Emma- Sage Beginnings Birth Keeper

I found out I was pregnant three months after the birth of my first boy. I was very happy and grateful. At the same time I was worried that the birth would be same as the first one which was nothing like the hypnobirth I was getting ready for. I was in the hospital, paralysed with pain (we agreed with my husband we wouldn’t use epidural at any cost and he was the one who helped me not to go down that road). My cervix was swelling and bleeding, I lost almost 2 litres of blood and my boy had to be literally pulled out with the forceps. I felt defeated and like a failure. I had beautiful healthy boy but it took me a month to feel love, joy and happiness. So I made myself a promise the second birth would be nothing like that. I surrounded myself with many wise people, mainly motherly women who helped me to understand my body and mind better, become stronger, more resilient and most of all to forgive myself. Emma was my pillar support. When I first met her she reminded me of Mother Nature in her raw but loving form. The way I described her to my husband was ‘like a woman who just came down from the mountains, hardened by storms and harsh winds, now walking down the meadow with flowers in her hair’. Her knowledge of pregnancy and physiological birth is vast, but what was crucial for me was her immense feminine power and depth and her skill to impart all that powerful skill set (or at least a fragment of it). She gave me great confidence. Even though my obstetrician marked me as a ‘high risk patient’ because of the bleeding at my first labour and issues with thyroid. All that even though my pregnancy was absolutely perfect and healthy. Without Emma I would give in to the narrative that my birth would need a whole bunch of specialists present. Emma made me strong and confident. She taught me to believe I have the power to birth my baby, that my body was made to birth, that it perfectly knows what to do, my baby knows what to do and I just have to step aside and let them both do their best. She taught me that fear is the main cause of all problems. She was like a tree providing support, safety and space for all my thoughts. So when the contractions started I was in full control, counting my breath, almost like riding on a tide. I asked my husband to fill the birthing pool once they were much stronger. The hot water was so relaxing. I didn’t push, my baby slipped into my husband’s hands. It was such a surreal unimaginable unbelievable experience. And all could happen gently and easy mostly because Emma provided the safe space for it all. I will be forever grateful for her guidance. Not only did she walk me through this short but important part of my life but she also gave me a lesson how to be a better person for myself and my family. Look no further, Emma is a true gem. Marketa Clarence Valley