Category: Blog

I thought I’d share my birth story as I don’t think there are enough out there to promote home births. Mine started out a bit rough, but in the end it was magical.

Alianah Louise born on the 29th of July at 6:53pm, at home. Weighing 7lb 12oz. What I had concerns for turning into a negative birth story ended up incredibly positive.

I started contractions Thursday morning (the 28th) at 10:30. They were 3.5 minutes apart, each lasting for 40 seconds but were very mild. I rang the midwifery unit to let them know, as I was wanting a home birth, only to be told there was only one midwife on call that evening and so they couldn’t send her out (they have to have 2 attend). My contractions went off kilter at 12:30, I had a nap and they came back at 3:45. They got down to every 2 minutes for 40 seconds, and then stayed there for hours – still very mild (for me anyway, I have a very high pain threshold).

Continue reading “Jasmine’s Story”

Did you / do you use a baby sling or carrier?

One of our volunteers has made this video for one of their Occupational Therapy Degree modules at Sheffield Hallam University. They are currently on an extended scope placement working to normalise baby wearing, particularly during the fourth trimester (the first 3 months of baby’s life).

Melissa comments:

‘Having a baby absolutely turned my life upside, this little being suddenly needed everything from me and I found it so overwhelming, with my past experiences and identity lost in a haze of sleep deprivation. A turning point for me was when a family member bought me a stretchy sling. I learnt that I could keep baby happy and content on me, whilst freeing up my hands to do other things. Even being able to make food or a hot drink without my baby screaming made such a difference, as well as getting out and going for walks. Using the sling also kept my baby happy in shops and I found I felt less panicked and stressed.

Continue reading “Normalising the Use of Slings and Carriers During the ‘Fourth Trimester’, and Beyond!”