Amber
Thatcher: babyworld's new Antenatal Adviser
Amber joins us this month to take the reins of our ever-popular antenatal clubs. Amber is a registered midwife and works as an independent midwife in and around Berkshire. She'll be in the clubs daily getting to know you and answering your questions. With a 1st class honours degree in midwifery we're pretty sure Amber can help you with anything to do with bumps and babies!
Now, find out more about the lady and the midwife:
Who's your birth guru? Mary Cronk, a very experienced independent midwife, well known for her support of natural birthing practices. She is full of knowledge and fantastic stories and is always happy to help if you have any questions. Since becoming an independent midwife I have had the honor of getting to know her and have found her a real inspiration.
Funniest moment as a midwife? Whilst carrying out an antenatal appointment with my midwifery partner, I managed to spill a urine sample all over her lunch which she had just got out! Needless to say I had to share my lunch that day.
Home or hospital - best place to give birth? Wherever a woman feels most relaxed. Being stressed whilst in labour can interfere with the delicate hormonal balance within the body, interrupting the natural birthing process. Therefore, to be in a relaxed state of mind when giving birth is really important.
We hear your cooking skills are nearly as good as your midwifery skills, do you offer tea and cakes to your clients? Funnily enough it's the other way round - most of my visits are carried out in my clients' homes, so I get offered lots of yummy things to eat by them! I once had a client who had a long early labour, so to keep herself busy; she baked a birthday cake for her baby. When she had given birth, we all sat down to a nice slab of Victoria sponge and a cup of tea; it was lovely.
How do clients feel about Mrs Thatcher being their midwife? Not much really, I think there would have been more jokes made maybe ten or so years ago when Margaret was better known amongst the general British population, but it turns out that famous politicians seem to be forgotten relatively quickly once a replacement comes along! Thank goodness my surname isn't Blair or (more recently) Brown!
What's life like for an Independent midwife? Busy but very rewarding, which is just how I like it. It's a really fulfilling job. You get to build fantastic relationships with your clients and their families, and it is so lovely to be part of such an amazing process. It's also never boring as each journey is so different from the last.
Favourite piece of advice for mums nervous about the birth? I think every woman is worried about birth to a certain extent, something that is totally normal. Getting things into perspective helps a lot. You just have to remember that every single person in the world has a mum, so it's a universal phenomenon that we are all part of. Talking through your concerns with someone you trust can really help, and that's where babyworld's antenatal clubs can really help!
Amber adds" Babyworld’s antenatal clubs provide a special opportunity for women and their partners to be in touch with others who are expecting babies at the same time, so that they can go through the experience together, regardless of place or time. The clubs also offer on-line antenatal classes, taking away the restrictions of availability, time, and sometimes cost as well, that can make it difficult for people to get to classes, and making classes more widely accessible.
"It’s exciting for me to be joining babyworld.co.uk and having the opportunity to offer help and support to a far greater number of pregnant women and their partners than it's been possible to do before. The journey to parenthood is one of life's most special events and it's a privilege for me to be part of all this."
