On this page we want to share some of the feedback we've received from mums about their birthing experiences.

If you would like to share your experiences with other parents please email contributions@forparentsbyparents.co.uk.

Firstly we are delighted to say that the results of our maternity services questionnaire were very positive. 80% of the 130 respondents were very positive about the standard of care they had received during their pregnancy and the birth and there was high praise for the medical staff concerned. Click here to read the results of the questionnaire.

Hi, after 5 miscarriages and 3 attempts at IUI treatment we finally got pregnant. The pregnancy was our first and we had hi expectations of what to expect ( as in pain relief, labour pains etc ). I was 38 weeks when my waters started to brake slowly over an hour. It was 1:50am, and at 2:50am my husband made me give in, stop being stubborn, and ring the hospital. We got there, got checked, then they sent us home at 5:45am. By 8:30am, the contractions were getting really painful so we went back to the hospital. Between 9am & 11am, I went from 3cm to 10cm. The contractions were very close, then they slowed down so they put up the drip to get them going again. I was only using Gas & Air as they said it was too late for any other pain relief, and by 3:30-4pm was ready to start pushing. Everytime I had a contraction the babys heart rate was dropping. They pressed the buzzer, more midwives came in, and they called the Doctor in too. With the help of a forceps delivery, an episiotomy, my husband by my side and the encouragement of the midwives & Doctor, our Son was born with the cord around his neck, but He was ok ( THANKFULLY ). Now we are a very happy family, and our dog is brilliant with him. And, despite the bad times we have had getting to this point and during the labour, WE WOULDN'T CHANGE A THING. We are very greatful to everyone who looked after Me & our Son. One last thing, if like me you want your baby cleaned up before you get him/her, don't be afraid to say.

Rita

My birthing experience was as amazing as I thought it was going to be, being my first I had so many expectations. I’ve always been such a water person so I opted for a water birth. It was the best decision I made, I would recommend it to anyone as I felt in control and didn’t need any pain relief it’s so much easier to relax, and the breathing techniques they tell you to do really help, even though I felt a bit silly. I started having contractions at 11.30pm and the midwives advised to come into hospital as they were getting closer together. Once I got to hospital my waters still hadn’t broken so they told me to try and sleep with the help of sleeping tablets as I hadn’t slept for a few days. The next morning at 11am I was still experiencing contractions so the midwives ended my breaking my waters. After that my contraction got a lot stronger and more painful, so I got into a bath to relax and it worked, as I was able to work through my contractions, I was still sleepy from the sleeping tablets so I kept falling asleep for a few minutes and then started pushing again. I gave birth 4 hours later at 3.09pm to a beautiful baby girl, 8lb 10oz, and very long, with only the support of my fiancé and mum. The midwives were amazed how I handled myself through the labour and told everyone it was a textbook birth. I am now due again in 6 weeks and this time I know not all pregnancies are difficult and extremely painful like everyone trys to tell me.

Cheryl

I had my third child at home and it was as perfect and amazing as I had hoped. I had my other two in hospital but as my first was a 1 1/2 hour induced no relief labour, and my second 2 1/2 hours no relief I thought I was the perfect candidate for a home birth!

The midwifes unfortunately didnt agree at first as my BMI was just above the safe number. However I was so determined I said I wouldn't put any weight on all pregnancy, and also reminded them I probably wouldnt get to the hospital in time anyway!

I acheived my weight at 41 wks. When the time came for my little one to appear I was in Tescos shopping. I picked up an apple and felt my first strong contraction. By the time I got to the till I was contracting every 3 mins. My husband took me the ten minute journey home and as I got out the car my waters went! The midwifes just arrived in time, and Jerome Keats Harris arrived just after they arrived. My full labour was 40 mins. 2 mins pushing. No pain relief and it all on video too. I was having my dinner 1 1/2 hours after he was born. The whole experience was amazing. The midwifes cleared everything and left us to get on with things really quickly, just like I wanted. It was relaxing and perfect. I recommend homebirth to anyone that can breathe through their contractions and who likes being in familar surroundings.- Emily

My daughter was born on 21/2/05 nearly 3 months early and even though she is nearly 5 months old it still only feels like yesterday that I was in the theatre room being told I had a little girl of 2lb 9oz. I was absolutely petrified I was only 18 and up until that day my pregnancy was completely normal. But that night I woke up to terrible backache and stomach pain, my partner rang the emergency services and an ambulance was with us in minutes. Once inside I was told I was having a Placenta Abruption.

My daughter, Maria, was having a foetal bradycardia so they had to perform an emergency c-section. When I came round all I wanted to do was hold my baby, or even just a look, but because I had just had my operation I couldn't move. My partner went in and got a photo for me. Within a few minutes I was being told that they would have to take Maria to Birmingham, Hartland’s Hospital. And what was worse I was told that I had to stay a few more days before I could go to see her. Two and a half days of just lying there nursing a photo of a very fragile tiny baby.

When I finally got to Birmingham (I live in Hereford) I couldn't believe how much noise there was. There was just so much beeping from what seemed hundreds of machines. The first moment I got Maria's incubator I just wanted to cuddle her, but then one of the nurses told me that was not possible because she was on a breathing machine, but I was allowed to hold her tiny little hands. I remember comparing my thumb with her legs and they were the same thickness. As time went on I got slowly introduced to caring for Maria. I felt so helpless that even doing her nappy would excite me. After a week I finally got to have a 10 minute cuddle. Those 10 minutes were just pure harmony.

Because of how far away we were from where we lived I was alone for the majority of the time, and to be honest it was the scariest moment of my life not knowing whether my little girl would make it and not only that my only real comfort was a voice on the other end of a phone. After 3 long weeks we finally came back to Hereford. It was amazing being home again, but it didn't last for long because within a week of being home we had to go to Cardiff University Hospital of Wales because Maria had developed a condition called N.E.C. Which I had never heard of. It is when a piece of the bowel begins to die and with this the whole digestive system shuts off. I had only been away from Maria 3 hours to getting a phone call telling me that they didn't know whether Maria was going to make it through the night.

We finally arrived in Cardiff and here I was alone again fearing for my daughters life. For days I just stared at this lifeless little body, sometimes she would open her eyes and look so tired, so fed up of what was going on, all I wanted to do was swap places with her. After a week of fighting the surgeons sat me down and said we need to get Maria to surgery soon. The nurses told me to be prepared for Maria to come back with a stoma bag. I just sat there staring at the same wall for the whole 4 hours Maria was in theatre. It felt a lifetime of just waiting. When she finally got back they called me in and said everything had gone to plan and she didn't have a stoma bag, I was just so relieved I just thought this is it we get her through this we would be home free. For 3 weeks I watched her get better and stronger and they finally decided we could go back to Hereford. So excited I packed my things and just set my mind on how it wouldn't be long and the 3 of us would be finally be home together. Well we managed another 6 days and we were going back to Cardiff again because of the same problem.

We couldn’t believe it we were told that it was extremely rare to have N.E.C. twice. So here we are again watching Maria fighting for her live looking desperate at me to stop her pain. After 7 days the doctors said I think she is going to theatre again. I was devastated and it was as if Maria wanted to prove everyone wrong because that same day she started to fight back. After a week she was back on her feeds and getting better again, but this time I said that I wasn't planning for Maria to come home, as horrible as that sounds I just couldn't let my hopes get high.

Well after another 4 weeks we were being told we could come home, and here we are now. We have been home now 7 weeks it's been really scary not having nurses around if anything was to go wrong, but all the special baby care units are really helpful and answering questions no matter how silly they seem. Maria is now weighing 8lb and is 20 weeks tomorrow and everyone including the surgeons are extremely happy with her. Hope that anybody that reads this gives them that little bit of hope. With all my love love, Leanne

"My first delivery was in hospital I was induced which ended up with epidural, failed vontouse and forceps delivery, not nice and this time round Im opting for a home waterbirth all going well. I haven't read anything to put me off, even mums who were transferred after trying at home have not regretted their decision to at least try".

"I always seem to read on the Internet and in magazines about negative birth experiences in hospital. I would like to counter balance that by saying that I had a very positive experience. My baby, which is my first, was born in the University hospital in Durham. As it's a relatively new hospital the facilities were excellent and I was allocated my own ensuite room for the whole duration of my stay.

I had hoped for an active birth but things didn't go according to plan as I was overdue and had to be induced. The pain got very intense and I was recommended diamorphine and then an epidural. This again wasn't what I'd planned as I'd only wanted gas and air. I did ask to be taken off the epidural for the second phase which they complied with, and the midwife really pushed me to make sure there were no further interventions. I gave birth to my daughter naturally without any stitches.

The midwives were fantastic, constantly encouraging me and keeping me informed the whole time and answering all my questions. In fact I cannot praise the midwives enough. They were happy for me to stay in hospital for as long as I wanted so I went home when I felt ready rather than being pushed out.

I had read a lot about birth before I went into hospital and knew about all the different types of pain relief. I think it's important to have an open mind especially if it's your first child as you don't really know what to expect. I also found the midwives enjoyed talking about what they were doing and why. They are a valuable source of information!

I am now an incredibly happy mother who is enjoying motherhood and my 6 week old baby and I actually look back fondly at my birth experience."

Claire

"I would like to share my experience of a home birth. Our daughter was born at the local hospital nearly four years ago. The experience was fantastic. Being a first time mum but also a nurse I had no personal experience of giving birth but was privileged to be present at a few births in my training. We had decided to do the sensible thing and have a hospital delivery first time around. The whole experience was amazing. I had a fantastic old school assertive midwife which I needed at the time. I had my sister with me who instinctively knew what I did and didn't want and a husband who was stunned into silence by the whole experience. Olivia was born after 8hrs a long soak in the lagoon bath and no pain relief at all. My bits remained intact and I was up to going home the next day.

When we decided to have another baby I was determined to have a home birth. Not due to any bad experience at hospital but so our daughter could be around. I met with a lot of opposition at first for no real reason. To have a home delivery I think you must be quite assertive. After realising that I wouldn't back down I developed a lovely relationship with the two midwives who cared for me. I had a nice active labour with Linzi the midwife sharing tea with us as a family and then her getting roped into playing with our daughter. We choose to carry on with Olivia's bedtime routine and if she woke we wouldn't discourage her but by the same token we didn't want her getting distressed. Again my sister was on hand to step in if necessary.

Miles was born eventually after still only 8 hrs but taking some time for his head to descend. I think the threat of a hospital transfer mid delivery and turning on my side helped. Again I delivered intact and with no pain relief. The only slight downside was that we spend most of the rest of that day at the hospital waiting to have him checked over as the midwife spotted he had a problem with his bits that will need correcting later. To see our daughter's face the next morning was a picture! She slept through the whole thing. She came into the bedroom smiling looked in the moses basket and said happily who is that!"

Tansi

"I gave birth to my fifth son about 5 months ago and it was a really good experience. I was told about all the complications that I could encounter and I was treated like any other pregnant mum and was not left to get on with it because he was my fifth.

What I would like to tell other mums is to walk around as much as you can while you are in labour. It really does help a lot. I went into hospital and gave birth 35 minutes after I got there and I'm convinced it was an easy birth because of staying mobile. I had read about this but this was the first time I'd tried it. Also I live in Shetland and you might think it is the back of beyond but the midwives are fantastic and listen to you and also you get to meet a lot of them before you give birth so the chances of knowing your midwife when you go in are really high. I was lucky enough to have the same midwife deliver my fourth and fifth son and if I have any more I would like her to deliver me again."

Donna

"I am quite a laid-back kind of person and my first pregnancy reflected that. I decided that I would opt for a mobile labour with minimal pain relief (thinking naively I wouldn't need it!).

I was 10 days over due and my waters had broken almost 48 hours previously so off I went to be induced - still relatively relaxed about the whole thing. I had to wait most of the day as there were no free beds and wasn't allowed to go home because of my waters being broken.

I was started off at 7pm at night and progressed nicely - the midwife said I would be ready to push by midnight. I was ticking by nicely with gas and air when I noticed the midwife calling in her senior midwife who confirmed Oliver was lying slightly awkwardly but still OK. I had been examined by another midwife who was concerned about my contractions falling off at about 3am. I had what felt like most of the hospital peering and prodding at my lower regions when it was decided I was failing to proceed with my labour and was to be taken for an emergency caesarian.

By this time I was so tired I just went with the flow!! My partner walked into theatre looking like George Clooney (well the gowns were the same colour!). Oliver was born at 7am which just happened to be my birthday - what a present!

Despite the somewhat 'different' labour the whole experience was pretty good, mainly due to the hospital's care ( Newcastle RVI). It couldn't have been that bad as I have just had a 2nd baby, Jessica, at the same hospital by elective caesarian.

Helen

"I wish I had been more firm with the midwives when I was in labour - they gave me pethidine which I didn't want and kept putting me on my back when I wanted to be on all fours. Result - ventouse and episiotomy. Not nice."

"I had a waterbirth with my 3rd having had a normal delivery with the first 2. I would definately recommend it as I felt so much more in control."

As part of the initial development of the site we interviewed a number of mums about their birth experiences. Here's a summary of what they said:

The standard of care offered to mothers appears to differ markedly from hospital trust to trust that no one can be sure they will get the care they need. A number of the mothers said that they wished they had known more about the problems, complications that can arise during pregnancy. They felt that their ignorance, when problems arose, made it more frightening for them and their partners as they had no idea if the care they were receiving was appropriate.

Brenda lost 2 children in 4 years. Both pregnancies had got beyond 30 weeks. One child was lost due to pre-eclampsia. Her blood pressure was monitored as being very high but she was still sent home that night only to be rushed in hours later. The placenta had completely broken down and she lost the child. She wishes she had known the true risks of pre-eclampsia at the time so she could have insisted on being kept in hospital and monitored through the night.

The whole process of 'rooming in' was criticised. Even the women who had caesareans or very complicated natural births were given no time to recover on their own. Their new-borns were with them all the time. While this is an important bonding time, most mothers personally would have liked even a hour or two on their own between feeds, just to get some sleep. Whether this policy is for the benefit of mothers or because resources are too scarce to offer anything different is a moot point.

Also, the amount of time in women spent in hospital after the birth was an issue. Most mothers want to get home ASAP after the birth, especially if they have other children at home, but for first time mums extra time in hospital can be valuable. Very often this is not offered, although this is not always the case. One first time mother was offered extra time at another hospital of her choice after a bad experience at the birthing hospital. These extra 3 days at the other hospital was extremely valuable to her and helped her to feel happier about going home. She felt that if she had been forced home earlier she would have suffered from postnatal depression. Unfortunately, the offer of extra hospital time is not available to all women.

The Good Birth Company - Birth Pools

Birth pools offer many benefits including pain relief and much needed mobility. They also may produce greater suppleness in the places that matter most! Above all, they may be used to labour safely in the calm and security of home - no wonder birthing pools are the choice of so many Mums today.

At The Good Birth Company, we believe water birth could be available to more women if birthing pools were more affordable. Therefore, we hire our birthing pools at great prices to make water birth affordable for you! We offer several styles of birth pools and can deliver anywhere in the UK, right to your door.

To book a birthing pool or simply discuss whether a water birth could be for you, contact Amy on FREEPHONE 0800 035 0514.

www.thegoodbirth.co.uk