10 Things You May Not Know About Me

Hello everyone! How are you all enjoying this first day of May?

My last few blog’s have been pretty heavy going, so I thought I would lighten things up with this week’s post. So much of what is written about pregnancy and birth lacks personal connection – which is crazy considering how much of a personal time this is in your life.

It's always good getting to know the ‘person behind the business’ and to have a bit of fun! So without further delay, here are 10 little facts that you might not know about me:

1. I am SUPER tall – Okay so if you have met me you will already know this, but I am 188cms tall, which if you prefer feet and inches is 6 ft 2! I used to hate it when I was younger, but now I don’t mind – except when it comes to buying pants (particularly work pants, why must they always be made for shorties!). I still get asked almost everyday how tall I am and if I play netball/or basketball, which brings me us to number 2..

2. I love playing netball – It’s the only form of exercise where I don’t feel like I’m actually exercising. I’m so lucky that I’m in a great team with some wonderful girls. We are pretty competitive but all love a laugh. PLUS its one of those things where being tall is actually really beneficial!

1. I decided I wanted to be a Midwife when I was only 14 – When I think back it seems SO young, but here I am still loving it over a decade later! My mum would sometimes try to persuade me into nursing or medicine, but this is really all I have ever wanted to do. I worked hard at school as I knew I needed a high score to get accepted into the Bachelor of Midwifery, and even changed school so that I could be in the best place for achieving this.

1. I was 15 when I saw my first birth – I was on a work experience placement at the time (ironically at the hospital where I currently work – talk about coming full circle!), and was incredibly lucky to be able to tag along with a midwife as she assisted at a c-section. Definitely cemented my career choice! (excuse the red face and tired eyes in the picture below - this was taken after my first night shift...)

1. I like to talk, and I often talk WAY too fast (my partner made me add this one in!) You might already know this, but what you may not know is that I used to be incredibly quiet and shy. I recently did a personality type course and discovered that I am now quite extroverted, which is really interesting and made me realise how much I actually do like socialising, teaching, and yes- talking!

1. I work at 2 different maternity hospitals in Adelaide – At first I thought this would be hard juggling two different workplaces but I’m actually loving it! Working in both the public and private systems means that I am getting to see how different places operate, which essentially means that when I teach Hypnobirthing classes I am giving you current, factual and up to date information. FUN FACT – did you know that in Adelaide we don’t have any private hospitals who will facilitate a waterbirth? Interstate there are many hospitals in the private system who offer this option. Fingers crossed this changes in the future!

2. I have recently become a bit addicted to essential oils. I love diffusing citrus and peppermint blends during the day and lavender at night. Last week when I had a nasty cold I had these three on constant rotation, which made a big difference to how I felt! I have recently joined Young Living as a distributor so let me know if you would like any oils.

1. I have two not-so-little puppies – Sox and Sadie. Although they can do my head in with their running up and down the hallway in the middle of the night – they are very loving and are definitely part of our little family. We chose them both from the pound, which I can highly recommend.

1. When I was 17 I was diagnosed with Endometriosis, a disease that most people have never even heard of even though it affects 10% of women. How crazy is that!. I am thankful that my symptoms are now pretty well managed, but for some women this disease can be absolutely horrendous – check out this website if you would like to learn more.

2. I love reading, but hardly ever read fiction – I have discovered that I really like learning and have a slight addiction to self help books. I always have more than one book on the go – at the moment I am just finishing the Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin, and have started Work Smarter: Live Better by Cyril Peupion.

Well there you go - I hope that you now know me a little better. I would love to hear a little about you! Feel free to comment below with some of your own special quirks.

Hannah x