Midwife, Online Birth Consultant and Doula. Founder & Podcast Host 
at Pregnancy Without Fear

My very first birth was my neighbour who was having her fourth child, and was contracting. Her husband was unable to be with her, so she came to my home. We went to the hospital. The midwife was not very supportive and thought we had come too early. She left us with a student midwife, which was not hospital policy at the time. My neighbour held me saying she wanted to push. I told her to follow her body. From her waist to her feet, she was covered.

After about half an hour I asked the student if she could check. She lifted up the sheet to find a baby lying quietly. The student was totally panicked and went rushing to the emergency bell. To our dismay she slipped, tried holding onto the apparatus around her, but they were on wheels. The student ended up sliding under the sink, knocking her head against the wall, rendering her unconscious. I then had to run and press the emergency bell for her. The midwives stormed in thinking there was a disaster. Only to find baby on mother’s breast but student midwife on the floor unconscious. It was from this birth that I have witnessed up to 3,000 births. 

I was now a birth supporter to many women and mothers. my first ever VBAC birth was in 1995. Mother was told if she tried for a VBAC, her and her baby would die. Well her she birthed her baby vaginally. Her daughter is now 29 years of age. A teacher and an artist.

Around 1999 I became a doula for a charity called Birth Companions. They had antenatal classes in Holloway Prison for pregnant ones. As doulas we would attend the classes (every Tuesday) for a few hours where prisoners could choose a doula for birth support. It was a very inspiring role as we were able to make them feel important. Helped them to build their confidence. We would buy baby clothes and food for them to take back to their cells. They really looked forward to Tuesdays. We learnt a lot from them in relation to nutrition and how the food was not satisfactory for ones who were pregnant.

Naturally, there were rumours going around that the prison was closing. As the decisions  were getting closer we finally heard that we would have to stop doing the classes. By, 2016 Holloway prison was now closed. 

Before the time of closing in 2000, I decided to be a midwife. Whilst doing my 4 year course I still supported women/mothers in pregnancy. I qualified in 2004. Being in university and doing day/night shifts, really enhanced my Doula role. It empowered me to empower those who needed my support.

In 2012, I was a pioneer Doula in an NHS hospital. This had not been done before. To hear that Doulas were working in the hospital made it look as though we were ‘traitors’. It was supposed to be a ‘trial’ for a few months. I worked there from 2012-2017. I stopped after having an ailment that rendered me unable to walk. 

After leaving in 2017, I started to do podcasts. Interviewing health professionals in the maternity world. Having them share their knowledge and skills so pregnant ones could hear the other side of the coin with maternity. 

I have been an Online Birth Consultant from 2017. With word of mouth from the many who I supported. There was an area that returned to me and that was Vaginal Births After Cesarean (VBAC). It was more apparent in other countries that did not allow or gave little support to a mother wanting to birth vaginally. Once you had a cesarean it was deemed impossible to birth this way. A lot of doctors were not confident in allowing a mother to labour that many hours without there being some complication that would bring a law suit. My aim was to help those who really wanted a vaginal birth.

I connect with VBAC mothers in many countries (Africa, India, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Peru) who found my support informative, caring as well as educational.

It is not a lot you may say, however, each point is very intense. It is not just caring, informing and supporting. It is also counselling too. All the VBAC mothers need to be counselled. They experience great trauma with their births that many were unable to shrub off because they went straight into motherhood. No one was there to be a listening ear for her. 

Since 1993 to now my path is all about pregnancy.