My first child was born in an NHS maternity hospital. Whilst my experience of ante-natal care, labour and birth were physically fine, there was no consideration given to me as a person. This was not helped by the total lack of continuity in care - I saw 14 different people for ante-natal appointments, only once seeing the same midwife twice, and then five different midwives looked after me during my hospital labour despite the fact that it lasted only 3 and a half hours. I found the impersonality, the perfunctory nature of care and my own lack of control very hard to deal with. I still get feelings of distress and panic when I think of my daughter's birth - whilst I am, of course, grateful that we both came through it physically OK, it was not the wonderful, fulfilling experience which we are socially conditioned to expect of birth.

We are now planning another baby and if we do, I am desperate to use an independent midwife in order to have someone who I can get to know and who will have the time to give me more chance of a positive birth experience next time and hopefully, wipe out some of the bad memories from first time around.

Please please don't take this option away from me. (mother)