I supported Bea throughout her first pregnancy. She was planning a freebirth but, as with many births, her daughter had other ideas! After a couple of days of stop/start contractions but not feeling like she was ready for my support, Bea asked me to visit her to see if I could help with the prodromal labour she was experiencing.
On my arrival it was clear to me that something was not quite right - the pattern of her contractions, where she was feeling them and how she was moving made me suspicious of a malposition (where baby isn’t in a good position to navigate the pelvis, making birth more difficult). Bea did not want to seek midwifery support at this stage, which I, as her doula, supported unconditionally. The next morning, after plenty of biomechanics, TLC and time, it became apparent that baby may not be coping with labour, so we made the decision to call the midwives.
It was wonderful to see the clinical team thinking on their feet by brining a CTG into the birth centre, rather than forcing Bea to be in a labour ward room against her will, despite there being meconium in her waters. After a couple of hours of no progress and an increasingly distressed baby, a caesarean became the safest option for Bea. During the birth my suspicions of a malposition were confirmed - her daughter was face presenting, asynclitic and stuck on the inlet of the pelvis, despite the efforts we had made to shift her. Bea’s caesarean was done respectfully and gently, I helped tie and cut her little girl’s cord, Bea had immediate skin-to-skin, and the energy in the room was so peaceful.
After her caesarean, Bea was taken back to the birth centre room to recover; she breastfed her baby, had all the baby checks done as her baby lay skin-to-skin and her daughter was only removed from her chest briefly to be weighed several hours after the brith. I left the hospital with her precious little girl sound asleep in her father’s arms while Bea had a much-needed sleep. It was the perfect birth for this family, despite me questioning for a long time whether I had done everything I could. Congratulations Bea and partner - your birth taught me so much about myself as a doula and for that I am also forever grateful.
