Beth's Beautiful Home Water Birth: A Positive Birth Story with Doula Support in Yorkshire
A Peaceful Home Water Birth Supported by a Birth Doula
Beth hired me for birth Doula support very early on in her pregnancy. She had a very negative birth experience with her first baby and she knew that she wanted things to be different this time.
I am so delighted that I got to support Beth and her family through pregnancy and birth and that she got the positive, home water birth that she had planned for.
I was also so honoured to be asked to cut Harley's umbilical cord.
Seeing Beth relaxing on the sofa and breastfeeding her baby, only 15 minutes after giving birth was just so beautiful. It was a gorgeous physiological birth. Absolutely perfect and everything that Beth had wanted. - What an honour to witness!
From a Traumatic First Birth to Dreaming of a Positive Home Birth
"Our beautiful little boy, Harley, arrived on 6th July, and his birth was everything I had dreamed it could be. ❤️
My first birth was a really traumatic experience. I had planned a home birth, but things didn’t go to plan and I was transferred to hospital, where I had a forceps delivery and an episiotomy.
That experience stayed with me. For a long time, the thought of getting pregnant again terrified me because I simply didn’t know how I could face giving birth all over again.
When I found out I was pregnant with our second baby, the excitement was quickly mixed with fear. I desperately wanted a positive birth experience.
Then I came across Julia.
I knew someone who had used Julia as her Doula and had what looked like the most incredible home birth, exactly the kind of birth I had dreamed of having the first time. Seeing her experience gave me hope that perhaps things could be different for me too.
From the moment I started working with Julia, she taught me so much about pregnancy, birth and what our bodies actually go through. These were things that my midwives and antenatal classes had never taught me.
The more I learned, the more I understood just how incredible our bodies are and what they are capable of.
But most importantly, Julia helped me learn to trust my body again.
With her support, I planned my dream home birth and for the first time, I found myself feeling excited about giving birth.
Preparing for a Positive Home Water Birth: When Labour Begins
I was 39+4 and had absolutely no signs that labour was anywhere near. Even in the days leading up to it, there was nothing to suggest Harley was about to make an appearance.
Then, at 4am on 6th July, my waters suddenly broke and contractions started almost immediately, around seven minutes apart.
By 4.45am, I had contacted my midwives and Julia, and by 6am everyone had arrived.
This time, I felt completely different.
I was mentally prepared. I understood what my body was doing. And, most importantly, I trusted it.
My partner got straight to work filling the birth pool, while the room was transformed into the calm, peaceful space I had imagined bringing our baby into, complete with pretty fairy lights. It felt safe, peaceful and exactly how I had hoped it would.
Hypnobirthing, Breathing and Doula Support During Labour
I chose to have no pain relief and instead used everything Julia had taught me — hypnobirthing, my birth comb, breathing, movement and the pool.
Harley was back-to-back, which made the contractions and intense back pain particularly challenging.
Julia was incredible throughout. She helped me find positions that felt right, used lavender oil, hot towels, massage and counter pressure, and constantly reminded me to breathe and trust my body.
The hot towels and massage on my back during those contractions were honestly the BEST feeling ever!
I spent most of my labour on all fours, leaning over the pool for support and completely in my own world.
Despite how intense it was, I felt safe, supported and in control.
A Positive Home Water Birth: Welcoming Baby Harley After Birth Trauma
Just five and a half hours after my waters had broken, our beautiful boy Harley arrived, at 9.30am. 💙
I couldn't believe that I had done it!
And he was a whopping 9lb 7oz too!
After everything I had experienced with my first birth, holding Harley in my arms after such a peaceful home birth, felt completely surreal.
I had gone from being terrified of birth to trusting my body and experiencing the birth I had once only dreamed of.
It was everything I had hoped for and more.
I will forever be grateful to Julia for helping me believe that I could do it. ❤️
Skin-to-Skin, First Breastfeed and Delayed Cord Clamping After a Home Birth.
Within a few minutes of giving birth, I got out of the pool and onto the sofa. The placenta still needed to be born, so I cuddled with my new baby boy on the sofa, giving him lots of skin-to-skin. Harley soon discovered the breast and within just 15 minutes of being born, Harley was having his first breastfeed.
I was keen to have optimum cord clamping, which is when the cord has turned white, stopped pulsating and ensures that the baby gets all of their full volume of blood. We waited 45 minutes before the cord was ready to be cut and I asked Julia if she would cut the cord and do the honours for me."
What is Optimum Cord Clamping?
"Optimum cord clamping means waiting until the cord has stopped pulsating and has become white before cutting the cord. The cord should not be clamped earlier than 1 minute after birth. Optimum cord clamping is important because it provides your baby at birth with a full volume of blood, which gives increased iron levels in the baby up until they are 6 months old, helping with growth and emotional development. It also provides an increased amount of stem cells, which helps with your baby’s growth and helps with their immune system." (Tommy's, 2026).
"Soon after the cord was cut, I started with contractions again and just 50 minutes after birth. the placenta was ready to come out. The contractions were much milder than they had been during labour and with just a gentle push, the placenta quickly came out.
Thank you Julia, for helping me find my confidence, trust my body and turn something I once feared into one of the most empowering experiences of my life. X"
Looking for a Birth Doula in Leeds or Yorkshire?
If you are currently pregnant and reading this positive birth story, thinking "That's what I'd love for my birth too," I’d love to help you prepare for your own birth journey.
Whether you’re hoping for a home birth, a water birth, a hospital birth or a positive VBAC, my role as your birth doula is to help you feel informed, confident and supported as you prepare to welcome your baby.
Perhaps, like Beth, you’ve experienced a difficult or traumatic birth before and are hoping for a different experience this time. Or maybe this is your first baby and you want to feel prepared, understand your options and approach birth with greater confidence.
As a local birth doula in Leeds, I support families across Leeds and Yorkshire with personalised pregnancy, birth and postnatal support. I also offer virtual doula support for families further afield, so you can benefit from dedicated support wherever you’re based.
You deserve to feel heard, supported and confident in your birth choices. You don’t have to navigate pregnancy and birth alone.
If you’d like to explore how my birth doula support could help you, get in touch with me to find out more.
Julia x
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