Jess and Her family

Jess and her partner chose to use My Independent Midwife because a doula friend recommended us to them. This is Jess's first baby and she arrived at home following a very quick labour. Jenny was their lead midwife.

Jess and her partner knew from the start of the pregnancy that they wanted to have their baby at home. A doula friend recommended My Independent Midwife to them and they decided early in the pregnancy that they would like Jenny and Sarah to support them with their homebirth. Initially, Jess and her partner planned on having a ‘birth only' package of care and Jenny and Sarah were happy to support them with this choice. However, as Jess' pregnancy progressed the NHS model of care started to clash with their own core beliefs.


At 28 weeks Jess' NHS midwife decided that her bump was measuring smaller than expected, at only 5ft tall, Jess was not expecting to have a big bump, but agreed to have a growth ultrasound scan as recommended by NHS guidelines. The scan showed that the baby's growth was within normal parameters, Jess and her partner both felt relieved and reassured. However, the NHS guidelines indicated that Jess should have further growth ultrasound scans at regular intervals throughout the pregnancy.

After careful consideration Jess and her partner decided that they did not want anymore ultrasound scans. The NHS midwives were not supportive of this decision and tried persuade them to change their mind. Jess and her partner felt like they had lost trust in the NHS midwives and therefore chose to transfer to full care when Jess was 34 weeks pregnant.

Jess' pregnancy progressed very well, with no complications or concerns.

Thanks to the August super moon Jess' labour began just 3 days after her due date. Jess messaged Jenny at 7:30pm to say that labour had begun, she was feeling calm and coping well. Just 2 hours later Jess  asked Jenny to come over as Jess felt like labour was progressing and would like to get into the pool. Jenny arrived half an hour later, Jess was clearly in established labour and coping perfectly in the pool. Jenny was in attendance for 16 minutes before the baby  arrived in the pool.

Jess and her partner both felt that if they had continued with NHS care then they would have been frightened into accepting an induction of labour for a potentially small baby. Jess being only 5ft tall felt that she was always going to have a smaller baby. The induction may have been more stressful for the baby and could have resulted in complications. As it happened the birth was exactly how Jess and her partner had always planned it and their baby had a gentle, calm start to life in her own home.

 

Message from Jess .......

 

 

I feel so lucky to say my birth went even better than we had planned.. exactly what we hoped for but much quicker than expected! With Jenny as our lead midwife I felt empowered to trust my natural instincts. Jenny always created a safe space to discuss anything and everything in detail and allowed us to make truly informed decisions. 

 

The level of support and care we received is unrivaled, I trust Jenny and Sarah completely and I would recommend their service to every single person I know. We are so incredibly grateful that our baby entered the world in such a positive way and is now thriving.