Marie Louise - The Modern Midwifes Guide to Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond

In 2012 Marie Louise qualified as one of the youngest midwives in the UK.

Whilst practising midwifery, she continued to study, and soon became a Band 6 midwife, also gained Level 3 Award in Education and Training (PTLLS) and a hypnobirthing diploma. She has travelled extensively across the USA and Asia to learn about midwifery in different cultures and has also lived and practised in Australia.

In 2019 she founded Modern Midwives Meet-ups, for like-minded professionals to share best practice and the latest research findings in an informal and relaxed setting.

What she imagined would be a get-together for a small group of midwives has become a national event that is hugely popular amongst some of the UKs leading birth experts.

The Modern Midwife on social media and the website has captivated a large audience of both midwives and expectant parents with her fun, informative and evidence-based posts. You can find them at: @the_modern_midwife and modernmidwife.com.

Marie Louise is a sought-after expert and has appeared live on This Morning and BBC Womans Hour and has been invited to parliament to discuss maternal mental health and maternity discrimination.

Marie Louise always maintains: Being a midwife is not a job to me, it is part of who I am. She has a clear focus on having the best possible impact on maternitys toughest challenges.

TO MY MUM, DAD, CATHERINE AND JOE. FOR TEACHING ME ALL THAT I COULD LEARN AND BELIEVING IN MY DREAMS.

AND TO MY BETTER HALF, FOR HIS PATIENCE AND UNDERSTANDING OF MY DEDICATION.

AS A MIDWIFE I get asked a lot of questions. Sometimes questions can be answered easily, but often I feel as though we just dont have enough time to really explain everything properly. I hope this book will fill in those gaps, and provide the key information you really need to know about all the common questions that are on most pregnant womens minds. It will also help you go into your midwife appointments feeling like you know what to expect!

My aim is to help you understand and manage each stage of your transition into mumhood so that you can make informed choices every step of the way, understand what is happening in your body, be in control and feel powerful. I want to share with you the most important and amazing things I have learned during my time as a midwife.

Having a baby is hands-down one of the biggest events that will ever happen in your life.

It probably feels as though there is so much you need to know, so many changes going on, and so much to plan for and consider. At times, knowing whats right for you and your baby, planning your birth and becoming someones mum can all be very overwhelming. Know that this is totally normal.

One of the biggest problems for the modern mum is not scarcity of information but actually an information overload. And much of the information we are exposed to, particularly in the media, is not always reliable. The information in this book is based on the latest research and evidence, real mum stories and my years of experience as a midwife working with hundreds of women throughout their pregnancy and birth journeys.

Modern mums are faced with an overwhelming amount of options, opinions and advice, and are asked to make a lot of complex decisions. It can be hard to take it all in and process it. But theres really no rush. Take your time. Read about what you need or want to know in this book when the time feels right for you.

Understanding what really goes on in pregnancy, birth and in those early days as a new mum makes a big difference to how you feel about it. Knowledge is power, after all. How you give birth matters and planning for your time as a postnatal woman will change your entire experience of it. Most peoples version of birth is what they see in films and on TV, which generally looks something like this: a woman lying on her back under bright lights screaming, a doctor delivers the baby, she stops screaming and holds the baby wrapped in a towel, everyone smiles.

Birth doesnt usually look like that. We need to create a more realistic and positive view of birth.

I hope that The Modern Midwifes Guide peels back the layers to help you easily navigate pregnancy, birth and your postnatal period.

As a child I can remember meeting my siblings for the first time and thinking my mum had this superpower. She could grow people! As I got older and learned that pregnancy is something women have been doing for millennia, I was shocked that this wasnt something I was taught properly about in school. A human can grow another human, inside them? With no instruction? The body does this on its own? I was mind-blown by how the heart, brain and genitals just appear and know what they are meant to do. I once asked my science teacher, Isnt that like leaving a load of ingredients in the kitchen and coming home to a baked cake? That can take itself out of the oven?

My parents and teachers assumed Id be a teen mum, but I didnt want a baby right then myself; I just had to know more about how humans grow humans. At one point in my teenage years I felt like I was the only person to have all these questions about how we are all here. Until I found midwifery. It was only then that my fascination with pregnancy and birth was satisfied through learning.

But I have to admit I am still disappointed by the serious lack of education surrounding womens health, periods, pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period. This lack of basic yet revolutionary education can lead to women being concerned about things that are normal, and ignoring things that are abnormal. Its vital we all address this with the seriousness it deserves and start talking, educating and sharing information about womens health.

After reading this book I hope you feel how I felt the day I became a midwife. Equipped, still ready to learn, yet also excited about this whole new section in your life.

I want to share with you the most up-to-date evidence and accurate information and hope to give you a few moments of oh that makes so much sense and get excited!

You may know me from Instagram or the Modern Midwives and Modern Mums Meet Ups. I wanted to create a community and network for both midwives and mothers on- and offline. I use these platforms for midwives to find like-minded birth experts and for mums to share their stories and talk openly to other mums. As much as I love the digital world and how far you can reach people, nothing really beats communication and face-to-face interaction. So I decided to launch meet up events around the UK.