Christina Howards Birth Story

Hello
My name is Christina Howard and this is my third baby.
Here is my birth story:
My husband and I live on the Isle of Wight, where I'm a primary school teacher and my husband runs his own air conditioning and refrigeration business.
When we found out that we were expecting another child I was still on maternity leave from my second child. We were both happy but also wondered how we would cope with three children under the age of 4. We had always wanted three children but didn't think it would happen so quickly.
I went back to my teaching for a short while before going on maternity leave again. We found out the sex of the baby at the 20 week scan. We already had a girl and a boy so didn't mind what we were having. But secretly I hoped for a girl so that my eldest would have a sister. As I am very close to my sister and also so that we could reuse all my eldest's pretty girly clothes.
As my due date came and went I started to get anxious that I would need to be induced. My first was 10 overdue and my second was 7 days overdue. They were both natural births though. I tried every trick in the book to encourage baby to make an appearance- long walks, raspberry leaf tea and the like. My midwife booked in an induction assessment appointment at my local hospital. I really didn't want to be induced. So I booked a session of acupuncture. That seemed to work I started having mild contractions soon after the session. I still went to the induction assessment the following morning but things had started to progress. I was asked to stay in the ward to be monitored again but was soon down in the labour ward having my baby. I got into the birthing pool at 4cm dilated and had a healthy baby girl weighing 7lb8ozs 40 minutes later. It was a very quick labour. The midwife was wonderful and was surprised how quick I laboured for. But I suppose she is my third baby. We have named her Emilia Jennifer. Jennifer after both of her grandmothers.

Kind regards
Christina Howard

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