One Born Every Minute

This week on One Born Every Minute, two first-time mums both strong willed give birth at the LGI. Alexandra (25) prefers to be called Sasha and is fiercely independent. She’s naming her baby boy ‘Rupert’ after the actor Rupert Everett,” because he’s so handsome”. She left her native Latvia in search of adventure and ended up in Leeds. The baby’s father isn’t in the picture anymore and Sasha wants to go it alone. Although her family are worried about her being so far away, she feels this baby is the missing piece in her life. Surbhi is from the warrior Hindu caste and a woman who knows what she wants. Her husband, Kaushik who’s from a caste of philosophers will do anything to please her. They met when she heard him singing in the shower in the flat below and was immediately attracted. He’s was 20 minutes late for their first date and he has never quite made up for it. More sadly he feels responsible for a motorcycle accident that left Surbhi paralysed in one arm so the baby promises fresh beginnings for them both.

This week two very differently romantic couples and two dads from tough upbringings who want a better life for their sons. William (26) met Belem (24) through the internet and it was love at first sight. But she was living 5000 miles away in Mexico so their courtship was conducted from a distance until they married and moved to Britain. William’s mother haemorrhaged and died while giving birth to his baby sister. His family lived in rural Columbia without access to maternity care and his childhood memory of that traumatic day still haunts him. Nevertheless he disguises it well and the couple are buzzing with excitement when they arrive on the maternity ward. William shoots a video, with a running commentary in Spanish, for their families on the other side of the Atlantic. Dan (24) met Kerry (22) 5 years ago and they both admit their first date was a disaster. The couple have what they call a ‘Kerry and Dan’ kind of love, expressed through banter and digs at each other. What they lack in romance they make up for in practicality. Kerry has prepared 84 colour co-ordinated baby outfits; each washed and ironed 4 times. She says that if she isn’t fully prepared for something she panics. But when their baby’s heart-rate drops in labour, it’s Dan who starts to worry.

Midwife Linda Abbott is back! She retired last year but she missed working at the hospital and the hospital missed her! She may be an “old bird” but she has years of experience… This week there are also 2 dads with extremely different bedside manners. Joel (30) dotes on his wife Rachel (27) and wants there just to be the two of them in the delivery room. By comparison, Chris (28) freely admits that he doesn’t have a clue what his role as birth partner is and, after bombarding Hayley (28) with jokes, mysteriously disappears for hours. Rachel and Joel’s first son was born prematurely and died 25 days later. It’s not something they can forget and their anxieties build with every day on the labour ward. Hayley and Chris are expecting their first son together. Hayley already has 2 children but this is Chris’s first experience of fatherhood. His apprehension isn’t helped by the fact that he associates hospitals with a serious road traffic accident he had years ago. His way to deal with the nerves is humour, which doesn’t always go down well in the delivery room.

There’s a nationwide baby-boom in September and the midwives at the Leeds General Infirmary (LGI) are run off their feet. When their unit is full they send the overspill to St James’s Hospital across the city and vice versa. But for some mums it means a last minute change in birth plans. Natalie (21) met Shane (39) when he turned up as her taxi driver on the school run and now they’re expecting their first child together. Natalie was only 14 the last time she gave birth and without a partner. This time she wants everything to be different. But the maternity unit at St. James’s is full so she is transferred across the city to the LGI. Kate (25) and David (26) are booked in for a planned Caesarean and are both nervous. They have to wait for hours due to the volume of emergency cases going to theatre and Kate becomes extremely anxious. Rachel (24) is due to have her baby at the LGI but gets diverted to St. James’s when the maternity unit becomes full. It is Rachel’s first baby but since she’s separated from her Egyptian husband, her mother will be the one providing support.

Katie (21) is worried that her baby won’t come out of her vagina because she hasn’t had sex since she became pregnant. She says ‘it’ might have shrunk. Her boyfriend, Jonathan (22) is a hairdresser who was “confident with girls” before they met, says Katie. But they were ‘separated’ when she first discovered she was pregnant and as she didn’t have his number, she sent him a Facebook message to tell him. 12 weeks later, at the first scan, they were reunited. At that moment Jonathan realised he wanted to be a good Dad. When he was a child his father had run off and now he wants to behave differently. Nicole (20) is admitted with a significant bleed. Her mum was hoping her daughter would have already left home and been in a stable relationship when she started a family. But that was not to be. The baby’s father will stay a friend but will not be involved in the baby’s upbringing. Jolanta (30) is known to have quick deliveries (she’s had 2 already) and when she arrives hoping for a water-birth for her 3rd the midwives barely have time to fill the bath before her baby’s born.

Two couples at very different stages in their lives prove that unplanned pregnancy can happen at any age. Andy (41) and Nina (39) thought they'd long left nappies and sleepless nights behind them. With their children Danielle (14) and Lewis (10) becoming increasingly independent, they'd just started to get their own lives back again: going out, holidaying and enjoying life. They all got the shock of their lives when Nina announced she was pregnant with twins. The kids were initially appalled that their parents could be so irresponsible but soon embrace the idea of baby siblings and cheer their mum up with fun and games while she waits for her caesarean. Jonathan (21) met Laura (18) when he randomly sent her a message on a social networking site. 3 months later she fell pregnant. While Laura panicked, Jonathan was delighted - since the age of 10 starting a family has been his sole ambition and at 21 his body clock was ticking. Having developed gestational diabetes, Laura is booked in for an early induction and the couple prepare for a long wait. Jonathan gets on Laura's nerves with his almost constant chatter. But when their baby's heartbeat drops and Laura is rushed to theatre, Jonathan's joking around is quickly replaced by overwhelming concern.

Two couples who’ve stuck together despite the challenges life’s thrown at them. Ryan (20) started dating Keely (22) at school when they were very young. To their shock Keely fell pregnant very quickly. But Ryan was no ordinary teenage boy and stayed with Keely – ‘I knew she was the one’. They are now expecting their second child and proving that teen pregnancies don’t always end in disaster. Head of Delivery suite Gail Wright, LGI’s most experienced midwife, arrives on the scene to help her get through the pain barrier. Katie (27) says she’s the grown up in the relationship and Steve (29) her fiancé is like a child. On delivery suite Steve is on form constantly mucking about, driving Katie up the wall. But the jokes mask their anxiety about their baby’s congenital condition, called gastroschisis. It will be born with its intestines sticking out of its abdominal wall and will require surgery a few hours later.

Leah (33) is having her 6th baby. Her partner is unfortunately in prison and will miss the birth. On the other side of the law, Becky Keane (35) met Police Sergeant John Bradfield (46) one Halloween when he was dressed as a witch. It was love at first sight. Within weeks they were engaged and trying for the child they'd both always wanted. Becky’s life had been ruled by depression and after a string of failed relationships, she began to think she'd never be a mum. By the time they arrive on the labour ward, Becky and John know exactly what to expect. They've been to all the classes, planned their active birth and are simply desperate to meet baby Luke - named after their Star Wars' hero. Sophie Harrison, and Martin Mumford are best friends whose drunken kiss blossomed into a 5 year relationship and a surprise pregnancy. Whilst it's Sophie's first child, Martin has been through it all before and has an 8 year old daughter from a previous relationship. She's is desperate for them to have a baby of their own to bring them closer together and to experience the love of being someone's natural mum. Sophie was too anxious to read up about childbirth so when she comes into the delivery suite, she has no idea what lies in store. Fortunately, Martin's experience and sense of humour are there to support Sophie through a long and difficult labour.

Naomi (32) is glamorous and likes to look a bit fake. She compares herself to Jordan the glamour model (without the fake breasts). She’s been a hairdresser for 16 years and has run her own business for the last five. She’s known Jason (37) since they were teenagers and they’ve had an on and off relationship over the years. But now Naomi’s pregnant Jason says it’s changed their relationship and they’re committed to a stable partnership. But there’s also another woman in Naomi’s life, her mother Maria who’s like a Goddess” says Naomi. She’s “the most amazing, sweetest, beautiful person with a wicked sense of humour” says Naomi and they even live next door to each other. From Jason’s point of view “it’s like having two partners” he says. When Bianca (23) discovered she was pregnant she was “gobsmacked”. It was a couple of days after her 22nd birthday and she was enjoying the time of her life. She wasn’t sure whether to carry on having fun or settle down. She finally decided to buck her ideas up and have the baby even though the father wouldn’t be involved. Her sister Tanya (23) says Bianca won’t be a single-mum because “she’ll have me”- we’re best friends and sisters and “I will be there for her”. Izzy James is her midwife who jokingly admits that she had her sights set on being a super-model when she was very young. But at the age of 14 decided being a midwife was more realistic. Shannon (18) met Dale (18) on a Saturday night out in Leeds and they got together. They were both 17 when she told people she was having a baby with Dale. “People said we were too young and it wouldn’t work”, she says. Her mum cried and said you’ve messed up your life you should be going to university. But she and Dale seem happy together. Shannon has some regrets about not going to University and Dale says he wants to join the navy in five years. Dale cries at the birth and says being a father will transform him from a boy in to a man.

Dawn (38) had a traumatic birth (a shoulder dystocia) which was featured in last year’s One Born Every Minute. Now she returns to have a second baby with the memories of her critical time in the operating theatre still fresh in her mind. Meanwhile Kirri jokes her way through labour and seems to feel no pain whereas Shannon wants an epidural from the outset to ensure she doesn’t suffer. Kirri (29) met Brendan (30) when they were working at Butlins. She was behind the bar when Redcoat ‘Bren’ came in there was a mutual attraction. Kirri says “all women have a plan” and her plan was to get a job at Butlins in order to find a husband. Her plan worked and nine years later they are having their second child and still very much in love. They have a very light hearted approach to life and remarkably Kirri manages without pain relief and laughs her way through her contractions. Shannon (34) is from Detroit, Michigan, but fell in love with England as a teenager when she started reading biographies of the Beatles and all things English. She met Chris (51) from Doncaster on the internet and when she told her father, a Vietnam vet and former marine, he hired private detectives to check Chris out. Chris must have got the all clear because now they are married and having their second child. They worry that Chris may miss the birth because they don’t have any family close to hand and have no one else to look after their 20 month old daughter Celia, while mum is in labour.

Hayley (26) thinks she conceived on Bonfire Night. They’d had quite a lot to drink, she says. Her partner Pete (25) remembers his dad was staying and so was her mum and dad, so they had a full house. Which makes them laugh. But ever since her 20 week scan she’s been anxious about the pregnancy because the baby was revealed to have a congenital defect which is potentially life threatening. The baby is safe inside Hayley the problems will start as soon is he’s born. The tiny infant may not survive. Ellen 22 is a single mum. She brought up her first child Dillon (now aged 5) on her own and made a good job of it according to her grandma. The last time she was in labour she had pain relief that caused a reaction and she didn’t remember much. This time she wants to be able to remember the experience of childbirth so she wants a water birth with no pain relief whatsoever. Granma will be at the birth and looks forward in playing her part in the baby’s upbringing.

How we manage stress is the underlying theme on this week’s One Born Every Minute. Judith (28) and husband Mike (31) met when they were kids. Mike had always assumed Judith was out of his league until they met up again after university at a friend’s party. A trained pharmacist, Judith is a self-confessed control freak and perfectionist for whom pregnancy has made her feel ”out of control”. Mike, on the other hand, is so laid back he’s ‘practically horizontal’. One thing they have in common is their belief in Christianity. And when things don’t go to plan in the delivery room, the couple put their faith in God as well as the medical staff. Beth (17) met Dominic (22) by chance in McDonalds and was immediately attracted to the fact that “he talked about everything and wouldn’t shut up!’ Their relationship developed fast and, without planning it, Beth fell pregnant. Dominic becomes more and more anxious as the labour develops and he paces around like a ‘blue horsefly’. Beth was brought up by her dad and her grandma, Sandra who has vowed not to leave Beth’s side at the birth - which is just as well because when the all-important moment arrives, dad is having a nervous smoke in the car park and misses the birth!