"My experience of giving birth and postnatal care"

I gave birth to my son in December 2024. My journey began two days earlier when I attended the hospital due to the premature rupture of membranes. I was informed that I would need an induction, and if my labour hadn’t progressed, I would be admitted to a ward alone in the early hours to begin the process. As a first-time mother, I felt anxious and called the unit to ask if my partner could stay, but I was dismissed and told the unit was too busy. Accepting this, I made my way to the hospital.

The midwives who supported me during labour were incredible. They made me feel at ease and comfortable. Unfortunately, my induction failed, and I required a C-section. The medical team was fantastic, and my son was safely delivered.

After surgery, I was transferred to the postnatal ward. By the afternoon, I became concerned that my baby wasn’t getting colostrum from my breast. I spoke with the feeding team, who suggested using a breast pump to express colostrum. I successfully expressed 1mL and fed him while continuing to breastfeed and practice skin-to-skin.

That evening, I wanted to express again, as suggested by the daytime feeding team, but the night shift midwives seemed unfamiliar with the pump setup. I overheard them discussing how they didn’t remember how to set it up. An hour later, I asked again for assistance, but I was told expressing was not recommended at this stage and to keep offering the breast. Trusting their advice, I continued, but through the night, my baby became increasingly agitated, and I suspected he wasn’t getting enough milk. Eventually, I requested formula as I couldn’t soothe him. A midwife fed him so I could rest for a few hours.

I began feeling unwell in the early hours of the morning, experiencing shivering and shaking. My temperature was taken and found to be high. Ice packs were given, and I was told I was likely overheating due to a blanket on my bed. At one point, my shaking was so severe that I asked for help with my baby. I overheard midwives discussing how I had been unable to settle him, which was completely inaccurate—I had been caring for him but was physically struggling due to my symptoms.

I was tested for COVID-19 and flu, and when both results were negative, I was discharged. My temperature had lowered with paracetamol, so it was no longer seen as a concern. However, I overheard midwives discussing how they wanted everyone discharged to empty the ward.

Before leaving, I spoke with another patient who shared my frustration over the lack of consistency in staff instructions, even regarding simple things like administering blood clot prevention injections.

At home, I continued experiencing shivering episodes but assumed it was an aftereffect of surgery, as the hospital had not flagged it as an issue.

A community midwife visited to check on my son, and upon weighing him, we were told he had lost 13% of his body weight, requiring readmission to the hospital. I was devastated, as I had been breastfeeding and supplementing with formula.

Upon arrival, the hospital staff examined him, and we were admitted to the neonatal ward. He was placed on a feeding schedule of formula every three hours for 24 hours to regain weight.

That night, I again felt unwell, experiencing intense shivering. My temperature was taken and flagged as a concern. The following day, I was retested for COVID-19 and flu, despite having already tested negative. The staff seemed surprised when I informed them of my previous test. My fever worsened every time the paracetamol wore off. It was eventually determined that I had an infection, requiring IV antibiotics and further tests to identify the source.

After 24 hours, my son was reweighed. To the staff’s horror, he was essentially back to his birth weight. They checked twice on different scales and realised an error had been made—he had never lost 13% of his weight. His sodium levels had been completely normal, which should have been a red flag that the initial measurement was incorrect. The staff apologised and admitted a mistake had been made.

I was then told I was lucky to have been in the hospital when I fell ill, as the error in my son’s weight had inadvertently ensured I was in the right place to receive medical attention. While this may have been true, I wouldn’t have needed readmission if my symptoms had been taken seriously on the postnatal ward.

Due to my experience and the lack of trust I had in the postnatal staff, I refused to stay on that ward again. The medical team caring for me advocated for me, and I was moved to a private room in the labuor and delivery ward, where my partner was allowed to stay. This was necessary as I was too ill to care for my baby.

I remained in the hospital for four nights, receiving IV antibiotics to treat the infection. During this time, the midwives and doctors who cared for me were fantastic, providing the support and reassurance I had been lacking earlier.

As a first-time mother, this experience was incredibly frightening. The errors made with both my care and my son's care left me with little confidence in the maternity services at Wishaw.