New Meeting Venue Announced for 2019

New for 2019! Our monthly meetings are now held at Harrison Park, Hall Road, Hull. HU69DQ. On the 3rd Sunday of each month.

For more information on our face to face meet ups >>>> Our Meetings

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Filed under Baby, Birth, Birth Plan, Birthplan, born at home, Breast feeding, Breastfeeding, Choice, Doula, Face to face, HEYHomeBirthGroup, Home birth, homebirth, Hull, IBCLC, Independent Midwives, Involvement, Meet up, Meeting, Newborn, Peer Support, Uncategorized, volunteer, Water Birth | Comments Off on New Meeting Venue Announced for 2019

Local Mum Hayley’s Quest for a Physiological Twin Home Birth

Newly added Birth Story!

“Born 10th March carried to 40+8
Tobias 8lb 3oz
Maximus 7lb 8oz

On Saturday 10th March 18 I woke up at 6.45 am having a few niggly pains. I asked hubby to take the girls downstairs so I could have time alone to see what came of them. I was 40+8 and hour later I knew this was definitely labour. Hubby took kids to grandmas and I phoned my independent midwife (who is over an hour away) . I know my body pretty well now and always go into urinary retention in labour which slows me down and distress me. I got in bath to relax then when got out put in my tens machine . Debs my midwife got here around 10.30 . She helped me get some urine out and checked I was 6cm. Pool was ready now and I got in . It was heaven. I love being in water. The rest of the amazing Yorkshire Storks midwives turned up . Then at 12.03 twin A Tobias was born at home weighing a healthy 8lbs 3oz It was a surreal and fantastic experience. We had some skin to skin in the pool , our first breastfeed and waited for cord to stop pulsing, I was still getting contractions for twin 2 and felt quite conflicted on what to concentrate on. So cord was cut and he went to daddy for skin to skin.”

To read the full story >>>> Hayley’s Birth Story

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Filed under Baby, Birth, Birth Plan, Birthplan, born at home, Breast feeding, Breastfeeding, Choice, Home birth, homebirth, Independent Midwives, Twin Home Birth, Twin Water Birth, Twins, Water Birth, Yorkshire Storks | Comments Off on Local Mum Hayley’s Quest for a Physiological Twin Home Birth

Spring Prize Draw! Prizes announced!

In order to raise some much needed funds for the Hull and East Yorkshire Home Birth Group, we will be holding a Spring Prize Draw. Our last one in Winter 2016 was a great success, and again this time round we have been donated some wonderful prizes from local businesses, we are extremely grateful!

Prizes on offer are:

1. Tropic Sleepy Pillow Mist – HMB Natural Health

2. Infant Feeding Consult – IBCLC & Craniosacral Fascial Therapist Hull & East

3. Indian Head Massage – IBCLC & Craniosacral Fascial Therapist Hull & East

4. £35 Photo Shoot Voucher – Little Pop Photography  

5. ‘She believed she could, so she did’ Bangle – Crystal Mamma Moon

6. Weleda Gift – Weleda Advisor Sandra Stones East Yorkshire

7. Weleda Facial – Weleda Advisor Sandra Stones East Yorkshire

8. Drinks/Cake for two Gift Voucher – Pearl’s Place, Cottingham, East Yorkshire

9. £30 Gift Voucher – Larkin’s Bar, Hull.

10. Usbourne Books Voucher – Hazel’s Reading Corner

11. 1 month’s Sling Hire – Hull & East Riding Sling Share Library

12. Thornton’s Box of Chocolates

Money raised will go towards the general running of the group, such as printing costs, funding and updating the website and also purchasing some items for display at events. Hull and East Yorkshire Home Birth Group is solely run by volunteers and does not currently receive any funding from any other sources.

If you would like to play, please click on the Facebook post and leave a comment. If you do not have a Facebook account, you can simply drop us an email! Tickets will also be available to purchase at our Meet ups and the HEY Baby Carousels.

Winners will be drawn at the meet up in March.

Best of luck!

 

Filed under Craniosacral, Crystal Mamma Moon, Fundraise, Hazel's Reading Corner, Heyslings, HMB Natural Health, Hull sling library, IBCLC, Larkins, Little Pop Photography, Pearl's Place, Prize Draw, Raffle, Thorntons, Tropic, Uncategorized, Usbourne Books, Weleda | Comments Off on Spring Prize Draw! Prizes announced!

Maternity Voices Partnership is coming to Hull!

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Something exciting is happening next week! Hull is getting it’s very own Maternity Voices Partnership (MVP).

So what does this mean?

What is a Maternity Voices Partnership (MVP)?

NCT (1) define it as a multi-disciplinary group, of ‘parents working in partnership with midwives, doctors, other health professionals and charity reps [to] directly help improve future care to women, partners and babies using hospitals, birth centres and community services. MVPs will also be chaired by a ‘service user representative’.

Is it a new?

No not exactly. National Maternity Voices (2) explain further that ‘Maternity Voices Partnerships (MVPs) are an innovative development based on an updating of Maternity Services Liaison Committees (MSLCs)’. Multi disciplinary maternity services meetings have been taking place for a long time, but although attendees may have come from both public sector and voluntary organisations, service users weren’t always regularly involved.

So why now?

Following the release of the National Maternity Review  ‘Better Births: Improving outcomes of maternity services in England’ (3) in February 2016, a resource pack (4) was made available to help maternity services implement the recommendations made. ‘Effective service user co-production’ was suggested, recommending the ‘establishment of independent formal multidisciplinary committees, … [called] “Maternity Voices Partnerships” (formerly MSLCs), to influence and share in local decision-making’.

What are the Better Births (3) Recommendations?

7 recommendations were made:

1. Personalised care, centred on the woman, her baby and her family, based around their needs and their decisions, where they have
genuine choice, informed by unbiased information.

2. Continuity of carer, to ensure safe care based on a relationship of mutual trust and respect in line with the woman’s decisions.

3. Safer care, with professionals working together across boundaries to ensure rapid referral, and access to the right care in the right place; leadership for a safety culture within and across organisations; and investigation, honesty and learning when things go wrong.

4. Better postnatal and perinatal mental health care, to address the historic underfunding and provision in these two vital areas, which can have a significant impact on the life chances and wellbeing of the woman, baby and family.

5. Multi-professional working, breaking down barriers between midwives, obstetricians and other professionals to deliver safe and personalised care for women and their babies.

6. Working across boundaries to provide and commission maternity services to support personalisation, safety and choice, with access to specialist care whenever needed.

7. A payment system that fairly and adequately compensates providers for delivering high quality care to all women efficiently, while supporting commissioners to commission for personalisation, safety and choice.

How can I get involved?

If you are pregnant or have had a baby in the last 2 years and would like to help shape the future of Maternity Care Services, or feel very passionate about improving Maternity Care, just telephone the number on the advert above to confirm your place at the event at Rock Up on Tuesday 30th January 2018. If you are unable to make it, keep a look out for further information on how you can get involved!

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References

(1) https://www.nct.org.uk/professional/mslcs

(2) http://nationalmaternityvoices.org.uk/

(3) https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/national-maternity-review-report.pdf

(4) https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/nhs-guidance-maternity-services-v1.pdf

 

Filed under #MatExp, Baby, Better Births, Birth, Breastfeeding, HeyBaby, HEYHomeBirthGroup, Home birth, homebirth, Hull, Hull Women and Children's Hospital, Involvement, Maternity Voices Partnership, MVP, NCT, Newborn, Service User, Support | Comments Off on Maternity Voices Partnership is coming to Hull!

What can a Home Birth look like?

Thanks to Becki for sharing her post

 

Filed under Baby, born at home, Choice, HEYHomeBirthGroup, Home birth, homebirth, Hull, Newborn, Support, Vernix | Comments Off on What can a Home Birth look like?

“You can choose where to give birth, even a stable. Home birth is your choice. It is the default. You have to decide to leave your home.”

This is such a good summary and post by The Positive Birth Movement, festive too!

Filed under Baby, Birth, Birth Plan, Birthplan, born at home, Choice, HEYHomeBirthGroup, Home birth, homebirth, Newborn, Support, Uncategorized, Why | Comments Off on “You can choose where to give birth, even a stable. Home birth is your choice. It is the default. You have to decide to leave your home.”

Save Hull’s Doula and Breastfeeding Peer Support Service

 

Monday 18th December 2017

Exciting news from the campaign team!

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Friday 15th December 2017

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Tuesday 12th December 2017

Representatives from Save Hull’s Doula and Breastfeeding Peer Support Service’s Campaign Team went to the Guildhall today to officially hand in the report and petition.

http://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/news/hull-east-yorkshire-news/mums-protest-hull-city-council-915983

 

 

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Wednesday 5th December 2017

Today is #nationalvolunteerday did you know that the volunteers at the Doula and BFPS service have dedicated over 38,000 hours in the 12 years the service has been running.

Save Hull’s Doula and Breastfeeding Peer Support Service are looking for testimonials from both volunteers and women who have accessed the service. If you would like to contribute please private message the page direct!

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Saturday 2nd December 2017

Have you accessed support from Goodwin’s Doula and Breastfeeding Peer Support Service? It would be a great help to the campaign if those who live withing HU1-HU9 postcodes could please complete this survey:

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/KTRSLTZ

Can you help by writing to your local MP?

Find out who they are here.

Please see the Save Hull’s Doula and Breastfeeding Peer Support Service Facebook page for a template letter.

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Thursday 30th November 2017

Save Hull’s Doula and Breastfeeding Peer Support Service Facebook page has been created by passionate Goodwin volunteers.

The Change.org petition created last night now has 2073 signatures!

Volunteers from the Goodwin’s Doula and Breastfeeding Peer Support Service and Hull & East Yorkshire Home Birth Group featured this morning on Radio Humberside’s Burnsy show.

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Wednesday 29th November 2017

**An important update on the Goodwin Breastfeeding and Doula Support Project in Hull**

The current contract is due to end in August 2018. This happens every few years and it is not unusual for Goodwin to re-tender for their contract. Historically they have always been successful but this year the council have been told to save a lot of money and are looking at services to cut. This project is one of those that have been proposed to end, however, this is only a proposal at this moment in time. Goodwin are ready to fight their corner to prove why their service is needed and the potential impact that this proposal could cause.

Sign the petition

 

“Hull City Council are proposing to cut all funding to the Goodwin doula and breastfeeding peer support service in Hull as part of the public health budget cuts. The project relies on council funding to coordinate the hundreds of volunteers who give up their time to help women across the city.

The doula and breastfeeding peer support project was designed to improve the health and skills of pregnant women and to address the historically low levels of breastfeeding in Hull. Support is targeted to the most vulnerable women in Hull and referrals are received from a range of professionals.

Without this project most of the women it serves will end up requiring more expensive health and social care interventions thus creating extra and additional costs that far outweigh any short term savings.

The project also benefits its volunteers who have achieved 38,000 volunteering hours in its 12 years of running and 15% of those volunteers have been supported to move into permanent careers in midwifery, nursing or social care, including graduate study.

“Volunteering has made me feel like im making a massive difference to peoples lives! I run the helpline and i have such a happy feeling when a mum tells me how helpful i am and i literally cannot get over how much more confident i feel in myself! I never sought any support through the service myself but having been on a journey of premature babies and expressing and different feeding methods i joined to give out education i learnt so mums wouldnt feel alone!” – Claire Smith breastfeeding peer supporter.

“I first had experience back almost 10years ago now with the doula project when I had a doula support me through my pregnancy, birth and antenatally with my eldest son and being a teenage mum my doula was like an angel for me!! She helped and gave me the emotional support that I needed and helped me through the first experiences I went through as a first time mum….which leads me into becoming a doula myself! I always wanted to give back what I got and to be able to help vulnerable mum’s the way I was helped and give them the support I recieved and to just make these precious moments the best they can be in any situation and make sure that these mum’s don’t feel alone, I loved the training meeting so many new friends and I am now loving being out supporting mums and it really is the best feeling in the world.” – Gemma Adamson Doula.”

Sign the petition

Filed under Baby, Breast feeding, Budget, Choice, Cuts, Doula, Goodwin, Hull, nationalvolunteerday, Newborn, Support, volunteer | Comments Off on Save Hull’s Doula and Breastfeeding Peer Support Service

Born at Home Baby Vests – To raise funds for Hull & East Yorkshire Home Birth Group

This week our Etsy shop went live! We are selling ‘born at home’ baby vests, the perfect gift for a home birthed baby!

When I had my baby back in August 2015 my sister wanted to buy me a home birth baby vest, she told me she had really struggled to find a design she liked and in the end ordered one from a printers where you could choose your own text! This gave us the idea of creating our own, with all funds raised going straight back into supporting local home birthing families..

Did you know that Hull & East Yorkshire Home Birth Group is solely run by volunteers? We give all our time for free and do not receive any financial support from NCT or the NHS like other home birth groups across the U.K do. In order for us to cover costs for our website and printing, we need to continue to raise funds. We would also like to buy a pull up banner for use at events and workshops too! So please consider buying our vest and raising money for a worthwhile cause!

You can buy the ‘born at home’ baby vest for £9.00 from our etsy shop! If you are local to Hull please contact us first to receive a local discount!

Thank you to The Rose Quartz Photography for supplying our lovely photos!

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Filed under baby vest, body suit, bodysuit, born at home, Etsy, HEYHomeBirthGroup, Home birth, homebirth, onesie | Comments Off on Born at Home Baby Vests – To raise funds for Hull & East Yorkshire Home Birth Group

The Home Birth Checklist

Hot Water and Towels

In old movies you would always hear someone shout ‘get hot water and towels’ when a woman was in labour, it has been debated as to what the hot water and towels were actually for! Perhaps to occupy the least useful person and get them out of the way, or maybe towels to mop up and hot (boiling) water to sterilise things. Interestingly things really haven’t changed that much and in a recent poll asking local home birthing woman what items they would recommend for a home birth, both old towels and a birthing pool made it to the top of the list! (See below for the full list).

Lets go back to the beginning though, you might be wondering what do you actually need to give birth at home and how much mess will there be? Contrary to popular belief home births are not actually that messy. The midwives take away the majority of waste with them and some mums have even said that the odd stain on a sheet or towel has washed out. The first thing to consider is what sort of birth would you like? Where do you envisage giving birth? This might seem like a strange concept to someone who has already experienced a hospital birth but really, one of the biggest positives of giving birth in your home is that you get to set the rules!

Birthing on Dry Land

This might involve giving birth; over a birthing ball, on all fours, on a birthing stool, leaning on your birth partner, sat in your birth partner’s lap, knelt on a bed, on all fours on a bed, leaning over a bed…. and the list goes on, really anything goes. A good way to prepare for this is to have some old sheets on the floor, furniture and bed, don’t forget you might change your mind part way through giving birth so it’s a good idea to be prepared. On our sofa I laid plastic decorating sheets and then over that an old bed sheet that I didn’t mind chucking at the end. I ended up delivering the placenta here and this set up was perfect, the only clear up here was to bundle everything into a waste bag that the midwives took away with them. On our bed I followed advice to make it up as usual, then lay inco pads or put on a plastic sheet on and on top of that old bedding/sheets. This means that following the birth the old sheets and inco padding can be stripped away and disposed of and your bed is already made underneath.

Water Birth

If you would like to have a water birth it’s a good idea to plan well in advance where you will get your pool from. Some people like to buy a brand new pool, others look for second hand ones on selling sites or alternatively you can hire one. The hired ones book up fast so don’t leave it too late! Even if you buy a new one you will need to buy a new liner for it and possibly a new filling hose. Some people say that with a new pool a liner isn’t necessary but believe me, the clean up is so much easier if you can throw away the debris with the liner! This also makes it easier to sell the pool on! If hiring a pool it might be worth looking at a package, for a small amount extra I was able to hire a pool cover, birthing ball, birthing stool and a TENS machine from the same place.

When setting up the pool, it’s best to have tarpaulin underneath, I bought a few inexpensive sheets from our local Boyes and it was perfect for the job! I have heard that some people use shower curtains, but just be careful as I know some aren’t fully water resistant. On top of the tarpaulin I had a yoga mat so the floor wasn’t slippy for me or the midwives!

Before the birth it’s recommended to do a full pool run through, this ensures that your tap connecters work, there are no punctures and you can also get an idea of how long it takes to inflate and fill a pool! Don’t leave it too late to do this, our run through was exactly 5 hours before my waters broke!

Filling your Pool

We had a horrendous time with the universal tap connectors as they just weren’t universal enough for our taps!! Our taps were old so none would unscrew and I was beginning to envisage my partner traipsing back and forth with buckets. After a bit of YouTubing I found an American man who had connected a hose pipe to his shower head, so the next day heavily pregnant me was stood in a plumbing shop trying to explain why I wanted to connect a garden hose to my shower! Connecting the hose to the shower worked a treat but just be mindful that your shower may have a thermostat on it, this meant that we needed to top up the pool with water from the kettle to get it to temperature. Just a word of warning, I have seen on home birth pages people suggesting using the pump that comes with your rented pool to siphon water from the bath or a sink into your pool. It’s likely that the pump has already been used to empty the waste water following a birth and because the inside of a pump cannot be sterilised, this method is not recommended.

What else is needed?

Think about what birth environment you would like, someone famously once said that the perfect environment for a baby to be born is similar to the one it was conceived in. Think low lighting, candles, soft music, home comforts, snacks, aromatherapy oils etc, as said before, this is your home and your birth so pretty much anything goes! Also, don’t forget to stock up on tea bags, drinks and snacks for the midwives!

What do the midwives bring?

Historically midwives would bring a birthing bag or box to your house in the weeks leading up to your birth but this is often no longer the case. Most midwives will now bring their equipment with them on the day, this may include;

• Monitoring equipment (Sphyg, Thermometer, Doppler – check the midwives have a waterproof cover if using a birth pool)

• Resuscitation equipment

• Suturing equipment

• Oxytocics (for during placenta delivery and in case of heavy bleeding, only if required)

• Adrenaline (in case of allergic reaction)

• Vitamin K (check with midwives if you would prefer oral over injection)

• General Obstetrics equipment

• Gloves (sterile and non sterile – mention to midwives if you have a latex allergy)

• Bags for the placenta and other waste (tell the midwives if you wish to keep the placenta)

• Scales to weigh baby

• Gas and Air.

Anything we’ve forgotten?

Here’s the rest of the list from our poll of local home birthing women:

1. Old Towels

2. Birthing Pool

3. Tap Connector / Adapter

4. A Jug (to measure urinary output before the midwives leave)

5. Candles

6. A Sieve / Debris Net

7. Hose

8. Birthing Ball

9. Refreshments for Midwives

10. Food

11. TENS Machine

12. Inco / Puppy Pads

13. Hypnobirthing Book & CD

14. Aromatherapy Oils

15. A Birth Plan (including Breastfeeding contacts)

16. Old Sheets

17. Drinks (straws are also helpful)

18. Music

19. Phone App to Time Contractions (or pen and paper)

20. Bin Bags

21. Birthing Stool

22. Doula

23. Affirmation Board

24. Sign on the Front Door (do not disturb)

25. Fan

26. Camera

You will also need the following. Don’t skimp on the maternity pads! I almost ran out before I had given birth because I didn’t realise that when your waters go they carry on leaking!

Taken from North Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust’s Guide

It’s worth adding that some home birthing mums prefer not to pack an overnight bag, personally I did pack one so I knew everything was in one place, this made it easier for my partner too. It doesn’t have to be an overnight bag though, you could always use a box or a shopping bag.

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Read some local Home Birth Stories >>>>> Here!

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Filed under Birth, born at home, Check List, Checklist, Choice, HEYHomeBirthGroup, Home birth, homebirth, Reasons, Why | Comments Off on The Home Birth Checklist

22 Reasons Why Local Mums are Choosing to Give Birth at Home!

1. Home is where I am most comfortable

2. I didn’t have to worry about the pool not being available

3. I could do as I pleased

4. I didn’t have to travel whilst in labour

5. My husband/partner wouldn’t have to leave me at night

6. I could have a hands off birth if I wished

7. I didn’t have to worry about child care

8. I could have who I liked there

9. The hospital doesn’t provide a natural environment

10. Hospitals are for illness or emergencies not normal birth

11. I wouldn’t have to worry about getting my own room / staffing issues

12 I had never been a patient in hospital before.

13. I could have access to real food

14. I could have an independent midwife

15. I could involve my other child/ren

16. I was worried about the labour being too quick to get to hospital

17.  I knew it was the safest place

18. I worked at the hospital and knew too many people!

19. I’m vegan so could actually have food at home

20. I’ve had 2 babies without pain relief so thought I would try at home

21. I am scared of hospitals, if not ill or visiting someone

22. I had a bad experience during first labour

These reasons are from real home birthing mums and were taken from a poll posted in our Facebook private discussion group

 

 

Filed under Birth, born at home, Choice, HEYHomeBirthGroup, Home birth, homebirth, Reasons, Why | Comments Off on 22 Reasons Why Local Mums are Choosing to Give Birth at Home!