"My dream labour, twice!"

In March 2018 and September 2020, I gave birth to two beautiful boys at Peterhead Community Midwife Unit. 

From my first appointment with a midwife in Fraserburgh, I knew that I would like to give birth at the Peterhead Unit rather than a labour ward. Living in Fraserburgh, it would be at least an hours drive to the labour ward in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, the thought of this with possible painful contractions did not appeal to me.

I also knew that the Midwife Unit had just recently been re-developed and was fitted with birthing pools in both labour rooms. A pool birth appealed to me as I'd heard the warm water can really help ease the pain of contractions. 

My partner and myself were told we could visit the unit any time to be sure it was for us. When we saw how quiet the unit was and saw how lovely the labour rooms were we knew it was definitely what we wanted for our birth plan. The labour rooms were bigger than I had imagined and there was lovely LED colour changing lights to help you relax. The post-natal ward only had three beds so there was a relief knowing that the unit would never be too busy and noisy.

During both pregnancies I planned for a pool birth, trusting that the midwives are well trained to spot any signs of complications and could handle any necessary transfers to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary in plenty time. However, I was very sure that being a young, healthy woman I would be able to give birth in Peterhead with the assistance of the midwives and need no intervention from doctors/surgical staff. 

I was very lucky to give birth to both my children in the birthing pool as planned. Both labours were extremely calm and relaxed. It was a Sunday when I when into labour with my eldest child, so I was lucky to have the full attention from three midwives during the whole experience. With my second labour, I was left in the hands of a student midwife who was absolutely brilliant. My partner was also taken care of with coffee and biscuits throughout!

All the care I received from the midwives throughout both my pregnancies and my stays at the unit was fantastic. They were all so attentive and when I wanted to breastfeed with my first child, I was given lots of help with this. 

I would recommend anyone in the area who is pregnant to go and visit the unit before making any decisions as it really was the most pleasant experience.

Nurses