“Approachable, knowledgeable, good sense of humour, put me at ease as soon as I met her” There's not much more you could want in a midwife. Not only did she listen to everything I wanted and was concerned about, she went above and beyond the call of duty to advocate for me when it came to dealing with the local hospital. Her reflexology session during my labour helped everything along nicely! I couldn't have asked for a better experience, so glad I met her!

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By far the best decision made during pregnancy was the choice to have Birth Positive. ⁣ ⁣Not only are they knowledgeable, caring and thorough, they go the extra mile at every step and really do make you feel like family. ⁣ ⁣ Sam helped me to feel empowered and able to make the decisions I needed/wanted knowing I had back up and support. ⁣ ⁣ I don’t know if you know what a powerful yet grounded presence you have, but you make everything feel okay. ⁣ ⁣ We’ve not finished our time together yet, but already the postnatal support you have given has felt like a warm hug. ⁣ ⁣ 𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗼𝘂𝗰𝗵, 𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗾𝘂𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗴𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗜 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝟭𝟬𝟬𝟬% 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱 Birth Positive, 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂 & 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝗮𝗯𝘆 💛

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“It sometimes takes just one bad experience, just one trauma to completely make you lose faith in a system that’s in place to help people every single day. That was the place I was at with the NHS after my 1st birth-a long hard labour ending in an Emergency CS, followed by an equally terrible postnatal recovery. I was quite frankly scared to give birth again. Birth Trauma PTSD is something that stays with you and reappears at times when you least expect it. At times when you should be happiest. I knew I wasn’t strong enough to go it alone this time. And you knew that and helped me heal! You helped me negotiate my care and to trust again in a service that left me broken last time. You educated me in things I never knew the first time around and advocated for me until I found a voice to advocate for myself. It’s seems crazy to look back to my first Scans where I couldn’t enter the hospital without a panic attack, or having to leave through an appointment because I felt like I couldn’t breathe. Flash forward to me confidently walking into hospital after my waters broke prematurely with a breech baby. Totally rocking another CS. Staying in after birth on my own in hospital for two days while my early, little baby matured a bit more. And frankly enjoying the whole experience - that’s all down to you   Birth can be traumatic. Caesarean Birth can be traumatic. But lord it can be beautiful too. How do you thank someone enough for making you whole again and giving you your confidence back? Midwives may not be superheroes- but mine was bloody close ”

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“We used Birth Positive and Sam for our Antenatal & Postnatal care and it was the best decision we could have made for ourselves and our first baby 💙⁣ ⁣ From the start the care has been amazing. I really wanted to feel knowledgeable and empowered for birth and this what exactly what I got. ⁣ Antenatal appointments were thorough and well explained & loved them being in the comfort of our own home. I loved even more going to Sam's gorgeous room at her farm - gorgeous views and super relaxing when getting my reflexology appointments! ⁣I loved the birth prep packs we got at each session with all things to learn which really helped me and my partner prepare for labour. And the sweet gifts like tea/comb/balm and drops for baby etc. It’s the little personalised touches that were so thoughtful! ⁣ ⁣ Always at the end of the phone for all my WhatsApp messages and helping me get organised, even answering my random new mum questions! And I was never made to feel silly with any help I needed. ⁣ ⁣ This led to me having a really positive birth experience at James Cook. I believe this is because I had all the knowledge under my belt and had worked really hard to prepare myself mentally with what I had been taught with the use of breathing techniques/hypnobirthing and positive affirmations (I loved the drawings that came printed in the packs and stuck them around the house)!! ⁣ ⁣ It was great Sam being at the end of the phone supporting my partner for any questions too while I was focusing at home in labour Postnatally, the support was fantastic and the continuity of care was really important for us at this point which of course was guaranteed by having Sam. She came round frequently to our home and did all postnatal checks on me and baby. Brought delicious home made flapjack!! And gave me never ending support with breast-feeding, even coming round asap as we were having latch issues!

Thanks so much for everything, it’s been a wonderful experience and we’re all super grateful! You’re fabulous at what you do 💙💙💙💙

Oh and thanks for putting up with our fur babies too of course!! 🐾 xxx

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 “Your patience, caring, understanding, support, guidance and mildly decent banter meant more to me than you will never know. You will forever be a friend now and alas there is no escaping me!”

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In the past ten months I have never once felt alone or in the dark or uninformed or unprepared! My absolute Birth Saviours, I will never forget you xx

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 From the first day we met you in September, we knew we were lucky to be working with such an extraordinary person. Danielle somehow combines very detailed and precise care with a hands-off and non-judgemental approach, which made me feel really confident in my own ability to handle pregnancy and birth, while knowing that I could ask her anything at all. She empowered us to prepare for our home birth, while reassuring us about exactly what might happen if we needed to transfer into hospital. When I went into labour, I felt calm and ready, though also quite nervous. Danielle kept a close eye on me for the first 24 hours by text, phone and in person, and knew exactly when to offer more support and when to leave me to either distract myself or to focus on my breathing and hypnobirthing. As things ramped up and I got into the pool for some relief, she was within arm’s reach the whole time, calmly monitoring me and the baby. I finally felt the urge to push, leaning over the side of the pool and clinging onto my partner (my human birth rope!) as the baby slowly inched down through my body. Danielle (alongside Sam, who had arrived for the final hours) stayed close by, offering encouragement and guiding me when I needed it, but the fact that she let us bring our son into the world mostly by ourselves is an incredibly special thing to have done. After a lot of pushing, she suggested that I get out of the pool to try and keep things moving, and he finally started to emerge. Waiting patiently behind us, Danielle caught the baby and passed him to me through my legs. We had done it!

The postpartum aftercare that Danielle provided was amazing. Most importantly, she taught us how to breastfeed, returning to the house each day to adjust our technique and offer lots of helpful advice. Robin is now 7 weeks old and has fed brilliantly from day one. Once again, Danielle knew when to remind us to relax into newborn life, and when to push us onwards a little bit (especially to go out for that first walk!). She kept a close eye on my recovery alongside Robin’s development, and was so reassuring about any of our worries. It’s a real privilege to have worked with Danielle over the past year, and not something we have taken for granted for a moment. I know she is a huge part of the reason I felt so well throughout pregnancy, birth and beyond, and the confidence she gave us in our own abilities is amazing. She has helped us to give Robin the best possible start in life. We miss her already, and I couldn’t recommend her highly enough.

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I would like to share feedback about my incredible midwife Sam Welford who empowered me to birth my son Finn at home on 28th February.
She is one in a million! A friend of mine had Sam for some Postnatal care and I also knew other women in my area had experienced Sam's services and really rated them. So I started to save a little each month hoping one day I would become a mum and I would use her too.
I first started seeing Sam for reflexology to prepare whilst I was waiting for a date to start my IVF treatment. I was working so hard to ensure i was in a good place mentally and physically before I started my IVF journey that I very quickly came to the decision that why wouldn't I want to put the same amount of effort into my pregnancy and birth as I had on the lead up to my IVF. After all of the hormones, injections, invasive procedures, prayers and hopes I finally got my positive test. My miracle baby. And Sam was one of the first people I told. Get me booked in!! From the get go she filled me with confidence and empowerment. Sam gave me the tools to believe that I could do this, after all the years of struggle, I was able to grow this little human and eventually, birth him. I love the NHS, I work in the NHS and have done so for over a decade. But I also knew that I would need, and wanted, the continuity of the same midwife, the extra support and advice that Sam could provide. Budget cuts and poor staffing means that women don't get the same choices anymore. Sam gave me that. So, whether my pregnancy was going to be low risk, high risk, or full of complication, I knew that Sam could facilitate choice and ensure my wishes were at the centre of decision making. That I would be listened to, heard and provided with options on how to best grow and birth my baby. And that's exactly what she did. Knowing that Sam was an ex-ITU nurse and still practised midwifery in the NHS gave me the reassurance that she was the perfect blend of medical and holistic knowledge; something this control freak nurse needed! Sam provided me with the knowledge, empowerment, practical and professional expertise to enable me to make the choices I wanted for my baby and myself. She was my biggest advocate in supporting my decision making, she was always in my corner. I knew, that with her help, I could achieve anything. She went above and beyond for me, always there to send a quick text to, regular visits to my home and to her studio. Cups of tea, chats, reflexology, feeding advice, massage tips, yoga positions, breathing techniques, discussing every eventuality, dietary advice, endless fanny based questions, lots of doppler time so i could hear my baby, multiple recommendations and practical advice on how to best prepare for birth. How to best prepare myself and my body to do the thing it is created to do. Women had been birthing babies for centuries, we're designed to do it. No magic tricks or fads, just using the tools we have as women. I successfully birthed my beautiful baby boy at home (my 1st baby) with Sam by my side, guiding me through. I trusted her implicitly with mine and my boys life and she did so with outstanding professionalism, care, compassion and expertise. Sam put mine and my baby's needs at the centre of the entire process. She truly listened to me, she knew what was important to me. She made me believe I could do it, and I bloody did! Can you believe I birthed my 1st baby, at home, without any drama, and without any pain relief!! The postnatal care I got was second to none. She came to my home every day, often with hot food and made me breakfast as she knew I wouldn't have eaten or taken a moment for myself in the whirlwind that is early motherhood. She empowered me to tackle the challenge of breastfeeding, reassured me I was doing a good job and continued to care for my little family as if it was her own. She continued to educate me about the fourth trimester, guiding me through the unhinged emotions and hormones! Drying my tears and giving me the boost I needed. She ran me baths, held my baby so I could eat, educated me and believed in me.
Sam you are one in a million, a true credit to your profession and womankind. I wish every woman got to experience the love, care, compassion, education, advocacy and friendship I have. I will only ever have one baby, my little miracle, something I never thought I could achieve in my time on this earth, but I did. And I did it with the best midwife in the world. Thank you.
Clementine and Finn 💙💙💙