Steph: First Birth, NHS Hospital Birth, Preeclampsia, Gestational Diabetes, Induction, Failed Epidural, Dural Puncture, Failed Pushing, Emergency C-Section, Postpartum Haemorrhage, C-Section Infection, Birth Trauma
British Birthing StoriesShow Notes
Steph is a first time mum from South Devon who spent her pregnancy hypnobirthing and hoping for a straightforward delivery. Instead she got appendicitis at fifteen weeks, gestational diabetes at twenty six weeks, and preeclampsia at twenty eight weeks. She was induced at thirty six weeks, and what followed was, in her own words, hell on earth.
The turning point came hours into pushing, when a doctor and a midwife came in to examine her and realised she was not the nine or ten centimetres she had been coached to believe. She was eight, and her baby was stuck in the birth canal. What followed was an emergency C-section where Steph could feel everything, a dural puncture from a failed epidural that left her unable to sit up or hold her own baby for days, and a birth so far from the one she had planned that it took her years, and a second birth, to make peace with.
In this episode we talk about: Getting an endometriosis diagnosis after years of being told her symptoms were normal, and conceiving naturally after being told she would need help Emergency appendix surgery at fifteen weeks pregnant and being told what would happen to her and her baby if she did not have it Being induced with gestational diabetes and preeclampsia and what the hormone drip really felt like A failed epidural, a dural puncture, and the blood patch procedure that finally fixed it three days later Why there was no golden hour after everything she had been through, and how she turned her bitterness about the birth she did not get into research and advocacy
This episode is for anyone who has ever felt like their birth spiralled completely out of their control. Steph's story is proof that you can come through it and come out the other side an advocate for yourself and for other women.
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.
British Birthing Stories shares real, unfiltered stories of childbirth in the UK, from pregnancy and labour to postpartum recovery. These stories reflect personal experiences and should not be taken as or replace medical advice. Always seek guidance from a qualified healthcare professional.
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