Kate’s vaginal birth after Caesarean (VBAC) with hypnobirthing
This birth story really does show how important your relationship is with the team supporting you through birth. Having any type of intervention needs to be cleared by and agreed by you.
Kate felt supported and protected throughout her VBAC and it was a success. Using Hypnobirthing skills allowed both her and Dave to move toward the positive birth experience they so wished for.
I just wanted to let you know how it all went after you helped me so much with my birth preparation.
So I had resigned myself to having my waters broken today and it was with much whooping when they broke on their own on Saturday night around 9pm and immediately I could feel a lot of pressure in my back and pelvis.
We went into hospital at their request at 11pm and they left us in a nice dark quiet triage ward where I could just walk and bounce to get things going. By 1am I was surging every 4-6 minutes. I listened to my hypnobirthing recordings the whole time (thank you!) and had a little ritual for each surge that involved kneeling on my pillow with my face in another one with Dave applying pressure to my lower back and breathing through them.
Around 5am they brought me into a labour room and examined me but I was still only surging 3-4mins apart and was only at 2cm. I got really disheartened at this stage, my midwife was not very encouraging and told me I shouldn't even be in the room as I wasn't 'officially' in labour and what did I want to do but we remembered everything you had said and remained calm. She was suggesting I took some pethidine which I refused and was pressuring me to have a cannula put in my hand which I also refused. And annoyingly she had me on my back being monitored for almost half an hour which nearly stopped my surges completely - I was not happy!
Fortunately she then brought in a lovely doctor and we had a long chat using all the questions we’d talked through in class and he suggested giving me a sweep to move things along, well he gave me one hell of a sweep and stretch and told me with a wink that 'now I was 5cm'!! What a star! Immediately after the sweep (around 7am) my surges went to a different level, 4 in 10 almost overlapping and by 9am when I decided to have the epidural just to be prepared for any c-section scar issues to my utter joy I was actually fully dilated.
I got a new brilliant, lovely midwife at the shift changeover and she had me on my hands and knees on the bed to help with baby's descent down the birth canal, everything was looking great so we just let the epidural fade. I now started using gas and air with my breathing and soon was bearing down and pushing him out. I could feel everything so really feel I had the full birth experience!
The hypnobirthing kept me feeling calm and in control for the whole night of labour so I'm so happy I did it, it was only in the transition stage that I flung off the headphones and moved onto the gas & air for help. There was never any suggestion of water, there were no cordless monitors in the end and they were very cautious with the monitoring but I didn't mind, I got my natural delivery - I didn't tear at all and I already feel so well.... And I have the most beautiful, squishy furry newborn to cuddle. Bursting with love for all my babies. Thank you for everything!
Want to learn hypnobirthing with us? Don’t forget that we have a full Online Antenatal Hypnobirthing Class that you can follow in your own time anywhere around the world. It is only £39/$49.
The Online Hypnobirthing Course
We also teach antenatal hypnobirthing classes in London in person with our One Day Group Hypnobirthing Class.
In-person Antental Hypnobirthing Group Class
If you’d rather prepare for your labour and birth solo with Melanie you can do so in the privacy of your own home in person if you live in London or via the Zoom platform wherever you are around the globe.
Private Antenatal Hypnobirthing Classes