Bianca started experiencing irregular contractions a few days before her first baby’s due date, and for about 24 hours she likened them to mild period cramps. Overnight her sleep was interrupted but she managed to rest and have baths while intermittently monitoring the time between her contractions.

Once they got stronger and were coming every 6 minutes or so she contacted her Lead Maternity Carer who advised her to stay home as long as possible. Shortly after this she felt a shift in intensity and experienced a very strong and painful contraction, which spurred her and her husband to make their way to the hospital. As she moved around she felt panic as the contractions intensified, but she managed to re-establish calm.

At the hospital she was told she was 6cm’s dilated and they were ushered into a hospital waiting room. Asking for pain relief they then waited for the staff to bring some gas, which unfortunately took 25 minutes. Over this time she further dilated to 10cm’s and as she felt the need to start pushing they were quickly settled into a birthing suite. A mere 14 minutes later baby Gia emerged and was settled into her arms.

Bianca said that she now understands that although labour is intense and hard, she was grateful that it was quick and she went in with no expectations. Having an understanding of how her body was working meant she could tell herself that every contraction was bringing her baby closer. Although she had a small tear she recovered quickly and was amazed at how soon she was walking around.

Bianca said she now recommends relaxed birthing to everyone.