Melanie Baker, 45, had homeopathic fertility treatment to conceive her son who was born in December 2018. Here is her story:
“In 2016 I was struggling to get pregnant after some tragic losses – two late losses and four early ones.
It was really horrendous both physically and emotionally. I was seeing NHS fertility consultants, and saw a counsellor for a while too, but I was still struggling.
My friend had been having homeopathic treatment with Claire Chaubert – a homeopath, midwife and hypnobirthing practitioner – and told me that she and her colleague Anne Hope ran a homeopathic fertility clinic.
I’m quite open to holistic treatments – I love acupuncture and reflexology – but I hadn’t come across homeopathy before. I was open to anything at that point and I could see the positive results my friend was having from her homeopathic treatment.
A new chapter
I started seeing Claire and Anne in September 2016. Once I began taking the homeopathic remedies, I got my menstrual cycle back almost immediately. I also felt much better in myself. It wasn’t just about the homeopathic remedies, it was like counselling. I was able to talk everything through with them which was massively beneficial.
I’d been really struggling emotionally as I was grieving for the babies I’d lost, but the homeopathic treatments helped me regain the confidence to try for a baby again. It took me a long time to feel emotionally and physically ready, but in March 2018 I got pregnant again.
Once the euphoria of seeing the positive pregnancy test passed, I was terrified because I’d been there so many times before. There was the fear that I would lose this pregnancy too.
As the weeks went by, I felt more and more anxious and that’s why homeopathy was so good for me. Claire was able to give me remedies – a really good mix of Arsenicum album, Gelsemium and Calcarea carbonicum (Calc carb) – that calmed my anxiety.
It did get easier, but at 40 weeks there was no sign of my baby being ready to come and the longer my pregnancy went on the more nerve-wracking it got. The NHS were trying to convince me to be induced because of my age (I was 44 when he was born), which I didn’t want. I was lucky that I had Claire on side to help me. She gave me remedies to calm my anxieties and he eventually arrived on Boxing Day at 6.19am.
A healing experience
The birth was beautiful. I was in labour in my living room with the Christmas tree lights on, with Claire supporting me while I leaned over a birthing ball and breathed my way through the surges. At the end I was able to get into a birthing pool and give birth to my baby in there, with my husband beside me and twinkly lights in the background. Then, in the morning, my 6 year old was able to come in and meet his brother, rather than him waking up on Boxing Day and asking ‘Where’s mummy?’ and being told I was in hospital.
I’d learned some hypnobirthing techniques and that made labour so straightforward for me. I had one particular hypnobirthing affirmation card that I loved. It had a picture of a mountain on it and it said: “They come, they peak, they leave”. So, when I had a horrible surge, I’d think, it’s ok, it’s going to go away. I also took lots of homeopathic remedies – including Caulophyllum to support surges, Pulsatilla for when I lost confidence and Aconite for fear. I also inhaled Clary Sage aromatherapy oil which really helped.
When I think about it now, it seems crazy that I breathed my way through labour. You see all these horrific births on TV but it wasn’t like that at all. I wouldn’t say it didn’t hurt – it did – but it’s a pain you can deal with. I feel proud that I birthed a 10lb baby at home in a birthing pool by just breathing. It is the most empowering thing I’ve ever done.
The birth was really healing after everything I’d been through. It was everything I could have ever hoped it would be. He was our Christmas miracle”.