The most magical and healing experience- more than I could ever have imagined

This serendipitous story is brought to you in the words of Emma.

Much to our surprise, myself and my new partner found out we were pregnant in December 2021, after being together for 5 months. I am 40 and my partner is 46. Between us, we already have two 12-year-old daughters and two 10-year-old daughters, from our previous marriages. The decision to have our baby was a big one, for many reasons, but the main reason being, that I had suffered post-natal psychosis after the birth of both my daughters and was therefore very ill. I needed to sit with the possibility that this could happen again.

Although we did explore our options, I always knew I wanted to have our baby, and my partner agreed. Therefore, we embarked on our pregnancy journey. I was determined that this time my experience would be different, and therefore we did everything we could to ensure that I was able to make choices that were correct for myself and my baby, as well as ensuring we were fully prepared if I was to become unwell after the birth.

I took a holistic approach to my pregnancy ensuring throughout that I was connected to my body and my baby, and I was listening to my intuition. There were various things I did to ensure I stayed well during my pregnancy, for example, yoga, meditation, breathwork and energy work.

My partner and I also completed Sheryl’s wonderful hypnobirthing course, after I met her at a pregnancy retreat. This course was a game changer for us and really empowered us to remember that we always have choices when it comes to pregnancy and birth, that birth is a natural and biological process, and that we can trust ourselves and my body to give birth.

Sheryl also reminded me in her wonderfully blunt way that despite my history of having a C-Section, I still had the choice of a home birth. When I suggested I wasn’t “allowed” to have a home birth, her response of “that’s bollocks” really hit home for me! After she said this, something shifted within me and I also immediately felt a sense of calm wash over my body and an inner knowing of yes, you’re right that is bollocks, and a home birth is exactly what I want!

During our hypnobirthing course, we invited Sheryl to be our doula, and be present at our home birth. This was one of the best decisions we made. Sheryl is such an advocate for choice, physiological birth and protecting your birth; having her on our team was a blessing. We will be eternally grateful to her.

After nine months of preparation, Jasper Harald Bernard Daniels-Kelly was born at home just as we planned and it could not have gone better. I am proud of myself, my partner, Sheryl and Jasper for making this happen.

I trusted myself and my team to make this wonderful, healing birth happen and I am grateful that I did.

Early Labour.

I had set the intention that my baby was going to arrive on Tuesday 2nd August, his DD was 3rd August, but my intuition told me, the 2nd was going to be his birthday. Therefore, when I started in early labour around 4am on Tuesday morning, it did not surprise me one bit. I started with mild contractions and allowed myself to go back to sleep until around 8.00am. At this point, I knew I needed to eat something and therefore made myself some cereal. After this, I ran myself a bath and listened to Sheryl’s birth affirmation meditation track that I had been listening to throughout. This really helped me feel relaxed and prepared to meet my baby.

As labour progresses.

As my labour progressed, I allowed myself to tune into my body and move how she wanted to move. I had my birthing altar ready in the living room and my birthing basket with all my essential oils etc… so I could dip in and out whenever I needed to. I also had relaxing meditation music on the TV. During this stage of labour, I was using the tools of yoga and breathwork to stay connected and feel into my experience. I used my yoga bolster, blocks and squeezed a ball in my hand to help with the contractions. I also allowed my body to make the sounds she needed in order to really lean into the experience. I found this incredibly empowering and feminine, and it reminded me that my body is strong and it knows how to give birth. Having my positive affirmation vision board in view, was also incredibly helpful, as well as being able to see my crystals and other familiar things that I could draw strength from.

My partner and I did much of the labouring ourselves, and he knew when it was time to fill our birth pool. He began to do this at the exact right time, and once I was able to get into the pool, it was a relief, as I knew I was coming towards the final stages.

At this point, Sheryl arrived and helped to keep me focused and calm. I was starting to become tired and some doubts were slipping into my mind. My partner was great at encouraging me when these doubts crept in, and Sheryl was amazing at reminded me to surrender and soften and allow my labour to progress.

Baby’s arrival.

Jasper arrived fairly quickly! I think his speedy entrance surprised everyone. The midwives had only been with us for around 45 minutes before he made his entrance into the world. Jasper was born at 1.49pm, and it is a moment I will never forget. I was so grateful to be fully present in my body, as I gave birth to him, and feel the moment he was born.

Jasper was born in the birthing pool, and my partner caught him, as he was being born, he was then handed to me, and the moment was magical as I met him for the first time. We kept his cord attached for as long as we could, and Sheryl took some great pictures of the moment he was handed to me and of him with his cord and placenta. The placenta arrived shortly after whilst I was sitting on the toilet. Sheryl added some peppermint to the basin, which appeared to help the process along, as the placenta followed soon after it was added!

The birth could not have gone any smoother, it was exactly as we planned it.

 Reflections on the overall experience

I am really proud of myself and my partner for taking the time to plan, prepare and invest in the process of pregnancy and birth and for working together to make it happen. We created a truly beautiful, magical and healing experience.

If any of my friends asked me about hypnobirthing I would say it revolutionised my experience of pregnancy and birth and I can’t recommend it highly enough.

Sheryl reminded me when we first met that I always have a choice, and this allowed me to remain empowered throughout my pregnancy and birth. Knowing I had a choice, allowed me to feel in control of the process, which is so important, as it helped me to feel calm, comfortable and confident. Giving myself the time and space, to connect to my body and my intuition also allowed me to feel confident in the decisions I was making, even when external pressures were challenging me to consider whether a home birth was the right choice for me. Sheryl’s course allowed me to feel comfortable with the decisions I had made because we had created a safe space for us to weigh up the risks and benefits and make an informed choice about what was best for us.

The most important thing I have learned is you always have a choice. It is important to be fully informed when making decisions, but you need to trust that you will make the right decisions for you and your baby. Allow yourself permission to trust yourself, your body and your intuition.

Birth experiences are important because they are profoundly powerful and stay with you for a lifetime. They can have a huge impact on both physical and mental health. This impact can be positive or detrimental depending on the experience. I have had 3 birth experiences, all very different, and all have taught me something one way or another. However, the experience of having Jasper 10 years after the birth of my second daughter has been truly healing and something I am so grateful to have experienced. Not only has the experience allowed me a rebirth, it has brought me even closer to my two daughters; allowing me to truly integrate the experiences of my past and heal.

Final Thoughts

I am just full of love and gratitude for the experience I have had over the course of the last nine months. The universe brought Sheryl and I together during the pregnancy retreat, and I know that without her, my birth story would be very different. Thank you, Sheryl, for reminding me that this was my pregnancy, my body, my experience, and my choices. You are a truly inspirational lady, keep doing the work you are doing; we need it – now more than ever!

Dare to Dream

Everything seems impossible until it is done- thank you for sharing/reading this story of hope.