http://www.kickstocuddles.co.uk/

Kicks to Cuddles, Epping (2025)

02/03/2023

💗POSITIVE PREGNANCY TEST, WHAT NEXT? 💗

💗If you’ve seen two little lines or the words ‘pregnant’ on your test, congratulations you’re pregnant! now what do you do next?

💗Firstly contact your GP to book your antenatal care. Antenatal care is the care you get from health professionals during your pregnancy.It's sometimes called pregnancy care or maternity care.
You'll be offered appointments with a midwife, or sometimes a doctor who specialises in pregnancy and birth (an obstetrician).

💗You’re free to choose any maternity services, most women book with their local hospital but some even book with a hospital that isn’t local to them if that is what they wish, so do your research and find out which hospital is best for you!

💗You should start your antenatal care as soon as possible once you know you're pregnant. You should have your first appointments usually around 8-10 weeks pregnant.

01/03/2023

This!! 🙌🏻👏🏻

22/02/2023

💗 THE FOURTH TRIMESTER 💗

If you think in terms of the first three months of your baby’s life being a Fourth Trimester, it can be easier to take the pressure off getting back to ‘normal’. You wouldn’t have been trying to rush around tidying the house and welcoming endless visitors when you were heavily pregnant, so don’t put pressure on yourself to do it now. There is a long period of adjustment and care needed at home in those early newborn days, friends and family can support new parents with food, help around the house, and reassurance that they are doing a great job of looking after their baby.
It’s good to have very modest aims in the early days – getting outside most days but for short periods (perhaps a short walk around the block), eating well, resting as mucsh as possible is enough, take it slowly and seek help if you feel like you aren’t coping 💗

20/02/2023

Don’t listen to anyone that tells you you should birth your baby in a certain way, we definitely won’t.

What we will do is help you to understand exactly what is happening in your body during birth, it often surprises people! We’ll also talk you through different ways to make the experience as positive for you as possible, whether that be a home birth with gas and air, a hospital birth, an epidural, a c-section - you have lots of choices.

Through hypnobirthing and our birth prep sessions, you’ll build your own plan for the optimal birth for you - as well as feeling confident in your options in case things don’t quite go to plan. Birth can be unpredictable but we want to make sure you feel prepared and confident - the main factor in a positive birth.

Book now to get your place in our comprehensive antenatal course, from birth to fourth trimester - including baby first aid!

Visit our website or contact us for more details 💗Lisa & Claire xx

📸 by the wonderful

31/01/2023

We have an exciting free event planned!

We are offering free tickets to six expectant mothers and their birth partners for one evening of birth and baby prep, as well as socialising and lovely food!

We will be covering a condensed version of our popular course, including Hypnobirthing, midwife led birth prep, and infant feeding. The event will also be filmed, although only a couple of minutes will be on television (with very little filmed of the attendees), the crew will be present for the whole night.

We will make sure everyone feels comfortable and gets the information they need, as well as providing fantastic food and having a great night out at The Brentwood Kitchen!

So if you are expecting a baby in the Brentwood area, want up to date pre & post birth information, and are happy to have a film crew in the background - then get in touch or book through the link in our bio!

28/01/2023

Here’s a reminder from (who runs a fab company called ) that inductions can be positive when they are right choice for you.

My positive induction story!

This was my second birth 17 months after my first.

I’d planned to have as natural a birth as possible, as a ‘high risk’ pregnancy my birth was arranged to be on the labour ward with continuous monitoring during but still to use the birth pool (if possible!) and hypnobirthing. My waters broke spontaneously at 38+5 but labour slowed and I was informed procedure was to start induction once 24 hours had passed. I felt informed and consented to this.

After going home and reading the information, I felt calm knowing it could still be the birth I wanted (minus the pool). I had a pessary over night with little change and was then moved onto a drip induction.

Based on my birth plan, I was matched with a midwife who was also a hypnobirthing instructor. She was supportive and facilitating of my practice during labour. We dimmed the lights, played my tracks, used essential oils and talked about my older daughter. My partner and I looked through her photos while we told our midwife funny stories of her as a baby.

It felt like a really safe, relaxed place and as the drip speed increased my contractions became very intense. Both my partner and midwife helped ground me through them. I was encouraged to move around on the bed to allow for movement and better positioning.

Even though I was strapped up for monitoring my midwife made sure they were in place while I was in a birthing headspace. The bed was made upright into a chair and I kneeled, leaning on the headrest for support when I gave birth, 3 hours after the drip induction started.

Baby was born healthy and happy and I didn’t need stitches this time too!

It felt like a very powerful, natural birth with me in control despite the intervention. It felt more like a helping hand and although the contractions were intense it was manageable with focus and gas & air. I’d been able to use all the affirmations, relaxation tracks and visualisations I’d prepared. Overall I felt very safe and cared for throughout.

27/01/2023

Induction of labour is a huge topic and one that we cover in our ‘what if’ session during the course. It’s important to us that our parents to be feel prepared in every aspect, including induction. We’ve had amazing feedback from people feeling prepared and ready to make informed decisions when this has cropped up. 👍🏻💗

24/01/2023

Sometimes things don’t always go to plan and these little babies like to make an early appearance! Thanks to this lovely couple for their feedback.

This mama’s waters broke early around 29 weeks pregnant, of course it’s a shock and unexpected, a lot to navigate and she coped amazingly.

She was so happy she managed to come to our first session and even said what she had learned made her realise she needed to go into the hospital to get checked.

Once her baby was a few months old it was lovely to have her and her partner back to join another group for our 3rd session where we cover all things fourth trimester and baby first aid, although they didn’t need to practice putting on the nappies 🤣💗

25/08/2022

Our antenatal courses are fun, sociable and everything you need all in one! Running at

Our September course filled super fast and Our November course is booking already, grab your space while you can! We will also be releasing dates for the new year in the next few weeks! 🧡

What’s included?

🧡MIDWIFE LED
🧡HYPNOBIRTHING
🧡BIRTH PREP
🧡’ WHAT IF’ SESSION
🧡INFANT FEEDING MODULE
🧡BABY FIRST AID
🧡 FOURTH TRIMESTER
🧡 MEET YOUR SUPPORT NETWORK
🧡DELICIOUS FOOD

Any questions send us a DM or email, always happy to help!

Claire & Lisa x x

16/06/2022

🧡Baby Summer Safety Tips 🧡⠀
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🧡Keeping rooms from getting too hot can be difficult, especially when temperatures soar into the high 30s.

🧡Things you can do to help keep your baby safe in the heat...

🧡Close the blinds or curtains during the day to stop the room your baby sleeps in from getting too hot⠀
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🧡Put a fan in the bedroom to help circulate the air, but make sure it is out of reach and not pointed directly at your baby⠀
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🧡Reduce layers; just a nappy with no bedding is fine in hot weather, do not swaddle or restrict their movement as this will make them hotter.
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🧡Monitor the temperature with a room thermometer⠀
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🧡Babies should be kept out of direct sunlight and kept indoors during the hottest part of the day. If possible, parents should avoid taking their baby on public transport during peak hours.⠀
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🧡It’s important that babies are kept cool when out an about in hot weather. Prams should be covered with a clip-on sunshade to keep baby out of direct sunlight and their temperature monitored to avoid overheating. Prams should not be covered with blankets, cloths or any cover that prevents the air from circulating. Covering a pram with a blanket could lead to overheating.⠀
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🧡Parents forget to look after yourselves too! Drink plenty of water and take things slowly 🧡
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All advice recommended by ⠀

31/05/2022

Learn everything you need for birth & beyond, and make some fantastic friends along the way!

Our unique antenatal course is social, easy to follow and midwife led. We cover always cover hypnobirthing, birth planning, baby first aid & fourth trimester in our courses. We also include The Positive Birth Book by and delicious food to graze on while you learn, from .

Swipe across to see some of the lovely feedback we’ve received and feel free to get in touch with any questions. Lisa & Claire 🧡

26/05/2022

🧡 8 steps to being an amazing birth partner 🧡

It can be daunting in the lead up to being a birth partner, and easy to under estimate your importance. You are actually one of the most important people in their birthing journey.

Here are 8 ways you can make a significant difference in labour:

🧡 Keep them hydrated - the body needs enough fluids to ensure that the blood and oxygen are going to where they are needed the most.

🧡 Stay with them - physically and mentally, be right there with them without a mobile phone or any other distractions. You’d be amazed at how quickly the time goes when you’re both immersed in the journey together.

🧡 Remind them to empty their bladder- try and walk them to the toilet every hour as a full bladder can slow down contractions, and an empty bladder can help the head enter the pelvis effectively, putting pressure on the cervix to continue opening nicely.

🧡 Offer food routinely - provides much needed fuel to support the body and mind. If they’re not feeling like eating then a teaspoon of honey can work wonders!

🧡 Create a calm bubble for them - keep the amount of people in the room to a minimum and find out beforehand what they want to listen to, dimming the lights helps immensely.

🧡 Know the hospital bag’s contents well
- nothing brings someone out of their birthing bubble quicker than rummaging around in a bag for a much needed item, ideally, pack it with them!

🧡 Limit chatter - this is not a time for chit chat, unless they want to! Follow their lead.

🧡Take initial conversations from medical support, often conversations take place that don’t require the birthing person’s input, especially if you’ve created a birth plan together. Unnecessary conversations can bring them out of their bubble and produce stress hormones.

We believe birth partners are invaluable in birth, which is why they are involved in every aspect of our course. Get in touch to find out more 🧡

25/05/2022

🧡THERE IS NO FAILURE IN BIRTH🧡
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Look at her, walking into her c-section like a boss! Having a caesarean section whatever way that may be, whether it’s planned in advance (elective c-section) or an emergency, it shouldn’t come laced with feelings of failure. The truth is, caesarean sections save women’s and babies’ lives! However you have a baby, you’re a winner. 🧡
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25/05/2022

We’d love for you to join us for an evening at The Brentwood Kitchen on Tuesday, 7th June 2022. Our last event sold out and was so enjoyable, that we thought we’d do it again!

It’s an opportunity to meet other local expectant parents, have some great food and to meet us and see what we do.

Tickets cost £15 for two (mother and a plus one). The event runs from 6pm to 7:30pm and includes:

- Light bites from
- An introduction to all aspects of our signature course, including Hypnobirthing, Birth Prep with a qualified midwife, baby first aid and infant care & feeding
- A chance to meet and chat to other expectant parents in the area
- A Hypnobirthing starter kit

All tickets are redeemable for any purchase of a Kicks to Cuddles Course.

Get in touch with any questions or purchase tickets through our website. We look forward to seeing you there! Lisa & Claire 🧡

11/05/2022

🧡Meet the team 🧡

🧡Hi! 👋🏻 I’m Claire, a midwife, a nurse, an infant feeding specialist and a mother of two. I have almost 12 years experience working within midwifery.
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🧡I’ve worked in all areas of midwifery including antenatal clinic, delivery suite, postnatal ward, and in the community. I currently work offering private independent midwifery services to families around Essex and East London over at varying from full antenatal and postnatal care to one-off appointments/feeding support. I also continue to work on Delivery Suite & The Birth Centre in a busy London hospital. 🧡
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🧡I am very passionate about realistic antenatal education and co-founded Kicks to Cuddles] where we provide fully comprehensive antenatal classes including hypnobirthing, baby first aid, infant feeding and the fourth trimester. Throw in lots of laughs and fun along the way and Tuesday evenings teaching at Kicks to Cuddles] has become my favourite time of the week!
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🧡Five random facts about me... ⠀
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🧡I play the electric guitar, and love Motown and Blues music. 🎸 ⠀
🧡 I own a ridiculous amount of jumpsuits⠀
🧡 I have traveled a lot and lived in some amazing places, one of which was living in Edinburgh Castle 🏰 . ⠀
🧡I love Vietnamese food and have taken a lot of Vietnamese cooking classes. ⠀
🧡I have renovated two homes. 🏠

11/05/2022

We had a fantastic night last night at ! Lovely food and company and talked all things Hypnobirthing and “what ifs?”. Looking forward to seeing you all again next Tuesday!

05/05/2022

🧡International Day of The Midwife 🧡

Thank you midwives! Today let’s all come together to celebrate midwives, to strengthen midwife associations and advance the profession of midwifery globally by promoting autonomous midwives as the most appropriate caregivers for childbearing women and in keeping birth normal, in order to enhance the reproductive health of women, their newborns and their families 🧡

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Kicks to Cuddles

02/03/2023

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22/02/2023

20/02/2023

31/01/2023

28/01/2023

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24/01/2023

25/08/2022

16/06/2022

31/05/2022

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