Testimonials
| We made the choice of hiring an independent midwife after I had my heart set on a home birth. With it being my first child I found that the general attitude towards my decision was to discourage me and persuade me towards going into hospital. I believe that birth is a natural process and I knew I would be more relaxed and comfortable at home. I didn't want any unnecessary medical intervention and I found that Jane was very supportive of this. We were so glad we made the decision to hire Jane, I had the birth I had wanted and my son was born at home. Jane was completely invaluable supporting us before, during and after the birth. It was lovely having someone present at the birth that my husband and I had got to know and I knew had my best interests at heart. |
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Alex, homebirth, used a pool, Dec 2005 |
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In support of Alex's statement I would like to say the following - I firmly believe that, having realised that Jake was a bit stuck, without Jane we would have been taken into hospital for medical intervention. Jane was totally unruffled by Jake's apparent reluctance to come out and calmly took measures to work the pelvis until he was progressing again. This complete calmness kept Alex and myself calm as well. Furthermore, looking back, Jane's willingness to take a back seat and leave the two of us to it where possible made the birth a much more intimate and involving experience for me as the father. I can't thank you enough Jane. Ben, father of Jake, Dec. 2005
| It is very hard to put into words how wonderful it has been to have Jane as our midwife. She is calm, caring and non-judgmental and gave me the confidence to deliver at home without worry. I felt safe in Jane's hands-I knew that she had listened during our antenatal chats and would be there at the birth. I knew I wouldn't have to write a birth plan, explain myself to strangers or need my husband to defend me (as happened in hospital). |
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| I felt so secure that I never for one minute had to consider anything other than the experience itself. I knew that Jane would deal with anything unexpected in a way which would be true to our wishes and with our best interests in mind. We feel very lucky to have had the benefit of her skill, professionalism and dedication. | |
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Christy Oct 2005, third and fourth baby |
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Having such continuity of care and using the birthing pool made the whole experience so positive. Alex's temperament really seems to reflect the relaxed atmosphere. Diane and Lee, second baby, waterbirth
You helped so much to make one of the most important times in all our lives as perfect as we could have wished. We reached high and you made all possible. Marianne & Conal
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Late during the pregnancy of our third child we took the decision to have a home
birth. Jane seemed experienced, caring and most of all very calm which following
a stressful move to a new area was important to us. The two previous births were
long and difficult and so Jane’s calming and confidence building support before
the birth was just the right preparation. The birth itself went perfectly and our baby was born in the pool after only a few hours of active labour. |
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| Jane’s coaching on natural pain relief and keeping calm and in control worked so well that I needed very little pain relief other than the TENS machine. She allowed the birth to follow its natural course and while we knew she was there if we needed her it remained a very intimate and wonderful experience. Molly and Charlie were able to welcome their little brother Anton into the world only minutes after he was born. The whole birth was so relaxed and special at home with Jane that we wouldn’t consider anything else (should we have another little one) | |
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Rikke and Chris Goddard - October 2006 |
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| Jane neatly summarises what she offers in the name of her midwifery practice - 'sense and sensitivity'. Both are of equal importance during the various stages of a pregnancy and birth. Jane is able to combine an honest, frank and calm approach with much needed sensitivity when required. But in addition she is a strong, positive woman with a great sense of humour. |
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| Her total belief in my ability to have the birth I wanted enabled me to entirely trust my body and birth at home in a relaxed and quiet environment. The birth of my second child was a wonderful experience and I put this down, both to the confidence Jane gave me, and to her presence before, during and afterwards. Trust me - she's fantastic. Thank you from us all. | |
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Kate and Tony Hopewell-Smith - 2007 |
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| I had Jack by c-section after a failed induction, and after a lengthy and traumatic hospital stay, I truly understood why women choose to birth at home and vowed to do the same next time. Jane was called in as our "back-up midwife" as our midwife was attending another birth when I went into active labour. None of us expected it to happen so quickly; I'd been in pre-labour for three days and I was certain I had a long road ahead of me. Never having laboured before, I had no idea what to expect and was anxious about having a midwife I'd never met at the birth. |
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When Jane arrived, I instantly felt comfortable with her. I barely
noticed when she did some essential checks (like my blood pressure),
which I really appreciated at the time - I hate being fussed over,
and particularly didn't want that during labour. My contractions
were very painful and I started to panic, but Jane's calm voice
reassured me and encouraged me to regain control of my breathing. My
labour was so quick and intense, Jane was exactly the type of
midwife I needed for my birth. Her calm demeanour helped enormously
during the birth, and contributed to the peaceful atmosphere after
Mia was born. I'm still over the moon about my home birth three weeks later. This is our last baby and I've been telling everyone that we've gone out on a high note! I cannot thank Jane enough for being a part of this special moment in our lives. |
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Lisa Durbin - 2007 |
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No matter what the concern during the pregnancy you
approached everything with such calmness, it was contagious! No level of hormones would allow me to experience stress or anxiety with your care. Everything was always so achievable and manageable once we discussed it with you. It is difficult to describe your presence Jane, you are there and comforting when needed and then silent and invisible when not, you immediately picked up on the type of environment we had some how instinctively created during the labour and you slipped into that seamlessly. |
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Another poignant moment was towards the end of
the labour when I lost focus for a while then suddenly hearing your
lovely familiar voice from no where giving me prompts and re
focusing me, the contrast of hearing your voice so prominent in my
own world really enabled me to refocus and continue with the
successful birthing. Your strength of character and positive attitude is complimented by your gentle humour and non judgemental approach. You filled us with such a confidence in our ability to achieve the natural calm birth we had planned and I truly believe this has rubbed off on Honey who is such a calm little girl. |
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Glenn and Dawn - 2008 |
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