There are many reasons we decided to include Stephanie at the birth of both our children…
For the first birth we wanted someone present, mainly because Steve thought he might not be able to meet all my needs, and we also wanted to have someone to help us make decisions when required, if all did not go to plan. We did not want this person to be a family member or friend.
As soon as we met Stephanie for the first time, we knew she was the right person. We had a few meetings, and were provided with some great reading and preparation material as well as talking through fears, hopes, and our birth plan leading up to the birth. For the second birth, simply we could not imagine giving birth without Stephanie being there, so fantastic was her presence at the first.
As with most births, nothing went as planned and I was induced and put on syntocinon for both births. Our babies were delivered naturally and no pain relief was required due to the wonderful guidance of Stephanie, who knew exactly what kind of support to offer at the right moment to both myself and Steve, without needing to converse at all. Importantly, also encouraging Steve to be active with me in both births and giving him the tools to work with me and her as a team.
The continuity of having Stephanie with us from the beginning to the end of labour, meant that I could really focus on managing the contractions and birthing my babies. Both of the births were a really positive experience because of this, even though they were completely different in what I required for support at each.
If we decide to have a third, Stephanie you are expected in the birthing suite!
Lou, Steve, Elvie and Iggy – 2008