Getting stopped by the police in labour wasn’t in my birth plan, but it’s what sold me on hypnobirthing!

My first birth was every bad story you’ve ever heard, rolled into one.
The classic cascade of intervention.

I went in clueless.
I thought I’d just turn up, get told what to do, and somehow it would all be fine.

But it wasn’t.

I didn’t know what was happening to my body. I had no idea how birth worked.
I ended up with medication too close to delivery, my daughter taken straight to special care, and a long list of interventions that left me feeling completely shaken.

It wasn’t just the birth — it was the start of motherhood that followed. I felt like something had been taken from me. And I knew, if I ever did this again, I wanted something different.

Twelve years later, I did.

I was pregnant with my second baby, and this time, I was determined to prepare.
I took a hypnobirthing course — and I’m not exaggerating when I say it changed everything.

It wasn’t a "perfect birth.”
But it was healing.

Why your birth environment matters more than you think

I went into labour on a Saturday afternoon. I was calm, at home, surrounded by cosy lighting, a familiar playlist, and the smell of my room spray — and I was using all the tools I’d learned on the course.

Breathwork. Visualisation. Staying in control.

Even though my surges were three in ten minutes, I felt so peaceful I almost didn’t believe I was in labour.

But given how fast my first birth was, we decided to head to hospital.

And that’s when things shifted.

We got in the car and I had to work hard to stay calm — and then, blue lights in the rear view mirror.

The police pulled us over.
My partner was put in the back of their car, even though I was visibly in labour in the front seat.

By the time he got back, I was crying. Upset. Everything felt unsafe.

And my labour stalled. Completely.

The surges that had been regular? Gone.
My body shut down. It didn’t feel safe anymore.

It was the clearest reminder of what we teach in hypnobirthing — your birth environment has a direct effect on how your body behaves.

This is physiology. Hormones. The nervous system.

After two hours of waiting at the hospital, nothing was happening. So we went home.

And the moment I walked back into my familiar, cosy birth space?
My surges came back. Stronger. Consistent.

We made our way back to hospital — and this time, we just made it in time.

When birth doesn’t go to plan — here’s what helped me stay calm

We filled the pool up. And within an hour, my baby boy was born.

A water birth, just as I’d hoped.

And I truly believe that if I hadn’t done hypnobirthing, I’d have had him on the side of the road.
Panicked. Scared. Out of control.

That moment — being stopped by the police, everything stalling, and then needing to bring myself back to calm — that’s when I knew how powerful these tools were.

The breathwork.
The anchors I’d practised.
The ability to pause and bring myself back to safety — even when everything felt overwhelming.

That wasn’t a fluke.
That was preparation.

What hypnobirthing actually teaches you

Hypnobirthing gave me the knowledge, tools, and mindset to support my body — no matter what happened.

It taught me how the mind and body work together in birth.
Why feeling safe matters.
What hormones are doing — and how to help them, not hinder them.
And how to stay grounded and in control, even when things don’t go to plan.

This is why I became a hypnobirthing teacher.

Because this is the part so many people are missing.
That no one tells you.

Birth doesn’t need to feel chaotic. You don’t have to just cross your fingers and hope for the best.

Even if things take unexpected turns — you can still feel calm, empowered, and proud of how you handled it.

You don’t need a “perfect” birth — you just need to feel empowered

I’ll never claim that hypnobirthing guarantees a certain kind of birth.

But what I can say is that it makes a difference.
Sometimes a tiny one. Sometimes a life-changing one.

And even if it’s just a moment — one breath, one decision, one pause when everything around you is overwhelming — that moment can change your entire experience.

That’s why I do this.

If you’re curious about how hypnobirthing could support you — I’d love to walk this journey with you. You can see my 1:1 and intensive session options on readytobirth.co.uk, or just drop me a message if you want to chat.

Because this isn’t just about birth.
It’s about how you feel when you look back on it for the rest of your life.

Amy x