"They weren’t just a group of employees, they were a team"

After a long IVF journey, we finally fell pregnant. Our little girl was born via c section at Aberdeen Maternity after labour failed to progress. I was then taken from the maternity unit to ARI for an MRI scan as they believed that I had had a stroke. Thankfully I hadn’t, but at this scan they found a bulging disc that was pressing on the nerves for my bowl, bladder and legs. This was absolutely terrifying and I was taken first thing the next morning for an emergency back operation. 

They were ready to discharge me from ward 212 and my daughter from the maternity unit. At this point I hadn't been with her for 3 whole days, this had resulted in my milk not coming through properly and I hadn’t had any time to bond with her. 

I was so scared of going home as I was in so much pain after 2 operations and didn’t know what I was doing regarding looking after a new born. It had a huge impact on my mental health. 

We got moved to Peterhead maternity and I honestly cannot thank them enough. If it wasn’t for the fantastic support from the staff I would not be breast feeding and honestly, I would be really struggling mentally to look after our daughter. 

They weren’t just a group of employees, they were a team. You could tell that from my very first night and this team are a credit to the NHS. 

They not only helped me to recover from my operations, they helped to build my confidence to make me a better mother. They were there to talk to when I couldn’t cope with the pain and my daughter's crying. They guided me with breast feeding and every aspect of looking after a new born. Their knowledge and experience shone through in everything they spoke about. 

We were so quickly sent home after having a baby to get on with it, some people with none or very little experience. 

If I had gone home immediately we would not be where we are now. My daughter would be bottle fed, we wouldn’t have bonded and I would not be the mother that I am today. 

To the staff at Peterhead Maternity Hospital who I had the great pleasure of meeting in the 5 nights I was in…. Thank you,  from the bottom of my heart. You are amazing and have made a huge difference to our lives.