After a discussion with my midwife and OB, at 9am I was placed on Syntocinon.
I had been preparing for my birth using Hypnobirthing practices. I put my lavender oil in the diffuser to remove the “clinical hospital smell” and to help calm and centre myself.
My affirmations played in the background and I used my breath to get through each contraction.
By 11am when the contractions really started to ramp up, I went to the shower in an attempt to bring some relief to my lower back. I made the decision at around 11:30am to have an epidural; which unfortunately was patchy and didn’t work as expected and by 12:00pm, had still brought no relief.
I fell back to using my hypnobirthing practices, telling myself to breathe through each contraction rather than letting myself get upset and tense. I genuinely feel that this mindset is what allowed me to have such a peaceful and wonderful birthing experience.
I climbed onto all fours and leaned my top half over a beanbag for support. My body told me to sway my hips back and forth and I gave in, listening to every cue that I was being given.
You can read more birth stories and pleasurable birth blogs via our recent links below.