I'm a Grandma!

I have some very special news to share with you…I’ve become a Grandma!

Molly has just given birth to the most gorgeous baby boy, Forrest, weighing a very healthy 7lb 11oz.

And she did it at home, as a first-time mum, after a hypnobirth of around six hours.

Her birth has really got me thinking about something we talk about so much at The Wise Hippo: Programming and conditioning.

These days, only a relatively small percentage of women choose to give birth at home, and even fewer first-time mums do. So I found myself wondering…

What made Molly feel that homebirth was something she could choose?

Of course, there are lots of factors involved in anyone's birth choices, but I can't help thinking that what Molly has been exposed to throughout her life played a part.

For much of her childhood and teenage years, I would regularly arrive home after supporting somebody at a homebirth.

Not every birth unfolded exactly as planned — birth rarely fits neatly into a box — but I would so often come through the door absolutely buzzing, talking about the strength I had witnessed, the incredible things parents had achieved and the difference that preparation, knowledge and hypnobirthing had made.

So while many young people grow up hearing frightening stories about birth, Molly had years of hearing something very different.

She had been surrounded by the message that birth is something we can prepare for, understand and approach with confidence rather than fear.

And I think that conditioning showed.During her pregnancy, Molly prepared using The Wise Hippo guidebook, listened to the pregnancy relaxation sessions, and used the Wise Hippo techniques during labour too.

She told me afterwards that she doesn't know how she would have done it without the breathing techniques.

At one point she was offered gas and air and tried it just once, but she actually preferred turning her focus inward, concentrating on her breathing and disappearing into her relaxing place in nature.

Her relaxing place? A beautiful forest. And can you guess what she named her little boy? Forrest. 

She was supported beautifully by two wonderful midwives, while I had the slightly surreal experience of being there via video call, offering the occasional bit of gentle encouragement.

Although, truthfully, she didn't really need me.

She knew exactly what she was doing. She had prepared. She trusted herself.And she stayed beautifully focused in her own little world.

Watching her made me think again about just how powerful the messages we absorb about birth can be.

If we're repeatedly told that birth is frightening, unbearable or something that simply happens to us, those messages can become deeply embedded.

But what if, instead, we grew up hearing stories of strength?

What if they understood their bodies?

What if preparation for birth included learning how to relax, breathe, make informed decisions and feel confident in themselves?

That doesn't mean every expectant parent should choose a homebirth — absolutely not.

It means that everyone deserves the opportunity to approach birth, whatever type of birth that may be, without unnecessary fear and with the confidence to make the choices that feel right.

And seeing Molly do exactly that has made this Grandma incredibly proud.

I haven't actually met little Forrest in person yet!

Molly is currently under very strict doula instructions to stay at home, remain in her pyjamas and do very little for at least a week — which I completely approve of, even though I'm absolutely bursting to get my hands on him!

For now, I'm just sitting here feeling incredibly grateful, ridiculously proud…and floating somewhere around cloud nine.

Warm wishes,

Tamara x