Caroline’s positive birth story
As soon as I found out I was pregnant, I started looking for pregnancy yoga classes and was so happy to find Lianna’s.
I had done yoga and pilates before pregnancy and really wanted to keep moving. I started pregnancy yoga with Lianna at 14 weeks, and it was an amazing experience. Sharing a room with a small group of women going through the exact same journey was truly special. At the beginning of my pregnancy, I was convinced I wanted an epidural. However, attending the yoga classes and learning hypnobirthing with Lianna made me see things in a completely different light.
Attending the retreats hosted by Lianna and Mandy was also a fantastic addition to the whole experience.
My husband and I did the hypnobirthing course together, and it was so worth it. It was informative, calming, and helped me view natural birth in a brand-new way. Between the yoga classes and hypnobirthing, I felt genuinely prepared and calm about labour. My plan became to have a natural birth with no medication if possible, or to start with lower-level pain relief options and work my way up only if needed. This was a complete 180 from my initial thoughts before starting the yoga classes, hypnobirthing, and retreats!
My husband also found the hypnobirthing classes very helpful for preparing him to support me through the labour process. He particularly enjoyed learning the science behind the whole process. It was nice to do the course together as we had conversations about the birth plan and how he could support me.
Sophie decided she wanted to make her appearance at 35 weeks, which caught us completely by surprise. We hadn't even finished our NCT classes or installed the car seat yet! But despite the surprise, we felt remarkably prepared and calm because of everything we'd learned through yoga and hypnobirthing.
My waters broke at 8:15 am, though I wasn't having any contractions yet. We called the hospital, and they asked us to come in with our bags (leaving them in the car for now). We arrived at Pembury around 10:30 am, went through triage, and were advised that if natural contractions didn't start, they would give me antibiotics and monitor us until 37 weeks. By midday, we were given a room for 24-hour observation.
Around 1:00 pm, my contractions started on their own. I was moved to the delivery room, and by 3:00 pm, I was fully dilated.
Remarkably, I didn't feel any pain through the entire process. I only felt pressure when contractions came, but no pain at all. Hypnobirthing was incredible. The visualisations and analogies kept coming back to me, and I felt completely relaxed and well cared for by the medical team.
We tried for a few hours to deliver her naturally without intervention, but after about 4 to 5 hours, her heartbeat dropped, and we made the collective decision to go to theatre. We didn't know at the time, but the cord was preventing Sophie from coming naturally without assistance. Sophie was safely delivered with the support of forceps at 9:27 pm, and everything went smoothly. Everything happened so quickly that we only picked up our bags from the car the next day!
Even though it wasn't the exact birth plan we had originally envisioned, the entire experience was deeply positive. That is all thanks to Lianna’s support, guidance, and knowledge, as well as everything I learned through yoga and hypnobirthing.
