Becoming. A Journey to Motherhood - The Pandemic Edition - Sam's Story

I Found out I was pregnant in November 2019, I spent my whole pregnancy in the pandemic and I gave birth in August 2020 at Broomfield hospital, Essex.

Pregnancy was so stressful, I was home-schooling my 8 year old who has ASD and needs a routine, as well as having a crazy toddler at home. I couldn’t even turn to the wine either when things got tough!
It was definitely my most stressful pregnancy out of all 3 of them and it made me feel very rough and low. I suffered a lot with SPD and back ache so I wasn’t really able to get out the house and go for walks with the kids as I was in so much pain.

The birth was the worst I’d experienced and awful from start to finish. I had to be induced this time, where as I hadn’t in the past.
Due to the pandemic, I was in hospital alone for the induction and then sent home as nothing was happening, as soon as I got home it started and all happened very quickly! We had to get straight back to the hospital where I was left in a room on my own in agony.
When they finally moved me to the labour ward I was 7cm dilated. My mum was then allowed in with me, while Dave (my partner) stayed at home with the kids. The rest is such a blur, the pain was excruciating and I nearly passed out because it was so intense.
The next thing I know alarms are going off and doctors and midwives are rushing in! I then see my mums face and she is sobbing. It’s then the midwife tells me I have to push and get the baby out within the next 5 minutes or it could be fatal.

His oxygen levels had dropped very low and been like it for too long. Luckily I managed to get him out in time and all was well. It was a very traumatic experience for myself and my poor mum.
Brody showed signs of infection so we had to stay in and be monitored, I can’t fault the aftercare at the hospital. The midwives were all lovely and really looked after us both. The midwife in the delivery suit let us stay in there for an extra 6 hours so that my mum could stay with me as long as possible.
The aftercare once I left hospital wasn’t very nice as there were no home visits, just a phone call the next day and then I had to take him to see someone, which wasn’t great as I still didn’t feel up to leaving the house.
Brody was born as we’d just started to ease lockdown so I was able to see some people afterwards and have some visitors in the garden. It still felt very lonely and strange as I couldn’t take him to places I usually would have done.

I think at the start the stress I had felt whilst pregnant had affected him a little, he cried
more than my other two children did and he didn’t like to be put down. Once we’d all settled in to our new life and routine he was fine and now he is so happy. I don’t think the lockdown has affected him in any other way as he’s still seen people and has his big brothers around him.
I’m very happy and grateful that he wasn’t my first baby. Even though every labour is different at least I sort of knew what to expect. I would have been heartbroken if he was my first and I couldn’t have my partner and my mum by my side. It was daunting going in to be induced all alone as I’d never experienced before, but the women on my ward were all lovely and we all bonded as we were all in the same boat.

If they could have done things differently then I think partners should have been allowed to stay with you the whole time and attend every appointment. I was lucky enough to have my partner with me for both scans. They opened pubs after lockdown but you still weren’t allowed a birthing partner at all times, it just doesn’t make sense and is so unfair.