The second stage of labour, when the cervix is fully dilated and you push the baby out, is the part when things get pretty intense and a bit messy, so skip the rest of this post if that makes you feel uneasy. 😊 But it is also the best part in my opinion, because that’s Read More
Category: Third trimester
My positive birth story – part 1
My second time giving birth was a positive experience. Not easy, enjoyable nor pain-free (I wish!!) but positive nonetheless. I was not afraid, I didn’t doubt my ability to cope, and in the end I achieved to have the perfectly natural and unmedicated labour I had hoped for, without any interventions or even examinations. Was Read More
Hypnobirthing – hippy-dippy nonsense or worth looking into?
I was debating on whether or not to write about hypnobirthing before giving birth because obviously it’s too early for me to say whether it’ll help on the big day. But I’ve come to realise that regardless of what will happen when I go into labour, having taken the hypnobirthing course and having practiced the Read More
Maternity photo shoot – part 2
The last weeks and days of pregnancy can feel so hard! I’m nearly 39-weeks pregnant now and feeling very ready to not be pregnant anymore. But “the baby will come when the baby is ready”, as I keep telling myself… So, to take my mind of it, a second flashback to that beautiful afternoon in Read More
Maternity photo shoot – part 1
I wanted to share with you some images from my maternity photo shoot. ❤️ In my first pregnancy I was tempted to have professional photographs taken but I didn’t because of the cost – I thought I should rather spend the money on the baby and not myself. Now that I’ve been a mum for Read More
Things to do on maternity leave BEFORE the baby is born
Based on my experience of two pregnancies, I would highly recommend starting your maternity leave at least a few weeks before the baby is due although that might at first feel like a waste of precious time at home with baby. I understand that many of us, especially those with shorter maternity leaves, would prefer Read More
At the hospital
[TMI alert, not for the easily grossed out.] Just a quick vent about yesterday which was a really, really bad day… As I wrote in my previous post the constant stress and exhaustion I’ve been dealing with since the summer (mostly work related but the mum life add-on has not helped) have lead to an Read More
Baby prep – shopping for baby number two
I’m feeling totally exhausted from work (and it’s only Tuesday!!) and generally pretty “meh” today. I’ve been at home alone tonight as my husband is working late and Maia is sleeping, and I really needed to do something to cheer myself up… So after finishing my secret stash of chocolates, I decided to write about Read More
Fear of labour – finding the courage to do it again
“I birth fearlessly” said the note given to me by my yoga instructor. She told me I don’t need to learn to give birth, my body knows how to do that. This I of course know since it’s already done it once and did an excellent job at it. But my instructor is absolutely correct Read More
Birth story part 2 – she’s coming!
(Click to read Part 1) At 1pm on December 2nd I was examined by the midwife at the UCLH birth centre. I was definitely in labour but the progress was literally painfully slow. After 15-hours my cervix was only 3cm dilated and my waters had not yet broken, but the contractions were getting very painful and Read More