Mama C – “I was SO stressed and anxious but, with hindsight, I didn’t need to waste all that energy worrying. The midwives are fantastic and are really understanding of how hard it is leaving your partners whilst you are on the postnatal ward.”

Hi Claire,

Just to let you know I gave birth to our little girl on Friday so won’t be attending the class this week anymore. 

I had a very positive natural water birth at UHW. Hypnobirthing breathing techniques (and gas and air!) really helped me throughout, particularly the ‘up breathing’. I even managed to squeeze in a nap before the pushing stage started! I was very lucky to get the birth pool room and would recommend any ladies hoping for a water birth notify the hospital if they want to use it as soon as their labour starts. We weren’t rushed out of the room and had a good few hours all together before getting moved to the ward so the pool could be prepared for the next person.  

It was hard not having my partner on the postnatal ward with me.  They were really busy and I had to wait about 7 hours for the doctor to do the baby checks. This was my only negative comment about my whole experience as it was frustrating waiting around when I was desperate to get home. However, the positive was that I had some lovely ladies on the ward with me to chat to and we were all in the same boat.

Overall, the care there was just as excellent as when I had our little boy two years ago, despite the visiting restrictions. During my labour, I had a midwife with me and my partner throughout and felt very supported. 

Thanks for the classes. I’ll be back to do mum and baby yoga once I’ve got the go ahead in 6ish weeks.