Andrea, Loic and Max's story
I would highly recommend Erika to any woman considering having a child.
I used her services for whole package from ante natal care, birthing care and post natal care, and it was the best money i have ever spent. She removed all my fears around birthing and helped me to have a manageable, informed birth during which i felt in control. she has a great skill of being able to read people and tune in to your needs and has helped me change my mind that giving birth would be awful, when infact it was the greatest moment of my life!
Erika is a qualified, experienced & highly professional midwife, who gives the industry she works in a good name.
She has excellent & current knowledge on all aspects of ante natal care, birthing options, post natal care & being a parent! She was exactly what i had been searching for.
Ante Natal Care
The NHS ante natal care I received was extremely limited, and sometimes incomplete. i saw 4 ante natal midwives, appointments were 10 minutes, i had to push to get urine tested due to incomplete equipment, limited information was offered, and i certainly received no care to my mental well being. i was often told by the midwives they were running late and felt rushed.
As a successful business woman working for investment bank & deciding to have my first child at 39, I realised i wanted a better service & at 36 weeks i'd had enough & seeked a professional midwifery service privately. The first person i found online turned out to no longer be working in NHS and had no credentials, so please follow up references and dont be afraid to ask questions!
Erika provided all requested details of her midwifery qualifications & listings, and encouraged me to follow up references, which i did with both Dorchester hospital where she works & has great reputation! ;-) as well as Poole hospital where i had my baby. They verified they work closely with independent midwives successfully, including erika and her team.
Care Throughout Birthing
Having recently moved from London where midwives allegedly see 2-4 women at a time during labour, i had heard horror stories of negligence during labour, resulting in vital information being missed. eg monitoring of baby's heart rate & oxygen levels. I used Erika's services throughout the birth, reassured she was on call for me 24/7 from the moment I employed her.
After going 2 weeks overdue, erika booked induction for me at Poole, and came with us for whole event.This included returing at 4am when waters broke!
After 36 hours of labour i did not progress; both me & baby were becoming exhausted & distressed. Erika was my advocate and facilitated a safe birth in difficult circumstances. I genuinely believe Max is in great health withoutissues because of Erika's care.
Post Natal Care
Fantastic. Erika spent as much time as i needed and i NEVER felt rushed. She offered a knowledgeable and balanced view point on every area requested: breastfeeding, she demo'd how to bath baby, which creams to use/ not to- views on different books to read, how regularly to feed baby, when it’s good to start establishing regular sleep patterns, the lot!
She is considered a family friend now, and has formed a bond with myself, my finace loic & baby max and i will be ringing her when i have my second child!