pregnancy I became very interested in Hypnobirthing and when I organised to go on a course Michelle attended the sessions with us giving up her own time. She was very patient and supportive as I changed ideas frequently about where I wanted to give birth. I loved the idea of a home birth but my mindset is that I would be safer in hospital. I liked that fact that Michelle had worked for Milton Keynes General for many years so I felt that she knew the procedures and maybe some of the staff there so we would not be going into a hospital not knowing anything about it. Michelle and I discussed in detail my birth plan. She empowered me with the feeling that even if I went into hospital I would not be giving up my right to have a birth the way that I wanted.

Being the mother of two young children already, I desperately wanted to give myself the best chance possible of having a home birth. I really didn’t want to go into hospital and leave the children, J (4yrs) and M (2yrs) as their labour’s had been very straightforward and relatively short. My husband and I saw no downside to having our third child at home.

My labour started in the early hours of Monday 16th July, one day before my due date. As always with these things, I got out of bed and wandered around the house thinking is it, isn’t it for a while, trying not to wake the kids. It’s when you have that first really big contraction and you think “oh bugger”, I remember this from last time” that you know you really are in labour. As it was 2 o’clock in the morning I decided to leave it a while before I called Michelle, though she had told me over and over again to call as soon as I thought I was in labour. It was just the thought of waking her too soon – it’s very unnatural to telephone people at 3 in the morning! My plan was to have the baby in our conservatory which we had made into a little cocoon draping sheets over the glass and with a big exercise mat covered with a sheet on the floor. I set about getting this ready whilst breathing my way through the contractions, which were about 6 minutes apart. Once it got to around 3.30 am I decided I had best wake up my sleeping husband Martin, so he could put my TENS machine on me. Bleary eyed he came downstairs and did the final setting up of the ‘birthing room’ and helped me with my TENS whilst I had contractions leaning up against the fridge! Walking around lots, hip gyrating and breathing I coped fine with the contractions and decided I had better call Michelle around 4.30am. 

At this stage, my contractions were about 3 minutes apart so I was glad to hear Michelle’s reassuring voice. It was good to know she was already on her way as I knew things were starting to get moving. The only scary moment was when I had an absolutely HUGE contraction about 20 minutes after calling Michelle and I thought, this is it, this baby is coming out. Thankfully, that was not the case and my waters began to trickle out as I stood on my mat, wiggling my hips and fiddling about with my TENS machine. Always a great distraction!

All the reading I’d done agreed strongly about one thing – that continuity of care by one midwife made a drastic difference to a woman’s experience of birth. I had also made up my mind that when labour started I wanted to be at home as long as possible and ideally to give birth there.

As soon as I booked with Michelle I felt most of my anxieties disappear. Michelle wasn’t at all fazed by my age. She did what I had wanted the NHS to do – to treat me as an individual and look at my actual health and circumstances, and for us to make decisions between us based on this.

Although I was primarily focussed on the delivery when I decided to look for an independent midwife, Michelle made a big difference to my experience prior to the birth. As well as generally putting me at ease, doing regular checkups, talking about birth plans and so on, it was clear that one of Michelle’s big assets is knowing her way around the system (and people) at MK General! She came with me several times to show me round the labour ward (just in case!) and to support me during obstetrician appointments.

The pregnancy proceeded well, with all scans and tests coming out completely normal – so we both figured we were on track for a home birth.

Unfortunately, nature had other plans!

Having undergone some research, I decided that having an independent midwife to support me through my pregnancy and at the birth, would be the best option for me.

My husband, daughter and I very quickly developed a great relationship with Michelle; who provided me with the support and guidance I really needed. Each visit Michelle made was always at our convenience and in our home which made it incredibly comfortable (as I’m not good in clinical environments!). In addition to the routine pregnancy checks a midwife would conduct, Michelle took time to understand how I felt about birthing my baby and we openly discussed all my fears and desires for labour and explored this through birth art. She then provided me with in depth information on options available to me.

I might just point out that on my first few meetings with Michelle; I had categorically said to her that I would not give birth at home but in an NHS hospital with her as my support. When I reached my 32nd week, I felt so confident in my ability to deliver my baby, and confident that Michelle would be the support I needed, I decided to have my baby at home.

Michelle continued to be on call for me until I went in to labour, which was invaluable as I spoke to her on a number of occasions in the middle of the night! She also would come out to visit me in addition to our agreed meetings and attended hospital appointments.

At 37 weeks, Michelle and I discovered that my baby was in breech position and when I went in to hospital without my husband, for the confirmation scan, Michelle was with me to dry the tears – I do not know what I would have done without her! Michelle spent a considerable amount of time with me discussing all options for me, including having a natural labour, having a C section, procedures I could undergo to attempt to move the baby – all of which was very informative.

I made the decision to undergo procedures to turn the baby; however I went in to labour before these appointments and decided that I wanted to have a caesarean birth. Michelle came to the house to time my contractions and then followed my husband and me into hospital. Michelle stayed in the hospital most of the evening but as my labour slowed to a standstill she went home as I felt I would not have my baby until the following day.  Poor Michelle had just got home when I called her to say that my contractions were now strong and closer together – could she come back!

My husband and Michelle arrived back at the hospital as I was being prepared for theatre. I was incredibly scared that something would go wrong; Michelle remained by my side until our daughter Matilda was born. My husband stayed out of the operating theatre as planned and I am so pleased that I had Michelle with me – she kept me calm and was able to describe the procedure as it took place as I requested. She also took photographs for us.

The experience was not what we had planned, however I cannot begin to describe the happiness that I felt when Michelle told me I had a little baby girl. Michelle has been a huge support to both me and my husband and I feel that the friendship we have developed is very special.

After Matilda was born, Michelle continued to visit us at home, weekly, providing me with guidance on feeding, sleeping and establishing a routine. We discussed exercise after giving birth, diets suitable for breastfeeding and post natal depression. I always enjoyed Michelle’s visits and found them really helpful.

Michelle is a wonderful midwife who takes time to get to know you and in turn, help you to feel confident in delivering your baby. Our eldest daughter Isabella I’m sure feels as if she is part of the family as Michelle has been truly lovely with her too.

I would have loved Michelle to have delivered Matilda at home; however I’m just pleased that we have a beautiful, healthy little girl. If Nick and I ever changed our minds and decided to have more children, we wouldn’t think twice about having Michelle again!

Sam’s Birth Story: When I first found out I was pregnant I couldn’t help but feel nervous about telling my father he would be a Granddad, I’d been ‘Daddys little girl’ and I was now going to have a baby myself. My pregnancy was brilliant; I know I was lucky as I only had a few manageable ailments like swollen ankles. I didn’t go to all of the NHS antenatal classes but did go on the ‘hospital tour’, which I found really useful, to see where I would go to have my baby. No one ever talked to me about the options of home birth or hospital birth.

I didn’t really think about giving birth. I knew it was something I would just have to get on and do when the time came so when labour started I felt backache initially and some other sensations I hadn’t had before. I wasn’t really sure if ‘this was it’ which is what I woke up to at 3am. I woke my partner up who suggested I try and go back to sleep. He had 2 children previously and been at their births so I trusted him which relaxed me (especially as he’d seen labour before and I hadn’t). As it was I didn’t manage to get back to sleep, we both got up and went outside and walked around the estate we lived on until 5am. My contractions were coming every 3 minutes and walking helped me deal with the backache, as they came my partner would lean forward so I could lean forwards onto his back. The contractions became more intense, so I returned home for a while, there, I made sure I had all that I would need to take with me to hospital but went to my brother’s home first, he also had children so it felt natural to want to be with my family.

I remember sending my partner out to buy a gym ball, but didn’t use it as we decided to go to be checked out at the hospital. I was examined at 9am and although I was in labour, I was told I was in the early stage. I was encouraged to go home until my labour contractions became more intense and regular. I felt panicked at first, about how long my labour might take, so tensing and gripping with my hands was useful. I kept moving around a lot, I found it difficult to get comfortable so tried lots of different positions, I was really fidgety.

We went back to the hospital at 12 noon, I felt it was time to back there and felt ready that my baby would be here soon. At the hospital I was examined my cervix had opened to 6cms (my waters broke at this exam). I felt quite tense so took the gas & air and used the gym ball which I found useful to bounce gently and rocking on for a short while, but then felt the need to start moving around again.

With a change of shift I met Michelle. She was working a late shift at the hospital (I found out later that this was something she does occasionally). I remember her asking if I would like to try out the pool as it wasn’t in use by anyone else and that it might help to ease my discomfort and make the sensations more manageable. I liked the idea instantly and couldn’t think of anything else other than wishing the pool would hurry up and fill, it seemed like forever, I was so keen to get relaxed and into the pool. I will never forget that first moment as I entered it, the warmth of the water eased the tension in my body and everything felt easier, it calmed my pain, seemed right and was meant to be. I could move more freely where before I was fidgety, tense and frustrated, I could now move, sway and felt more relaxed. I felt everything now flowed and the sensations I was feeling were what was meant to be happening, labour seemed to be going faster now but it was much more manageable. I was told to just go with the sensations and let my body do what it wants to do and not to feel afraid. I felt a sensation in my back like someone pulling an elastic band really hard and taught.

I moved into a kneeling position and had a spontaneous urge to push; I didn’t need anybody to tell me what to do as my body was doing it for me. As the baby’s head started to come out I felt a burning, stretching so I felt down to her hair.  As the water went through it I remember feeling it, silky and smooth, lots of hair!  I had mixed feelings at this point but remember feeling ok as I looked directly at the reassuring eyes around me.

I remember feeling so excited that I was about to meet my baby, my contractions spaced right our and we waited for things to get going again, I was helped into another position which moved the baby and out she came, gently lifted to the surface and straight onto my tummy. She was quite blue at first, which scared me a little but Michelle reassured me that was normal for water birth babies.  Within a minute she was pink, the placenta came shortly after, into the water too.

My baby weighed in at 8lbs 10oz and I didn’t tear. The skin to skin contact helped her latch on to feed at my breast really quickly, which also settled her down. I remember looking down at her, there on my chest and thought wow!

I didn’t pay for your services like most others, but being in your care was fabulous. Our beautiful baby girl is now 2 months old and is doing brilliantly, we named her Lacey. I just wanted to say thank you really as I can’t think what it would have been like to have a normal birth and a normal midwife and I would recommend a water birth to anyone as a first option and I will never forget you, you made my birthing experience better than I ever thought that it could be. So thank you very much all our love Samantha and Lacey.

It was quite early days in the pregnancy when my mum and I met Michelle at an Antenatal Exhibition in Milton Keynes. We both instantly warmed to Michelle and quickly began asking her all our unanswered questions. Just meeting Michelle that day and hearing her talk so positively about home births I instantly knew I wanted her to be my midwife. Over the next few months Michelle regularly visited us at home for checkups, answered all our questions about having a home birth and curbed any fears. Having the checkups at home made things more relaxed and meant that Alex had a chance to ask questions and was therefore more involved in the pregnancy. She regularly brought us things to read, DVDs to watch and if she didn’t know the answer to a question she would go out of her way to find out for you. 

After planning for a home birth our baby boy Samuel was finally born on 29th July, 14 days over due in Watford Hospital by Caesarean Section. After my due date passed I began to get anxious. I desperately wanted the home birth we had planned and I was terrified of going into hospital with lots of medical intervention. When Samuel was 13 days overdue we sat and discussed the options with Michelle. One of the many great things about Michelle is that she lets you make your own decisions and then supports you in that decision. She gives you all the facts and then allows you to decide what’s best for you and your family. We could wait a few more days and see if Samuel came naturally or we could go to the hospital and have the labour induced. I was terrified of being induced and didn’t want to spend the night in hospital on my own, however I was worried for the babies safety and my intuition told me that it was time to get on with things. Michelle rang the hospital, explained the situation and arranged for us to go in that evening.

I was given the drugs to start the induction in the evening with the idea being that I woke in the morning and the contractions would have started. During this time Michelle kept in constant contact with us via the phone and reassured us that she could be there whenever we needed her. Michelle new that I was nervous about being on my own in hospital and often sent me text messages to let me know she was thinking about me which really helped. The contractions did not start in the morning and we spend the next day being monitored and waiting to see the doctor. Whilst being monitored the baby’s heart rate started to cause concern, rather suddenly we were being taking up to the delivery ward, my waters were to be broken in order to get the labour started quickly. It was at this point that Alex rang Michelle and asked her to come to the hospital. When we got to the delivery ward I burst into tears, everything suddenly looked very frightening, there was a huge hospital bed and lots of equipment. The total opposite to the home birth I had planned. However as soon as Michelle walked into the room I felt safe. She found out what was happening made sure we were comfortable and explained everything clearly. 

Once you go into hospital Michelle acts as an advocate and having her there meant everything to us. Sometimes it just knowing that Michelle will fight your corner and make sure your thoughts are heard. Other times it was silly things like maintaining my privacy, so that random hospital staff didn’t just walk into the room. Michelle also made sure that each doctor or nurse who treated me introduced themselves to us (something they never seemed to do). 

When my waters were broken they contained a lot of meconium so the doctors were keen to start me on a syntocinon drip. This not only speeds up the contractions but also increases there intensity. By this point I was struggling to cope, I had asked for an epidural but the anaesthetist was going to take at least an hour to arrive and the doctor wanted to start me on the drip straight away. This terrified me, I knew I was struggling and didn’t want the pain to get any worse. Thankfully Michelle and Alex stepped in and made sure that the doctors waited until I had had the epidural before I was given the drip. 

During the labour Michelle was also a brilliant support to Alex, she reassured him that he was doing a good job, gave him helpful tips on how to support me told him that I was ok. I remember Michelle whispering calming words to me, cooling me down with wet towels on my forehead and at times when I thought my back was going to break her back massages were heaven.

Michelle was with us for the whole labour, in a tiny room on one of the hottest day of the year. She never left my side even though after the epidural I was mainly asleep and even made sure Alex found a chair in a quiet corner of the hospital to sleep for a couple of hours. Sadly after the epidural I contracted a fever and the baby started to show signs of distress, so we were whisked into the theatre for one chance to push or it would be a caesarean. Michelle was not allowed into the operating theatre but she gave Alex words of advice and was there to meet us directly afterwards.  

After the caesarean Michelle took photos and made sure baby Samuel was put onto my chest straight away – something that couldn’t be done in the operating theatre but Michelle new it was something I wanted as we had discussed it before the birth. After the caesarean I lost a lot of blood and was offered a blood transfusion and due to the fever I had experienced whilst in labour we were told that baby Samuel would need a treatment of antibiotics and other tests. Michelle talked us through all the issues involved and helped us to make some important decisions at a time when we feel absolutely exhausted and quite vulnerable.   

Due to the complications Baby Samuel and I spend a whole week in the hospital after the birth.  During this time Michelle was a huge support; she visited us regularly lifting our spirits and ensuring us that everything was ok. Whilst in the hospital I was desperately trying to breastfeed Samuel but we were finding it really hard however Michelle persevered, trying various techniques and even made it fun. I will never forget Alex, Michelle and I all working together to collect colostrum from my breasts with a syringe, a very funny experience. I really believe that without her help and patience we would have given up. Six weeks on Samuel is still confidently breastfeeding and I couldn’t be happier.  

Although I never wanted a caesarean or a week in hospital I look back on Samuels’s birth as a very positive experience and I wouldn’t change anything about it. Thanks to Michelle I felt in control the whole time and now have a healthy little boy who is full of smiles and the light of our lives.