One Born Every Minute

Kelly comes in to have her fifth baby, while Joy is waiting to have her first. Babies have always come easily for Kelly: her last one was delivered three minutes after her waters broke. Joy, on the other hand, has had to undergo five years of IVF, and after days of waiting in hospital, there’s still no sign of Baby. Joy and her husband Fabio have been together for 20 years since they met at language college, where they were both studying English. Fabio says: “We have achieved a lot in these last 20 years together, but once you have material things they don’t really mean much to you any more. Without family it loses its meaning.” But, although Joy’s having contractions, she is dilating very slowly, and it doesn’t look like her waters are ready to break naturally. And although Joy wants to have a natural birth, it looks like she’ll eventually have to decide whether to have a caesarean. At least the long wait gives them a chance to try and agree on names for their long-awaited baby… Meanwhile, Kelly has brought her husband Jon, her mum Liz and her sister Lisa into the birthing room with her. Kelly and Lisa’s brother died recently, and Lisa says: “Because the pregnancy was a wonderful distraction it became a focus for the whole family, and probably helped us to work through our emotions.” Midwife Lorraine, who’s new to the hospital, where she’s yet to deliver a baby, is looking after Kelly, who certainly knows what she wants: gas and air, and plenty of it…