Annmarie Burnell attributes her quick and happy home birth to the support of her mum and partner

Hi there! I wanted to share mine and Liam's birth story with you, as even in this day and age there still seems to be a stigma attached to home births for first time mums. I think rather than be bogged down with negatives, you'd like to hear something positive!

I'd always wanted my partner and my mum to be with me during labour, but I was told at antenatal classes that I could only have one person in the delivery suite at the hospital. Well, I was adamant my mum and Stephen would be there, so I began to consider a home birth as a solution. The more I thought about it, the more I warmed to the idea.

In my mind hospitals are for emergencies and illness. Pregnancy isn't an illness and labour isn't an emergency, so I didn't feel the need to go into hospital. I also felt quite confident about labour so didn't feel scared about the thought of giving birth at home.

I wasn't in pain
Home birth was never offered to me as an option. Once I'd asked for one and got the wheels in motion, I came up against very little opposition. The midwives were very thorough with my antenatal care and sent me for a scan at 34 weeks to rule out any risks or difficulties. Liam seemed to be a bit on the small side, and my amniotic fluid was reduced, which for a while I thought might result in me having to go into hospital. But the consultant was happy to let us go ahead with a home confinement.

When the big day came, I still thought I had a while to go - Liam was due a few days later. I had been to the cinema with Stephen, my step dad and brother. During the film I became aware of backache and cramps which kept coming and going.

I wasn't in pain and it wasn't uncomfortable, so I thought I'd not get my hopes up. On the way home, around 8.30pm, I told Stephen that I'd phone my mum and put her on standby just in case.

My brother was white as a sheet
At 9pm I was just about to tuck into my tea at my step dad's house when my first contraction came out of nowhere. I was sitting on the sofa between Stephen and my brother (who's only 15) - next thing they knew I was on all fours on the floor deep breathing and rocking like a woman possessed.

My brother turned white as a sheet and Stephen began to look very nervous. I thought I'd have 20 minutes to go home and get ready, but lo and behold my next one came two minutes later. I had four before I managed to leave the house. At one point I was walking out the door with my brother and step dad following me (Stephen had got the car started) and we had to do an about turn so I could go back in for another contraction. It must have looked like something out of a sitcom.

My main concern was that the bedroom was so messy, so while I was on all fours, Stephen was desperately throwing all our clothes to one side of the room. Then I was obsessed that I wouldn't get the tens machine on in time. We phoned the midwife, and she said not to worry about the tens machine and to have a bath instead.

My mum arrived while I was getting into the bath. When the midwife arrived at 10pm I was ready to push. Things went very quickly from that point. The midwife examined me and I was fully dilated. She contacted another midwife who had asked if she could come too. She'd only done five home births in 15 years, and wanted to be a part of mine, which I thought was lovely. So in all I had two midwives, my mum and Stephen with me. I used gas and air and was on my knees. In between contractions I rested against the bed.

'It's a bloody boy!'
The strangest thing was how calm I felt in between contractions. I could have gone to sleep. Everyone seemed to know their place. My mum massaged my back and Stephen had the trusty cold flannel. I was holding his hand so he went through every contraction with me (he says I nearly broke his fingers - revenge is sweet - ha! ha!) the midwives let me do my own thing and occasionally gave me words of advice with the pushing.

At 11.25pm Liam Thomas came into the world. My mum helped the midwife lift him onto the bed. Apparently I saw him and said, 'It's a bloody boy'. I'd been really good up until then and not sworn once.

It was everything I'd hoped for
He was tiny and so perfect I couldn't believe three hours earlier he'd been curled up inside me. Stephen said it was the closest he's got to witnessing a miracle and, if you believe in the big man, it's the nearest you get to God.

I was fortunate enough to have a two-and-a-half-hour labour and, who knows, the fact that I was at home and had my mum and partner with me (which made me feel at ease) may have contributed to that.

My home birth was everything I had hoped for. And I believe if you're fit and healthy and have had a trouble-free pregnancy, and if you're confident about giving birth, then there is no reason why you can't be at home - be it your first, second, third or tenth child.

I will definitely go for a home birth next time.