"Pregnancy and labour"

I am a first time parent, and I have accessed the Coatbridge community midwife team, midwives and nurses in  Wishaw hospital during my delivery.

Tracy who is a Coatbridge community midwife was an absolutely outstanding support for me, she supported me by answering any questions I had on my pregnancy allowing me to make my own informed choices. I would leave my appointments with Tracy feeling more empowered and optimistic about my pregnancy. I feel I was able to ask questions freely and did not feel embarrassed to do so. I never once felt judged which I feel helped me to be fully honest throughout my appointments.  I felt really lucky to have a midwife like Tracy throughout my pregnancy, she has helped make my experience as a first time Mum more calm, confident and informed.

I had my baby in January 2025, My delivery midwife Chloe in Wishaw Hospital was extremely supportive throughout the whole process of my labour, she helped create a calm and relaxing environment and really support me in reducing any anxieties I had in labour by building positive relationships with myself and my birthing partners. I felt relieved knowing she would be my midwife throughout my labour as she was kind, warm and understanding. Chloe really put me at ease throughout all of the ups and downs of the labour - I felt supported by her at all times. Chloe is an amazing midwife whose nurturing care was crucial during the changing circumstances of my labour - with this being my first baby I am so grateful that I had such a wonderful midwife to guide and support me in labour.

All of the midwife’s on the labour ward were  wonderful, they all helped me to feel comfortable, especially those who supported me when Chloe was on her break (sadly I can’t remember their names). Another midwife Leanne helped to take me to theatre - I will never forget her warmth during that time as I was quite upset about my labour resulting in a section.

My labour ended in a c-section, where I was taken to theatre in wishaw general. In the theatre there was a nurse called Shannon, (I am not sure of her job title) Shannon has shaped the memory of my birth into a positive one. She supported me when I received the spinal and held my hand chatted to me and worked hard to distract me from what was going on in the room - as by this point I was feeling quite overwhelmed and poorly. I was so focused on her and her encouragement that it helped in lower my anxiety. In a really unexpected and stressful time, she was able to create a feeling of security and support. Despite there being a number of things happening in the theatre room and my body reacting in different ways to medication, Shannon became a focal point for me as she had such a positive and bright approach to her treatment of myself and my partner.

When you receive care like this it helps you to remember what can be a physically difficult time into a more positive one. The memory of my pregnancy and labour will forever be shaped by these people who provided amazing care. The nhs are really lucky to have them.