"Having my first baby"

I had my first baby at Aberdeen Maternity Hospital in January 2025 and wanted to thank the staff who supported us.

Nothing in my birth preferences went to plan but at every turn I was met with kindness, respect and non-judgemental staff. When you have a baby you are so vulnerable and it's a huge thing to put your trust in these strangers but they were impeccable and went above and beyond for us. The way the staff treated me and my husband took what could have been a really traumatic experience and made it much more positive (albeit still the scariest day of my life!). 

My thank yous...

Shona, my community midwife - you helped me make a difficult decision that really changed my plans for birth without any feelings of pressure or coercion.

Hannah and Allie on the triage word - thank you for introducing me to gas and air and laughing with me when I needed it.

Bailie, Stephanie, Mikayla and Kevin on the labour ward - thank you for listening to me, respecting my decisions, keeping me right and helping me relax into a birth space and process that wasn't my first choice. My labour took quite a few twists and turns that I hadn't expected but you helped it feel manageable. I initially said I wasn't sure if I wanted to include students in my labour as I would find too many people being part of it too overwhelming. However, Stephanie and Kevin were amazing and able to dedicate so much attention to us. Kevin - thank you for taking such good care of my husband when I was taken to theatre. I was terrified but I can't even begin to imagine what it would be like to watch that happen to someone you love and you made sure he was cared for and supported and you were able to capture photos of him with our baby where I couldn't when I was in recovery. 

David and the theatre team (sorry I can't remember all your names, I was fully in fight or flight by this point!)- thank you for getting our baby girl here safely. We will always be so grateful to you.

Everyone on the Ashgrove ward - thank you for your patience and support with my endless list of questions and worries. A particular shout out to Sarah who I think is both a baby and new mum whisperer. Both nights she was working she answered my buzzer when I was really struggling and she was just amazing. She helped is with a breastfeeding breakthrough and got baby settled to let me have some sleep. She said repeatedly that this was just her job but her kindness, expertise and approach will stick with me.