She had planned a calm hospital water birth after miscarriage, but gave birth during COVID restrictions with no birth pool, continuous monitoring, an epidural, forceps delivery, episiotomy, and a postpartum recovery that took far longer than she expected.
India is a mum of two from Kent who shares her first birth with her daughter Maloo. After a miscarriage during lockdown, she fell pregnant again quickly and carried the anxiety of pregnancy after loss into a healthy pregnancy. She had prepared for birth with hypnobirthing, movement, breathwork and trust in her body, hoping for a hospital water birth on the midwife-led unit. But when she arrived at hospital, the unit was closed, the pool was unavailable, and she was told she needed continuous monitoring. After a long labour, gas and air, pethidine, an epidural and time in theatre, Maloo was born by forceps with an episiotomy.
What followed was really hard. India experienced significant pelvic pain, later discovered her stitches had not dissolved properly, and began to understand how much her body was still holding from the birth. She also talks about the support that finally helped her begin to heal.
In this episode we talk about:
This episode is for anyone who has experienced pregnancy after loss, a birth that moved away from what they hoped for, or a postpartum recovery that felt harder and longer than expected.
The stories shared on British Birthing Stories are real, personal experiences from real women. I am not a medical professional and this podcast is not a substitute for medical advice. Every pregnancy and birth is different, and I always encourage you to speak to your midwife or doctor about your own individual care.
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