ClarityDoula

When I fell pregnant I was ‘only’ 22 and in my third year at university. I was the first of my friends to embark on the journey of pregnancy, childbirth and parenthood. In the ensuing (many!) years I have encountered plenty of women who chose to start their families in their early 20’s with a supportive partner (often husband) and network of family and friends nearby. Things were quite different for me; all my close school friends were also away at university and the World Wide Web had not infiltrated West Dorset with its potential for virtual, online connectivity and seemingly infinite information. I felt very isolated and alone. My pregnancy was not planned and I deliberated for a long time over whether to have a termination. Once I had decided to ‘keep the baby’ I dropped out of my degree course at university for the year and returned to the family home 130 miles away. My parents were supportive and my mum agreed to be my birth partner. Before I was pregnant I knew very littl...

If you are pregnant and live in one of the South East London areas such as Lewisham, Greenwich, Catford, Blackheath, Mottingham, Hither Green and New Cross you may be considering birthing your baby at the Lewisham Birth Centre. This is an option for women who have had straightforward pregnancies and are expected to be able to birth their babies without medical intervention. It’s a really good idea to look at the Which? Birth Choices guide to where to have your baby, and do a tour yourself, but to give you another point of view, this is the second in my series of reviews of birth locations in South East London from a doula’s viewpoint.   The Birth Centre opened in 2010 and offers tours on Thursdays at 10am and 1pm. I attended the 1pm session and there were 4 pregnant women, two of whom had brought their partners. Parking on the hospital site is limited and rather expensive so I parked in a side street with a RingGo meter. When women arrive in labour, their partners are advis...