Zoe: Two Positive NHS Hospital Births, Epidurals, Gender Disappointment, Childhood Trauma, Delayed Bonding, Morphine First Birth vs Epidural Only Second Birth

Zoe: Two Positive NHS Hospital Births, Epidurals, Gender Disappointment, Childhood Trauma, Delayed Bonding, Morphine First Birth vs Epidural Only Second Birth

Zoe always knew she wanted pain relief. But like a lot of women, she found herself surrounded by messaging that made her question that. Until a pregnant midwife said something that stuck with her. You don't get a certificate for how you have the baby.   Zoe is a mum of two boys from West Yorkshire who shares two positive NHS hospital vaginal births, both with epidurals, and an honest account of the emotional journey into motherhood. Her pregnancies were smooth and uncomplicated, but her fears were never really about the birth itself. They were about whether she would bond with her baby. Whether she was supposed to be a mother at all. Growing up without the mother-daughter relationship she had always craved meant that becoming a mum felt like something she had everything riding on.   Her first birth went well medically, but she was given morphine while waiting for the anaesthetist, which left her quite out of it when Leo arrived. What she was not prepared for was the night that followed. Alone on the postnatal ward at 1am, flooded with drugs, not knowing what to do with a screaming newborn, her husband gone. By the next morning, she was obsessed with him.   Second time around she went in with knowledge and confidence, knew exactly what she wanted, and had a calm and positive experience from start to finish. In this episode we talk about: * The advice from a pregnant midwife that gave Zoe permission to choose the birth that was right for her * What it was really like to be alone on a postnatal ward in the early hours with a newborn and no idea what to do * How medication affected her presence at Leo's birth and why she made different choices second time around * The difference in bonding between her two births and why she felt guilt about the gap * Why Zoe thinks women need more honest expectations around postnatal care and support   This episode is for anyone who has ever felt pressure to do birth a certain way when actually their gut was pointing somewhere else entirely. The stories shared on British Birthing Stories are real, personal experiences from real women. I am not a medical professional and this podcast is not a substitute for medical advice. Every pregnancy and birth is different, and I always encourage you to speak to your midwife or doctor about your own individual care. British Birthing Stories shares real, unfiltered stories of childbirth in the UK, from pregnancy and labour to postpartum recovery. These stories reflect personal experiences and should not be taken as or replace medical advice. Always seek guidance from a qualified healthcare professional. Follow us on social: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/britishbirthingstories/] · TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@britishbirthingstories] · YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@BritishBirthingStories] Want to come on the podcast? Get in touch and share your story here [https://britishbirthingstories.com/] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Charlotte: Second Birth, NHS Birth Centre Birth, Two Miscarriages, Prolonged Early Labour, Retained Placenta, Theatre, Informed Second Birth, Becoming a Doula

She had two miscarriages, a traumatic first birth, and a husband who said he could never put her through it again. And then she came back, did everything differently, and pushed her son out standing in a doorway on her own terms.   Charlotte is a mum of two from Leeds who shares her second birth story at an NHS birth centre on Christmas Day weekend. After a first birth that left her with birth trauma, breastfeeding struggles, and months of emotional recovery, Charlotte decided that if she was going to do this again, she was going to understand everything. She threw herself into evidence-based research, hired a doula for birth prep, changed her midwife at 20 weeks by making a formal complaint, and went into labour armed with a clear birth plan and a husband who finally understood why it mattered.   Labour started with gentle contractions at a Christmas nativity play. Over three days of stop-start early labour, Charlotte made her way to the birth centre on Boxing Day evening, spent hours labouring in the pool, and then found herself in transition in a corridor, standing in a doorway, refusing to get on the bed. Her son Noah was born with her husband holding her up and the midwives catching. It was everything her first birth was not. And then her placenta was retained again, and she went to theatre for the second time. But this time her husband and baby came with her, and the people in that room treated her like a person.   In this episode we talk about: * Two early miscarriages and the lack of NHS support that followed * How Charlotte used research, podcasts, and a birth prep doula to rebuild her confidence after a traumatic first birth * Making a formal complaint to change her midwife at 20 weeks and why it was worth it * Three days of stop-start early labour over Christmas and what that was actually like * Having her waters broken without clear consent during a vaginal exam at 7cm * Transitioning in a corridor and pushing her son out standing in a doorway with no pain relief * A retained placenta for the second time and why the theatre experience felt completely different * How an empowered second birth gave her the reserves to cope with a baby who ended up back in hospital with an NG tube * Why this birth was the reason she became a doula   This episode is for anyone who had a traumatic first birth and is trying to work out whether they can do it again, and how to do it differently.   The stories shared on British Birthing Stories are real, personal experiences from real women. I am not a medical professional and this podcast is not a substitute for medical advice. Every pregnancy and birth is different, and I always encourage you to speak to your midwife or doctor about your own individual care. British Birthing Stories shares real, unfiltered stories of childbirth in the UK, from pregnancy and labour to postpartum recovery. These stories reflect personal experiences and should not be taken as or replace medical advice. Always seek guidance from a qualified healthcare professional. Follow us on social: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/britishbirthingstories/] · TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@britishbirthingstories] · YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@BritishBirthingStories] Want to come on the podcast? Get in touch and share your story here [https://britishbirthingstories.com/] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Charlotte: First Birth, NHS Hospital Birth, Birth Centre Transfer to Labour Ward, 9 Days Overdue, Meconium, Hypnobirthing, Informed Consent, Coach Pushing, Retained Placenta, Theatre, Postpartum Haemorrhage, Birth Trauma, Hypermobility

She was in the birth centre for the first time, on the beanbag, breathing through her contractions with her mum and her husband by her side. And honestly, she was doing it. And then her waters broke properly, and in the space of a few minutes, everything she had prepared for changed.   Charlotte is a first time mum from Leeds who spent her entire pregnancy doing everything right. She hypnobirthed, she went to NCT, she went to the gym all the way through, and she was fit, healthy, low risk and genuinely ready for it. But the moment meconium appeared in her waters, everything shifted, and suddenly decisions were being made for her without anyone really stopping to explain what was happening or ask her what she actually wanted. And just like that, her birth stopped feeling like hers.   What followed was two hours of coach pushing with no urge to push at all. A retained placenta that would not budge. A trip to theatre alone while her husband sat in a room with a screaming newborn he had never held in his life. And a neurological exam on her toes while she was bleeding, because nobody could find the notes from the anaesthetist appointment she had attended specifically for this moment.   In this episode we talk about: * What meconium in your waters actually means and how one moment can flip an entire birth plan * How Charlotte's mum asking a single question kept Charlotte off the oxytocin drip entirely * What coach pushing really feels like and why Charlotte believes it made everything so much harder * Retained placenta, theatre, and what it is like to be separated from your baby in those first moments * The postpartum that followed, a baby who cried for six months, and what Charlotte wishes she had known * What informed consent really looks like and what happens when you do not get it   This episode is for anyone heading into their first birth feeling prepared and confident. Because preparation matters enormously. And so does knowing that even when it goes sideways, you are allowed to ask why.   The stories shared on British Birthing Stories are real, personal experiences from real women. I am not a medical professional and this podcast is not a substitute for medical advice. Every pregnancy and birth is different, and I always encourage you to speak to your midwife or doctor about your own individual care.  If you would like to connect with Charlotte or use her services you can find her on Instagram here [https://www.instagram.com/the.smart.doula?igsh=ZGZqZmZ0d2ZyZm9s&utm_source=qr] and you can check out here website here [https://www.thesmartdoula.com/]. British Birthing Stories shares real, unfiltered stories of childbirth in the UK, from pregnancy and labour to postpartum recovery. These stories reflect personal experiences and should not be taken as or replace medical advice. Always seek guidance from a qualified healthcare professional. Follow us on social: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/britishbirthingstories/] · TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@britishbirthingstories] · YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@BritishBirthingStories] Want to come on the podcast? Get in touch and share your story here [https://britishbirthingstories.com/] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Lauren: First Birth, Positive Planned C-Section, Vanishing Twin Syndrome, NHS Antenatal Care, Breastfeeding Struggles, Scar Recovery

She never wanted a vaginal birth. Not once. She knew exactly how she wanted her baby born. And after a small battle with her midwives, she got it. A calm, planned C-section. Baby on her chest at 3.15pm. And she would do it exactly the same way again.   Lauren is a first time mum from Kent who shares a warm and honest account of planning and delivering a positive NHS planned C-section with her son Louis. Low risk, informed, and clear on what she wanted, Lauren had to push back on initial resistance from her midwives before her decision was accepted. Her antenatal care left her feeling invisible and unsupported at times, including a deeply difficult moment at her 12-week scan when she discovered she had been carrying twins, and one had not survived. But when she got into that operating theatre, everything changed. The birth itself was calm, controlled, and positive. What came after was harder than she expected. Breastfeeding was painful and relentless, and the postnatal ward left her alone overnight with a newborn after major surgery, calling for paracetamol at 1am and waiting until 4. But Lauren came through it all with clarity, pragmatism, and a really beautiful perspective on what it means to make an informed choice and stand by it. In this episode we talk about: * Why Lauren chose a planned C-section and how she handled the initial pushback from her midwives * Discovering vanishing twin syndrome at her 12-week scan and processing that loss * What it actually feels like in the operating theatre and how Lauren stayed calm * The reality of the postnatal ward after a C-section and why she chose to go home after one night * A really painful breastfeeding journey and the silver nipple shields that finally turned it around * Why she is going back for a planned C-section second time around and why she feels more nervous this time This episode is for anyone who knows in their gut how they want to birth their baby and needs to hear that it is okay to stand your ground. The stories shared on British Birthing Stories are real, personal experiences from real women. I am not a medical professional and this podcast is not a substitute for medical advice. Every pregnancy and birth is different, and I always encourage you to speak to your midwife or doctor about your own individual care. British Birthing Stories shares real, unfiltered stories of childbirth in the UK, from pregnancy and labour to postpartum recovery. These stories reflect personal experiences and should not be taken as or replace medical advice. Always seek guidance from a qualified healthcare professional. Follow us on social: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/britishbirthingstories/] · TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@britishbirthingstories] · YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@BritishBirthingStories] Want to come on the podcast? Get in touch and share your story here [https://britishbirthingstories.com/] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Shannon: VBAC After Three C-Sections, Hospital Birth Centre Water Birth, Fourth Birth, Shoulder Dystocia Concerns, Large Baby, Second Degree Tears, Postpartum Haemorrhage, Birth Coercion, Lockdown Birth Trauma

They told her she would bleed out. They told her her baby would get stuck and die. They told her she would traumatise the entire home birth team. Shannon had three C-sections, an NHS system fighting her at every turn, and a fourth baby tracking on the 97th centile. She went ahead anyway.   Shannon is a mum of four and a doula from the UK who shares four birth stories shaped by hypermobility syndrome, COVID lockdown, birth coercion, and a fierce determination to achieve the VBAC nobody wanted to give her. Her third birth in April 2020 left her alone in recovery during COVID, separated from her husband, and threatened with being parted from her newborn daughter over a temperature spike. She locked that trauma away. And then, when her youngest was two, she decided she wanted a fourth baby and the vaginal birth she had never had. What followed was one of the most extraordinary acts of self-advocacy in the history of this podcast. From the midwife at her booking appointment who played the dead baby card within minutes, to a 36-week appointment where she was ambushed by the head of community midwifery and told her baby would be born dead and her birth team traumatised. Shannon fought every single appointment, armed with statistics and research. She was not signed off for a home birth until 38 weeks. Then, in active labour, the hospital told her the home birth team was not available. She cried. She got in the car. And she went in and did it anyway.   In this episode we talk about: * What it is really like to give birth during COVID lockdown and how the restrictions affected Shannon's third birth and recovery * How Shannon educated herself on VBAC statistics after three C-sections and used that knowledge to push back * The tactics used against her at that 36-week appointment and why she describes it as feeling completely ambushed * What happened in the labour room when the consultant who had lied to her in her third pregnancy walked in and said how long are you going to keep doing this for * How a third-year student midwife delivered a 9lb 13.5oz baby they said would never come out vaginally If you would like to find out more about Shannon and what she does you can visit her website here:  shannonwhitlockdoula.com [http://shannonwhitlockdoula.com/] and you can follow her on social media here [https://www.instagram.com/moonstonerosebirth]. This episode is for anyone who has ever been told by the system that their body cannot do something. Shannon's story is proof that research, self-belief, and a very well-written email can change everything. The stories shared on British Birthing Stories are real, personal experiences from real women. I am not a medical professional and this podcast is not a substitute for medical advice. Every pregnancy and birth is different, and I always encourage you to speak to your midwife or doctor about your own individual care. British Birthing Stories shares real, unfiltered stories of childbirth in the UK, from pregnancy and labour to postpartum recovery. These stories reflect personal experiences and should not be taken as or replace medical advice. Always seek guidance from a qualified healthcare professional. Follow us on social: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/britishbirthingstories/] · TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@britishbirthingstories] · YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@BritishBirthingStories] Want to come on the podcast? Get in touch and share your story here [https://britishbirthingstories.com/] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.