Birthjourneys Midwifery

30/01/2026

This!
…is what birth and midwifery can look like.

I’d argue care like this isn’t found anywhere within the NHS system, but I’m sure there are pockets of birth units, and pockets of individual midwives pulling out all the stops for their women, despite the cuts, staffing, and poor culture.

These figures are wonderful. What I don’t know, though, is how many of the women in the hands of these independent midwives were ‘midwife led’, or any demographics, or levels of complexity. I’ll do a bit of homework and find out.

Sadly, while many NHS staff are generally working their utmost socks off to provide good care, and are doing amazing life giving and saving things every hour of every day, care, continuity, trust, and relationship is still lacking.

Few can afford to hire an independent midwife. But, as with everything, this is relative. The cost of emotional trauma, emergency intervention, long lasting physical and mental ill health from a broken system, will all take its toll on your health and finances. How much price do we put on our cars? Our teeth? Our hair…? 👀 Birth is a BIG thing. It really matters. We need to get our heads round having to pay for pregnancy and postnatal services for now, and until government bring change.

Don’t be the victim of your birth circumstance, be the driver!

30/01/2026

A few words on Induction Of Labour…

National figures suggest average of 33% of all births in UK start with IOL.
Locally, that figure looks to be 25.8%. That’s healthier, yep, but still one in four women are having inductions.

Last month, there was a study published about how women felt about them (Panaro et al. 2025).
66.8% felt they were given insufficient information about their induction.
30% didn’t know they could decline.
49.3 didn’t feel fully involved in their decision making.

It’s really important that YOU decide what happens to your body. In making that decision, you’ll have looked at information that’s important to YOU, and you’ll decide on the best thing to do. The process of deciding helps to protect you from a negative emotional experience that can easily lead to postnatal depression and PTSD. Even if you already think you’ll agree with what is recommended by your care givers, go though the process of looking at all your options. The above study shows many women are NOT given enough information.

Consider using the BRAIN acronym to aid your decision process…..

The BENEFITS
of induction to end the pregnancy are varied. There may be concerns around post dates (after 41-42 weeks), infection after waters breaking, diabetes or pre-eclampsia. You’ll undoubtedly be given lots of reasons, and be told the benefits outweigh the risks.

The RISKS
of induction are an increased chance of forceps, ventouse, caesarean section, more pain leading to more pain relief including epidural, hyper stimulation of contractions leading to fetal distress, infection, postpartum haemorrhage, hospital stay length, and emotional trauma.

The ALTERNATIVES
are to wait or consider less pharmacological methods of asking baby to budge. A caesarean section carries its own risks, but is still an alternative. There are also ways to juggle what methods are acceptable to you. A sweep, breaking waters, hormone gel, artificial oxytocin drip, aromatherapy, acupuncture, hot curries, hot s*x, are all more/less acceptable ways to bring on a labour that isn’t quite ready to start.

Your INTUITION
is IMPORTANT. This is YOUR body. You’ll know best when given unbiased information. Going against your gut feeling will bring doubt and negativity.

do NOTHING (or… how long have I got to make my decision?)
Doing nothing is absolutely your right. Pregnancies always end. But sometimes at a risk to mum and baby. You may decide to review your options at home, and set your own date. You may want just 20 minutes to discuss with your partner. Your choice.

www.birthjourneysmidwifery.com

30/01/2026

I’m really not a fan of membrane sweeps. I do wish midwives would focus more on sharing info around getting baby in the best position for birth. Folk need to know the risks, and the actual chance of a sweep making a positive difference. It’s also worth remembering to get unbiased information. It’s something that’s probably offered to everyone, and can absolutely be declined.

Membrane sweeping is a form of induction of labour.

A membrane sweep is also called a stretch and sweep, or sometimes just "a sweep."

It's an intervention that you may be offered towards the end of pregnancy.

As with all interventions, it's up to you whether you have it or not.

How does it work? A midwife or doctor will, while doing a vaginal examination, sweep a finger around and/or within the opening of your cervix (the lowest part of your womb).

As with all interventions, there are pros and cons. Membrane sweeping can cause pain, discomfort, bleeding and infection.

We don't really know if it works. Some studies show it may work. Others don't. The evidence is of low quality.

It is always a good idea to get informed
before you decide what's right for you.

If you'd like to know more, there's a blog post on membrane sweeping on www.sarawickham.com

It's called "What is a stretch and sweep?" and you can find it at https://www.sarawickham.com/articles-2/what-is-a-stretch-and-sweep/

In it, I explain more about membrane sweeping, the pros and cons and some of the things you might want to know before you decide whether or not it's right for you.

I hope it helps.

29/01/2026

From our wonderful colleagues at the milk bank 😍

Are you passionate about helping babies get the best possible start in life?
Oxford Human Milk Bank needs YOU ��
We are currently recruiting new milk donors across:
Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire, and parts of Berkshire, Wiltshire, and Gloucestershire.
Your donated breastmilk provides vital nutrition for premature and vulnerable babies when they need it most — and truly makes a life-changing difference.
Find full information about milk donation here:
https://www.ouh.nhs.uk/maternity/feeding/milk-bank.aspx

Update: Although the website currently states that we only accept donors with babies under 6 months old, we are also accepting donors with babies over 6 months.
If you’re interested in making an incredible difference, we’d love to hear from you ❤️

29/01/2026

💛 What generosity looks like 💛
This week, thanks to you, we gave a first-time mum a whole newborn bundle — everything she needs to welcome her baby with confidence and care.

Your donations don’t just fill shelves — they change lives. Thank you for being such a compassionate, supportive community 👶🍼

29/01/2026

Urgent reminder 🚨

Today, BBC Morning Live featured a segment about private scan clinics.

After interviewing 2 mums with negative experiences of private scan clinics, the presenter said pregnant women could check their baby’s heartbeat themselves with a stethoscope for reassurance. This advice is not only wrong, but dangerous because you could be falsely reassured.

No home scanning device, doppler or app can tell you if your baby is well. While it may sound tempting, it's not a safe way to listen to your baby’s heartbeat or check they're okay. This can only be done by a midwife or health professional.

Unless you're professionally trained, it's easy to confuse what you're hearing or seeing and be falsely reassured.

If you're worried about reduction in baby's movements, or have any other concerns, contact your maternity unit immediately.

Read more: https://bit.ly/3JuW58H

28/01/2026

Louise Thompson has launched a petition calling for urgent maternity reform.

The petition – which has today hit 100,000 signatures wants the government to:

* Appoint a Maternity Commissioner to hold maternity services to account
* Drive implementation of a national maternity strategy
* Ensure women and babies are cared for with safety, professionalism and dignity

Having reached 100,000 signatures, it will now have to be considered by the Government for a parliamentary debate.

Launching the petition, Louise posted a raw video saying she was dedicating it to: 'all those who didn’t survive and those who lost their babies.'

Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/4bYTgOp

Images: Louise Thompson

28/01/2026

There’s a lot of unease and uncertainty around birth and maternity services lately, isn’t there?

When sharing info around my new ‘Settling in’ postnatal Saturday morning course soon to start in Bicester, I’ve tried to keep an upbeat and slightly fluffy air to it. But the reality isn’t that, for lots of new parents.

Here are the latest figures. I don’t share them to cause fear, I share them to encourage new parents to equip and prepare themselves.
• Around 10-15% mothers who give birth, will be diagnosed with postnatal depression.
•Postpartum psychosis occurs in 0.1-0.2% of all mothers.
• 4-5% of mums will be diagnosed with post traumatic stress (PTSD).
• Postpartum su***de is now the leading cause of death for mums between 6wks and 1yr post birth.
• 5-10% of all fathers suffer clinically relevant depressive symptoms in the first year. This increases to 24-50% if dad’s partner already has postnatal depression.

…. and these figures are just for those who are diagnosed.

It’s a serious matter, affecting the whole family. Professionals can grossly underestimate the impact of poor perinatal mental health, not least because waiting lists for therapy are SO long.

Postnatal care has been the poor cousin in NHS for too long, and it has to change. Parents need to know what they’re feeling CAN be helped.

If you’d like one to one support at any point in your pregnancy and beyond (for partners, too), text or email me.

If you’d have baby in your arms and would like to join one of my free FREE Saturday morning courses, text me or email me.

The first course is starting 14th Feb, and the second course starts 28th March.

Be prepared, eh?

Text: 07823770858
Email: trudy@birthjourneysmidwifery

Website: www.birthjourneysmidwifery.com

25/01/2026

I’m looking for five brand new parents and partners to help me build and develop my short postnatal support courses.

Antenatal classes teach us about pregnancy and birth, and how to change nappies etc. It’s SO important to prepare ourselves with those skills. But I’m not sure anything prepares us for the emotional ‘obstacle course’ of early parenthood, and there doesn’t seem to be much out there in the way of postnatal support, especially for fathers.

Anyone who’s had a baby can identify with the massive transition it brings to our lives. We have to hit the ground running, don’t we, and identity, relationships, finances, household roles, confidence, intimacy, communication, all take a good bashing. That’s especially so when we add tiredness, judgement from others, and sometimes trauma, to the mix.

I’d like you to help me strengthen and develop this postnatal course, so I can roll it out for more parents to benefit from. Some aspects may need a gentle tweak, and I’d like you to be my critiques. Wouldn’t it be great to build your teamwork skills, and feel like the ‘dream team’ you imagined before that gorgeous little bundle of fun arrived?

The first course of three sessions will start on 14th Feb, 10.30am at Emmanuel Church, Bicester.

Another course (if your baby hasn’t arrived yet) starts on 28th March, 10.30am at Emmanuel Church, Bicester.

• 90 minutes on a Saturday morning. 3 sessions over 6 weeks. Funding gained, and currently offered free of charge.
• Couples and co-parents. New parents or parents already. Bring your brand new babies, and those up to 3 months of age, with you.
• Peer support and discussions. Problem solving around sleep, feeding and everyday baby care.
• Strengthen communication, meet individual needs, and navigate identity shifts.
• Recognise early signs of stress and build strategies to build resilience together.

Message me below, send me a private message, text me on 07823770858 or go to my website to book your place for 14th Feb course, or 28th March course.

I facilitate a small postnatal course for up to five couples attending with their new baby (From birth, to around 12 weeks old). We focus on strengthening communication, meeting individual needs, and navigating identity shifts after a baby’s arrival. The group also supports emotional wellbeing, he...

24/01/2026

With a foot in two camps, both midwifery and psychotherapy, I have two lots of registration, 2 separate indemnity insurance, 2 packages of practice development learning…. And now just the one website.

I’ll take a breather before a tad more tweaking, but it was important to get the website up and running, so I can book couples for the upcoming postnatal group sessions.

It’s lovely to be able to again link my posts to a website. 😃

At Birthjourneys, I offer an integration of midwifery experience and psychotherapy training to support individuals and couples through the many aspects of the perinatal journey.

18/01/2026

Here’s an exciting ‘heads up’ to a new postnatal ‘settling in’ course I’ll be starting very soon. The short (3 Saturday mornings) course is for new parents who want to feel more confident and resourced during the early weeks/months of parenting.

In a small, supportive group, new parents will develop practical tools to steady daily life, strengthen emotional wellbeing, and trust their own responses as they adjust to their new roles, with space to reflect and learn alongside others.

There are limited spaces, and I’m thrilled to have received funding that enables me to offer these spaces free of charge, while I tweak the formatting and content. I’ll be posting more in the next few days, so if you’re interested, or know others who will be, keep your eyes peeled.

Feel free to text me on 07823770858, or email trudy@birthjourneysmidwifery.com if you’d like to be first to express your interest.

www.birthjourneysmidwifery.com