She didn’t get the birth she thought she wanted. She got something even more powerful… the confidence to trust herself.
Before birth, Holly was stuck between three options:
An elective C-section.
A vaginal birth.
Or induction.
And as she reached 41 weeks, the pressure was building.
You know that feeling when everyone starts asking:
“So… what’s the plan?”
As if birth is something you can neatly organise, tick off and guarantee will go exactly how you imagined. 🙃
So Holly and Luke decided to focus on what they could control.
They doubled down on relaxation, hypnobirthing and preparing for every possible pathway the exact things they learnt throughout the course.
Holly chose induction knowing she could change her mind at any point.
And she went through pretty much every stage:
Dilapan. Prostin. Her waters being broken. Syntocinon.
She laboured on the drip for a whole day and night.
She used her TENS, gas and air and pethidine.
Luke was beside her through it all creating a calm environment, offering snacks and drinks, massaging her, kissing her and supporting her through every wave.
Her midwife kept saying how calm and in control she seemed.
And honestly?
Holly said she felt like she had gone somewhere else like she had completely surrendered into the experience.
But then came the part that could have broken her confidence.
After all that labour, she had gone from 1cm stretched to 2cm.
There was meconium in her waters.
There were concerns that Kit’s chin wasn’t tucked, which could have been affecting progress.
And then the conversation about a caesarean began.
Now, this is where Holly’s story gets me right in the bloody feels.
Because she didn’t feel defeated.
She didn’t feel like her body had failed.
She didn’t think:
“I should have just had the C-section from the beginning.”
She felt…
PROUD.
Proud that she had laboured for as long as she did.
Proud that she had felt good while doing it.
Proud that she had given it her best shot.
And completely at peace with changing direction.
She said:
“There was no part of it that felt like a waste.”
And while they waited for theatre, Holly and Luke held hands, kissed and soaked each other up.
No panic.
No guilt.
No feeling like the plan had been ruined.
Just two people waiting to meet their baby.
And then…
Kit was born.
A total dream come true.
Holly described it as:
“The most romantic experience I’ve ever had with my husband.”
And honestly, I bloody love that.
Because birth doesn’t always look like the birth pool, the candles and the perfect little playlist.
Sometimes it looks like labouring on a drip.
Sometimes it looks like changing your mind.
Sometimes it looks like accepting a caesarean.
Sometimes it looks like holding your partner’s hand in theatre and knowing:
“This is the process my baby and I needed to get them here.”
And that is exactly why I created Calm AF Birth Course.
Not to promise you a perfect birth.
Not to convince you that you must avoid intervention.
Not to make you feel like a caesarean means you’ve failed.
And definitely not to tell you to just “trust your body” while giving you absolutely no fucking idea what that means. 😂
My course helps you prepare for all birth pathways.
You’ll learn how to:
🤎 Understand what’s happening in your body
🤎 Use breathing and relaxation tools
🤎 Prepare your mind and nervous system
🤎 Understand your options
🤎 Ask questions and advocate for yourself
🤎 Feel confident if the plan changes
🤎 Work with your birth partner
🤎 Prepare for spontaneous labour, induction, epidural, assisted birth or caesarean
Because my job isn’t to help you achieve one specific type of birth.
My job is to help you become the woman who knows how to meet her birth with knowledge, tools, confidence and self-trust.
The woman who can say:
“I know what I want.”
“I know what my options are.”
“I can ask questions.”
“I can change direction.”
“And whatever happens, I have not failed.”
Holly finished her story by saying:
“I had absolutely no guilt. Just a complete belief that this was the process me and my baby needed to get them here.”
And babe…
THAT is the goal.
Not a perfect birth.
A prepared woman.
A supported woman.
A woman who trusts herself.
A woman who knows that birth can change without her confidence having to disappear with it.
Holly, I am SO proud of you. ❤️
Want to prepare for birth with tools that support every birth pathway?
This is exactly why I created my two birth preparation options. 🤎
Whether you want to learn in your own time or have me beside you every step of the way, there’s a way for you to prepare for every birth pathway.
Calm AF Birth Course
My self-paced online hypnobirthing course gives you the knowledge, tools and confidence to prepare for birth in a way that works for you.
You’ll learn about:
🤎 Breathing and relaxation
🤎 Working with your body
🤎 Understanding your options
🤎 Breaking the fear → tension → pain cycle
🤎 Birth partner support
🤎 Preparing for labour, induction, intervention and caesarean
🤎 Real birth videos & a private whats app group
You get instant access today, so you can start preparing straight away in your own time, at your own pace.
The Fearless Birth Method
For the woman who wants deeper support, accountability, coaching and a community around her.
This is my guided birth preparation experience where we don’t just learn the tools…
We practise them.
We integrate them.
We build the confidence to use them when it matters.
The Fearless Birth Method is a 12-week coached journey, and the doors open every 3 months.
It’s currently waiting-list access only, so if you know you want that deeper level of support, make sure you join the list so you don’t miss the next opening. ❤️🔥
Because you don’t need to predict your birth.
You need to prepare for it.
You need to know your options.
You need to trust yourself.
And you need to know that if the path changes, you haven’t failed.
You are still the woman who birthed your baby.
You are still powerful.
And you deserve to feel proud of yourself, whatever that birth looks like. 🤎
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