Daisy Piglet

Daisy Joan Cassidy (aka Daisy Piglet) has arrived! She was born on a horrendously rainy winter Sunday (23 June) and spent her first few minutes in a room lit up by lightning. But hey, is there a better way to spend a horrendously rainy day than to produce a baby?

I went through labour pretty much the same way I went through the pregnancy - with minimal fuss and no complications. 

It all started as if someone had turned on a switch at 8am, with contactions every three minutes, and progressed steadily from there. We went to the hospital at midday to check on things, and then I opted to go home again to chill for a bit. Around 4pm Dwayne decided it was time to go back to hospital, so we went in and by 7.32pm Daisy was born.

In my opinion childbirth is not as terrible as one is lead to believe. I did not want any drugs, but had decided to go for gas if I felt I needed it. I ended up not using the gas in the end, because I didn't want the distraction.

It's terribly uncomfortable, rather overwhelming at times and all-encompassing by the end. But totally doable as long as you have the right mindset.

Here are my top tips for childbirth:

- Chillax. Whatever you do, don't waste energy stressing. Play dead between contractions and pretend that the last one never happened and that you have AGES before the next one.

- Have a rock solid birth companion with you. Dwayne was amazing. I wasn't very communicative, but he immediately learned to read one word sentences and act accordingly. He also didn't leave my side for a moment, didn't take his hand off my back for the entire process, and knew not to bug me with anything but relevant questions or midwives' orders.

- Make sure said companion hits the gym in advance. Dwayne had to hold the entire weight of me and Daisy Piglet when the midwife suggested I needed to stand up right near the end. I hung off his neck, not actually standing at all through contractions. It did cross my mind that it must be very heavy for him, but I quite  frankly didn't give a pony's tail.

- Turn off the lights, make sure people shut up unless giving you helpful hints, don't look at the clock, in fact don't bother opening your eyes at all. Go into he zone and stay there. Time is of no relevance.

- Don't be afraid. Millions upon millions of people have done it before, and succeeded. It has to be done, no turning back now, so go with it.

- And finally, it's hard work and not for the faint hearted - so don't be faint hearted! 

There is an amazing prize for the winner in the end after all. In my case, a fat pink Daisy Piglet. She skipped the blue stage and went straight to incredibly cute and pink, with no drugs in her little body. Just the way I wished for her first moments on Earth to be!