Hi Shari

We just wanted to drop you a quick email to let you know our son, Lachlan arrived in the world at 2:52pm Monday afternoon. The whole experience was fantastic and we used your CD nearly constantly throughout labour. While we fully achieved healthy baby and healthy mum (and proud as punch dad) we also had a completely drug free birth, which was great. Thanks so much for working with us to prepare for this wonderful experience.

Jess and Shane  - June 2007

Hi Shari

We both want to sincerely thank you for teaching us the skills to allow us to have the most wonderful birthing experience, just as we had imagined. We would recommend your course to anyone, and if ever anyone wants to talk to someone who has done the course, then tell them to ring us or email us and we would be happy to tell them about our positive birth experience.

Thank you once again

yours sincerely

Trent and Lizzie 2006 

 

Erika – Luka Ewan

Am writing to let you know that my little boy Luka Ewan Chalker was born last week. Labour was 10 hours in total (5 of which were spent at home), and he arrived weighing a healthy 7.3 pounds.

 

My birthing experience was everything I had hoped for (thanks in part to your guidance), with no intervention, and I was able to escape without any stitches - think the perineal massage definitely helped there. I was even able to have a physiological third stage, which I had hoped for. Luka attached to the breast straight away and I haven't had any problems so far with breast feeding.

 

Am at home now enjoying getting to know my little man. Am still feeling quite hormonal and everything is still very surreal but am taking it one day at a time.

Michelle – Eli Terence

Eli Terence Coll arrived last Saturday (12 days early - as we suspected he might be!). The birth went really well with about 6 hours of early stage labour (which I didn't realise was happening for a while) and 7 hours of established labour. We got to the hospital at 2.30pm where they told us I was already fully dilated and Eli was born at 5pm - a drug free experience! Pretty amazing stuff.

 

I used lots of breathing that you had gone through with us and spent most of the time on all fours visualising that I was blowing a forest over with my out breaths! Andrew was my rock during labour and I couldn't have done it without him.

 

We spent 5 nights in hospital as Eli has jaundice and had to spend 36 hours under light therapy. Since coming home on Thursday everything has been pretty smooth sailing and he appears to be a lighter shade of yellow as each day passes. I am coping Ok with the sleep deprivation and those moments of 'oh my god I have no idea what I am doing!' and just taking it moment by moment. Your rapid relaxation technique has been a god send in helping me get to sleep quickly for those power naps and to clear the mind 

 

Nicola - Darcy

As planned Darcy was born at the Birth Centre without any intervention. Labour was so much harder than I could have imagined (especially second stage) but a drug free birth was the first gift I wanted to offer my child and thanks to the hypnosis tools we learned I was able to successfully do it.

 

I believe our calm birthing experience has had a huge impact on Darcy's development. From the moment he entered world he was very alert. I managed to breastfeed him immediately and he has continued to thrive. Tim and I are so grateful for the knowledge we gained from you. We felt so prepared and never once throughout my long labour (21 hours) did we have any fear.

 

It makes me happy to know that thanks to you and the BirthSkills classes other women will feel empowered enough to have wonderful birthing experiences and bring into the world calm and happy babies.

Diane – Jack William

Jack William, arrived 2 weeks early, weighing 7lb and 9½oz. I am really pleased – and proud to say that the birth was totally drug and intervention free.

 

My waters broke the night before – which was a bit of a shock, but I had a bit of a show the day before so thought that maybe things would happen sooner rather than later. Unlike my fear of the actual moment, the drive to the hospital, which was around 30 – 40 minutes away, did not happen in rush hour, I was not in any pain and lots of the lights were green!! We had a very nice run up there, chatting about what was going to happen, baby names etc – it was lovely. At the hospital I was hooked up to a machine and was having contractions but couldn’t feel them. We both stayed in a room overnight and I got to sleep around 11pm. At 1am I woke as I was now feeling contractions, however I just kept sleeping through them, breathing and going to the loo every so often as sitting there seemed to be more comfortable at times than lying. I decided not to time them or get hung up on time and how long it was taking, just go with the flow and do what my body wanted to do. At 7- 7.30 am the nurse came to wake me up and I walked through to the Birthing Suite and was pretty sure that I was quite far along as I felt sweaty but cold and just a bit odd, which I think was actually transition. When I got to the Birthing Suite the midwife examined me for the first time and couldn’t believe I was actually nearly fully dilated! All my plans for massages etc, went out the window as all I was really concentrating on was breathing, relaxing and some visualization. The midwife was amazed that while checking the baby’s heartbeat, lying flat on the bed, I had a really large contraction, and was so relaxed, but it actually felt easier lying down than standing, maybe because I have done yoga and relaxation exercises mainly lying on my back. The obstetrician arrived and I decided to be on my knees at the side of the bed, leaning towards my husband, who was holding my hands. The midwife and obstetrician were sitting on the floor. I don’t know how long I pushed for, it didn’t seem like anytime at all, and out came Jack at 10am, 9 hours after I felt the first contraction– crying almost before he got out! I had my music playing, which was about the only thing I did manage to use! It was all very peaceful and relaxing, I didn’t really say much to anyone, except to tell them when a contraction was coming – there was no screaming, swearing or shouting at anyone. I was really surprised at myself and how I coped as the pain didn’t seem nearly as bad as I thought it would be, I am so pleased that I did the BirthSkills course and learnt more about the body and not to fight the pain, I think that really helped me.

 

 

Erika – Kate

Well, it was all a success!  After a 6-hour labour and no drugs or interventions I gave birth to Kate - 8lb 10oz. Shari’s BirthSkills course was fantastic. It focussed on self-hypnosis or relaxation with affirmations for an empowered birth.  There was also a lot of information explaining the whole process and explaining how to remain in control and relaxed at each stage. For the weeks after the course I tried to set aside Daniel’s sleep time so that I could go to bed and put on one of Shari’s hypnosis CDs - and usually fall asleep!  It seemed to work though as I got no blood pressure problems, felt great, and as soon as I put one on in the delivery suite I became relaxed just hearing Shari’ voice.  I also invested in some essential oils and an electric burner, and made up some massage oils too.

 

So, at 12.15am on Sunday 16th, the day before she was due, my waters broke.  I rang the hospital before 1am to let them know nothing was happening but that I'd be in sometime then went to run the bath. The phone rang - the midwife had checked my file and had to ask me to come in for monitoring because of the c-section last time - but said I  might as well have a bath first and get organised!  So we got there about 2.30am, contractions were irregular and mild, the midwife was one I knew and she let us set up the music and oils and left us to it.  She rang the obstetrician at 3.30, he asked her to do an internal and let him know what was happening - I was about 3cm.  She told us to order breakfast and lunch as it could be a long day - that it would be about 1cm an hour - like a first labour.  Then she left us again and I put the hypnosis CD on and didn't even notice time passing until after 5am.  I got up then and had a walk around - and things really started becoming intense.  At 6am the OB arrived and put a line in my hand just in case (!!!) and another midwife did a check and said I was about 4cm - but then at 6.30am when the OB checked I was 8cm!  He had been planning on just checking on me before going for his Sunday morning walk - he didn't make it out for that!

They got me back on the bed for those checks and monitoring - but after that I couldn't get up because even trying to roll over brought on intense contractions. Another midwife I knew well came in for the birth and both she and the obstetrician were really supportive and positive.  Although I was on my back they tried to get me on my side - it just didn't work - so instead they made sure I wasn't on my tailbone.  Unfortunately when she was crowning my body took over and pushed her out - they were trying to slow things down - so she was born at 8.07am, and came straight up onto my chest for a cuddle and feed while I was stitched - a tear but healing well.

 

I hope that isn't too much information for you! I'm certain that confidence plays a huge part in going through with a VBAC.  Several friends who have had 2 c-sections have told me they feel they "chickened out" or similar.  I am amazed though at how many people ask me which I would choose now having done both!  I really still only see the c-section as an emergency option.

Paula - Santino 

The breathing & visualization got us through 30 hours of contractions. 

 

Rossano had two weekends of weddings so we were counting the days anxiously so that they wouldn’t clash.  Luckily when Rossano got home at 6.00 pm on that Saturday night after the last wedding is when my contractions started.  First at seven minutes apart for the first hour and then straight into five minutes.  This is where they stayed for the next 26 hours or so.  We found walking brought them closer together so we did lots of that.  The last hour saw the contractions a minute apart with them cascading over each other.

 

I only had one moment of weakness where I started to get anxious on the Sunday afternoon while we were still at home but once we went into the hospital and we were walking around the hospital grounds I found I was able to get back into my breathing and visualization without any apprehension whatsoever.  Having seen the labour ward on a previous hospital visit allowed me to visualize that area weeks before and prepare. 

 

The midwife we had at the hospital during the birth was wonderful and was very supportive of our techniques as was our OB.  He was due to be away for the weekend but came down early to be with us.  Not once was there any mention of drugs or pain relief and they allowed me to use our techniques.  At around 10.30/11.00 pm Sunday evening we commenced the pushing stage & again I was able to use what you taught us through this.  Our OB did have to artificially rupture my membranes and after one hour of pushing, it appeared the baby still wasn’t able to come out.  Our OB tried to ease the baby out with forceps using my contractions to guide him.  This was the first time in 30 hours that I had to have any medication and this was to numb the area.  After two attempts our OB made the call to do an emergency caesarean as I was starting to haemorrhage.  Our baby through this whole time was fine, his heat rate was strong and did not waiver. 

 

At this point I was still very calm.  Poor Rossano however, was very distressed as he was the one who needed to sign the authorization forms for the operation etc and has ended up with alopecia on his legs.  He did not show his distress to me at all and was a wonderful coach through the whole time.    

 

Once our OB made the call to do the emergency caesarean it all happened very fast.  Within five minutes we were on our way up to the operating theatre.  There was another woman due to have a caesarean but they were able to postpone her and I was able to use her whole team i.e. anaesthesiologist and paediatrician etc.  Again all during this time I was still in a wonderful place and certainly not feeling distressed or anxious.  Even while in the operating theatre & the OB was actually doing the incision I remember talking to Rossano & was overjoyed at the arrival of our baby and even planning the next one. 

 

The next baby will need to be caesarean again but I do not feel in any way that I missed out on any birth experience or bonding with my baby.

 

All the techniques that we had learnt came in handy too especially with the recovery of the caesarean.  The OB and midwives couldn’t believe my recovery and the ability to be walking around by that afternoon after Santino’s safe delivery at 12.36 am Monday morning.  My use of medication was only during the caesarean i.e. the epidural and drips etc that they gave me and a total of about four Panadol in the week after to assist with the pain relief.

 

We are now getting so much enjoyment out of our baby and every day brings new and exciting things.  Also your techniques have taught me to fall asleep really fast so that you make the most of the sleep that you do get!!!!

 

Alicia – Ethan John

I’m extremely proud to announce that our Son, Ethan John Murphy finally arrived at 6.55pm this evening, 9lb 8oz of bouncing baby boy (53cm long, 38cm head). The experience isn’t what we hoped for but here is the story.

 

Armed with the knowledge that there is a higher chance of having a Cesarean if the baby is induced we waited, waited, waited and waited until finally we checked in for an induction last night at which point Ethan was 11 days overdue. So 8pm last night we arrived at the Hospital and they gave Alicia the Prostin Gel at about 2am this morning at which stage they also told her that her Cervix felt favourable and that the Doc would be able to break her waters in the morning.

 

Not much happened overnight other then what Alicia described as period pain so we weren’t sure what to expect when we shifted down to the birthing suite at about 9am. Doc arrived at about 9.45am gave Alicia an internal and said she was 2cm dilated but the Cervix was still quite thick. They then broke her waters with the amnihook and started the Syntocinon drip at about 10am. Colour of the waters was ok but they still wanted regular monitoring of the baby because it was so overdue. Baby had also moved into posterior since our last appointment on Monday (little shit).

 

So Alicia then laboured for the next 4.5 hours and the controlled breathing was a great help, as was the shower but the only position she found comfortable was standing up which was wearing her out. At the end of this  we also discovered meconium in the fluid as we we’re changing some of her pads. This didn’t really phase us but unfortunately the Doc now insisted that the Baby be monitored constantly which severely restricted Alicia’s mobility and also prevented us being able to use the shower. So we moved back to the bed and had an internal to find that after 4.5 hours Alicia was a huge 3cm dilated, and the Cervix was still quite thick, pretty deflating.

 

Due to the meconium and a trace that showed long periods of low reactivity they increased the Syntocinon to move things along. With the stronger contractions and being tied to the machine Alicia found it impossible to get comfortable so she had an Epidural at about 3.00pm. The next few hours we’re pretty quiet but the trace showed her having very strong contractions which we hoped we’re working. About 6pm they came in to do another internal only to find Alicia was still only 3cm dilated and that the head wasn’t even pushing against her Cervix.

 

So after 8 hours of full labour and non stop Syntocinon Alicia had only progressed 1cm. The trace was also now showing the Baby’s heart rate at a pretty constant 170 which we knew was the very upper end of normal. At this stage we were both thinking 11 extra days, rupturing membranes and 8 hours of Syntocinon had barely even budged this kid so the choice we had was a) wait a couple more hours, the baby is not distressed but the meconium and the higher heart rate may mean it becomes so or b) have a cesarean now why the Baby is fine.

 

We went with option b and Mum and Bub are both doing brilliantly. They may say this to all Mothers who really wanted a Vaginal birth but after seeing exactly where and how he was positioned they said there was no way Alicia was ever going to be able push Ethan out.

 

Alicia definitely wants to catch up with you but I just wanted to jot this down tonight while the sequence of events was still clear. Thanks for all your help and support through the pregnancy, whilst the birth wasn’t exactly what we’d hoped for we were both incredibly relaxed throughout the whole process simply because of all the information and tools you’d given us.

 

As predicted I have a new found respect for my beautiful wife.

 

Kirstin – Alison

Alison was born at 8:39am on 11 May.  My membranes ruptured the day before  but because she was so low she was sort of acting like a cork and I wasn't  really sure if it really was amniotic fluid so I went to the hospital in the afternoon and the midwife confirmed that that was what it was.  They wanted me to stay in the hospital after that but I wanted to go home so that's what we did.  The ob told me that I had to check into the hospital at 2am on Friday morning at the latest if I wanted to get a private room because they were really full so I agreed.  They said that they would have to induce if labour hadn't started within 18 hours but I didn't worry too much about that because I was sure that it wouldn't be necessary.

 

Marcus and I went home, did more relaxation exercises, had dinner and went to bed.  At about 11:30 I woke up with contractions.  I slept a little bit more and eventually got up.  Marcus did the massage you showed us, and I also had a shower.  At 2am on Friday we went to the hospital, and they took us to our room (which was great - double bed and our own shower and toilet -

luxury!).  Marcus dimmed the lights, put on your relaxation CDs, did more massage, countless trips to the microwave to heat up hotpacks and really helped me through the contractions.  Because the hospital was so busy, the midwifes left us alone and we got on with things in peace, just like we had planned.  I was really comfortable and calm throughout this time, and very focused on my breathing.  At about 5:30 I really needed to push, so Marcus buzzed a midwife.  It took ages before one came (maybe not that long but it felt like a long time).  They put me in a wheelchair and wheeled me to the delivery room, and the whole time I was still focusing on my breathing.  In the delivery room the midwife had a look (first time since we checked into the hospital) and said that I was 10cm and could start pushing.  Marcus and I were so happy that we reached that stage all by ourselves without any

interference.

 

I pushed for three hours but my contractions had slowed down a lot (only getting 2 every ten minutes).  Because the contractions were so slow, the augmented them with synctocinon, but even that didn't work so well.  Towards the end, I had nothing left to give and I ran out of puff completely and didn't think I could go on.  Marcus was so encouraging but I think this part

of the labour was pretty traumatic for him.  I must have tried to climb off the bed because they strapped my legs down!  After three hours I had enough and yelled at the ob to "suck it out!" and that's what he did. 

Alison was vacuumed out and I had a second degree tear, but the vacuum was only on her head for one push so she didn't get that funny shape on her head and her apgar was 9 and 9 so she was fine.  My plan for the third stage was to do it without intervention but because of the lack of contractions I needed the intervention but by that stage I couldn't care less.  Alison was

out and that was all that mattered.

 

She is a really fantastic baby - she's hardly every cranky and has a very happy nature.  I'm getting used to the broken sleep, and also have breastfeeding under control (this was much harder than I thought it would be).

 

Marcus and I are SO glad because we achieved the kind of birth that we were hoping for (i.e. drug free, healthy baby, one where we were in control of what was happening - for most of it!).

If I hadn't learnt the techniques, I wouldn't have been confident enough to put my foot down and go home when they wanted to admit me to hospital when my membranes ruptured, and we probably also wouldn't have managed the first stage of labour as well as we did.  The second stage didn't go exactly the way we wanted it to, but it was only 3 hours and things turned out OK so we are even happy about how that part went!

 

Nyaree – Stella Jean

I finally have the chance to sit down at the computer so I wanted to email you to let you know that we have had our baby!

 

Her name is Stella Jean Lines Schubert Lake.  She was born at 0005 on 19th November (right on time!) at the Attadale Hospital, weighing 7lbs 12 ozs and was 51.5cm in length.

 

The birth went really well and was a lovely experience.  I woke up at 5am on the 18th and my membranes had ruptured and I had a show.  I rang the hospital and they said to have a shower, eat breakfast etc then come on in.  So we remained very calm, packed our bags, made arrangements for the pets and drove to the hospital.  By the time we got there I was having surges every 3-5 minutes for 30-45 seconds.  They were not too intense so I was able to breathe through them nicely.  For the next few hours at the hospital they were pretty busy so we were pretty much left to it so we ste up the room with my oils and crystals etc and walked around the park, listened to music and just generally relaxed. 

 

By the time they checked me that afternoon, I was 3-4cm and doing fine.  Over the next couple of hours the surges became more intense and lasting longer.  I had a bath which helped for a while and did some more walking. 

 

By 5pm ish I was really starting to feel uncomfortable and was finding it difficult to keep breathing properly.  They checked me again and I was still only 4cm.  My OBGYN recommended that we have the oxytocin drip to get things moving as it had already been 12 hours, he also suggested that I have an epidural as I was already very tired and uncomfortable (at this point I did not want to leave the toilet, it was really quite funny!).  After thinking it over for a while we both decided that this would be best so that I could be more relaxed and refreshed to meet our baby. 

 

So by 6.30-7pm I was much more comfortable and able to get some rest.  The breathing also helped me here with my fear of needles - I didn’t flinch once while they gave me the local, epidural & inserted the IV drip! 

 

My OBGYN returned around 11.40pm to check on me by which time the epidural had worn off a lot and I was feeling the surges again, and we were ready to go!  We gave birth to her about 15 minutes later which was absolutely amazing - I watched it all in a mirror, and the atmosphere was quiet, calm and loving.  She came out alert and calm, she received high AGPAR scores as well and fed straight away, it was absolutely an awesome experience!

 

I am really glad we did your course and I believe that the relaxation & breathing techniques helped - with a little more practice we could have probably done without the epidural, but I do not have any regrets, only very happy memories.  I also think we were very lucky that my doctor and the midwife were supportive and respected our wishes - they even thanked us for such a lovely experience!  We were the talk of the hospital for our stay too as there were only 2 normal deliveries that week, and we had a lot of midwives come in to meet us and congratulate us on doing such a good job.  One midwife even said that we restored her faith in natural childbirth. 

 

 

 

 

Julie - Caitlin

Absolutely nothing went to plan!!  I started leaking amniotic fluid but after 24 hours had no contractions… so we went into hospital and the obstetrician advised induction asap.  So an oxytocin drip was started.  I requested an epidural as well as many friends had advised me the contractions can be particularly strong.  The anaesthetist was caught up in theatre for the first 3 hours so I used the BirthSkills techniques during all this time, which was excellent - the contractions by that time were getting really painful but I managed to stay calm.  I actually dilated really well and after 7 hours had fully dilated so we thought everything would be fine.  But when the obstetrician did an internal exam, the baby turned out to be posterior and her head was flexed so her brow and eyes were the first thing he could feel instead of the top of her head… so off for a caesarean. 

BUT, through it all, I stayed really calm and focused.  Theatre would have been overwhelming if it wasn't for my relaxation.  She came out really pink and had very high Apgar scores.  The nurses kept commenting on how she wasn't like a "normal" Caesar baby, which are apparently pretty flat for the first few days.  She started suckling straight away and has taken to the breast like a total natural.  I think about 5 midwives commented how unusual this was for a Caesar baby and I put it down to the relaxation and staying calm during the whole thing.  She has been so calm and contented and so far has slept for 6-hour patches during both nights at home.  We have only really heard her cry on the first day home when everything was new and different.  The whole time I was in hospital, I could hear other babies absolutely screaming in the other rooms but our baby has been a gem.

Kym - Jayden

The birth did not go according to plan as I had scar tissue on my cervix that would not dilate. Thankfully my doctor who would have normally just performed a c-section, respected my wishes to have as little intervention as possible & I had a Syntocinon drip. Things progressed at a very fast rate with half my cervix dilating to 9cm in 2 hours. I managed to stay calm & relaxed for most of the labour, but then the pain had way outrun my endorphins & I found it too much, so I opted for an epidural. As I was so far along in my labour they only gave me a weak epidural. Once I had had the epidural they were able to stretch the scar tissue on the other half of my cervix & 40 minutes later we had our beautiful son. Although my plans for a natural labour did not eventuate, the BirthSkills techniques helped me to remain calm & relaxed through the whole experience. Luke did not realise I was in so much pain until he saw tears running down my face when I turned to him & said that I needed some pain relief. My doctor has told me that now the scar tissue has stretched I will not have the same problem with the second baby, so I am looking forward to trying the techniques again then.

 

 

Susan – Declan

On Thursday morning Tate and I went to playgroup feeling a little ‘strange’. At midday I started having irregular contractions. At 2pm I saw my GP who confirmed that labour had started.

At 3pm we left Bateman’s Bay having contractions every 5 minutes. During the 2 hours in the car (over the mountain) I listened to the CDs on my walkman and quietly sat for the entire 2 hours.

When we arrived at the hospital I was having contractions every minute and had 6 between the car and the delivery suite. During this time my focus shifted and I found it difficult to get back on track. I requested gas but was able to use the breathing techniques very usefully while it was being organised. Less than an hour later the labour wasn’t progressing and I had an emergency caesarean under a general anesthetic as the umbilical cord was impeding Declan’s arrival and causing him distress.

Declan was born at 7:07pm and was deemed healthy and happy and we were all discharged yesterday!

 

My wish was for a healthy baby (tick) who could be with us immediately (tick) and not to have morphine or pethadine as I had with my previous 2 labours (tick). I am really glad that I did BirthSkills, I don’t think that I would have survived the car journey without it and for a woman who can’t find her chakras I’m really pleased with the outcomes!