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Hannah Willsmore

The Hypnobirth of Winter - a VBA2C and Positive Induction Story.


We are very happy to say we welcomed our beautiful daughter via VBA2C! (Vaginal Birth After 2 previous Caesareans).

Miss Winter Belle was born at 1:47pm weighing 3.47kg - just a smidge bigger than her biggest brother - making her my biggest baby!

We had the most amazing birth!

We had an appointment with my Dr to check me over ready for an induction we had planned to start on the 22nd - my 'due date'. We discovered at this appointment that my blood pressure was starting to creep up and that I also had protein in my urine. This cemented the decision to go ahead with our induction starting the 22nd.

I was admitted to hospital on the 22nd at 4pm and had a balloon catheter inserted at 6pm. Not the most comfortable contraption but it did get some surges going for a couple of hours before fizzling enough for me to sleep as much as I could that night.

My Dr came back the following morning to break my waters - I was already 5cm after the balloon and it was agreed that we would wait for a minimum of 4 hours to get everything going before discussing any further intervention.

We were left to our own devices to get things moving and got focused with a beautiful room full of battery candles, fairy lights and affirmations on the wall.

Within an hour I was having surges about every 4 minutes lasting between 30 seconds and a minute which was very promising.

I used surge breathing, the shower and rocking my hips to get through the surges and found standing up slumped over the bed my only comfortable position.

Cameron was amazing throughout labour, using all the hypnobirthing techniques he could think of to help, getting me water, adjusting the wireless CTG when it moved and just being there whenever I needed him.

About 4 hours in I started feeling pushy and like I couldn't continue and asked for fentanyl which I was given one dose of - in hindsight this was the start of transition.

My Dr came by at about 1pm and asked to perform an internal check as I said I was pushing and sure enough I was 10cm and she was well and truly on her way.

I had a small cervical lip which she was having trouble moving past though, and with every surge her heart rate would drop quite significantly. My Dr asked me to hop up on the bed in a seated position so she could push the lip out of the way to help with decent so that baby could move down quicker as they were concerned about her heart rate.

Well once this happened my body and baby took over! 15 minutes and 4 pushes later Winter was born - a little stunned due to how quick everything had gone but absolutely perfect and I even pulled her up onto my chest.

This was such an amazing and intense experience and even I was in shock for quite a while!

My Dr was fantastic in checking and explaining everything to me, keeping the room calm and quiet during delivery and when asked by the midwives about the oxytocin injection for the placenta she was quick on it to tell them no, and that we were just going to wait as we had discussed with her.

So with this I even had a natural third stage where the placenta was born 20minutes after delivery with just one small push from me.

I am utterly elated with how the whole birth went and how amazing I feel after Winter's arrival! Recovery has been so easy and amazing, and Winter is thriving!

Thank you so much for your help in getting us prepared for our hypnobirth! All the techniques we had practiced and the confidence we had gained through the course, reading into natural birthing and working so hard to find the right team to work with really paid off!

We went home from the hospital 2 days later (which felt crazy in itself when I was used to spending around a week in hospital after c-sections) and are slowly adjusting to life as a family of 5 but her brothers absolutely adore her!


I think it is so important to read positive experiences when preparing for your birth, especially for those who have had previous interventions as I did, and for women to know that it is possible to have a VBAC when you put the hard work in and find the right providers for you.


Congratulations Ash and Cameron! I am so happy that you achieved the positive birth experience that you were hoping for!

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