Shannon came along to my pregnancy yoga class in Dartford the whole way through her pregnancy. She then went on to complete my hypnobirthing course to prepare for the birth of her first baby.
Hi Colleen,
I hope you’re doing well!
Firstly, I just wanted to say a huge thank you for your pregnancy yoga classes. Plus everything we learned during your hypnobirthing course was invaluable during birth, and I’d recommend it to anyone!
Here’s my birth story 😊
Due to baby being predicted to be quite big, I requested that a C-section be booked as a backup in case natural labour didn’t happen before 41 weeks. From everything we learned during hypnobirthing, I knew I didn’t want any form of induction. I felt that if my body was ready, it would go into labour naturally. Also, with baby being predicted to be just under the 97th centile, I wanted to avoid the risk of an emergency c-section and instead have a calm, planned one if needed.
As I approached 41 weeks, there were still no signs of labour. At my final growth scan, there were some concerns about blood flow through the cord, so I was sent tambootie for a CTG. After reviewing everything, the doctor explained how inaccurate scans can be late in pregnancy, but said they still had to follow the guidance from the scan. They began suggesting induction “to be on the safe side.”
At this point, Adam stepped in and asked about other options, as he knew how strongly I felt about avoiding induction. Together, we agreed on having an hour-long CTG every day until my elective C-section at Darent Valley, just to monitor baby and make sure she was okay.
On the morning of 2nd April, we went to the hospital to be admitted to the delivery suite. Knowing it might be a long wait, I used the techniques we learned on the hypnobirthing course to stay calm. As the day went on, it became clear my planned c-section wouldn’t happen due to emergencies taking priority. We were sent home late afternoon and asked to return the next morning.
By Friday morning, with the extra build-up, I was feeling quite nervous. On the way to the hospital and throughout the morning, I listened to the hypnobirthing tracks, which really helped. At 10:30, we found out we’d be first to go down.
In theatre, the atmosphere was calm and reassuring. We played our labour playlist, and I focused on my hypnobirthing breathing with Adam’s help to control the nerves and anticipation of knowing after a long wait we were about to meet our daughter. After what felt like forever—but was probably only 10–15 minutes—we heard baby cry. Forceps were needed to assist in delivering her, as she was quite snug as predicted.
Baby Harper arrived safely via elective C-section on Friday 3rd April, weighing 8lbs 9oz. We are now soaking it all in and enjoying our little baby bubble 🫧.
