0:00:02 > 0:00:04This programme contains some strong language
0:00:04 > 0:00:06Hi, it's the midwife!
0:00:06 > 0:00:10That's it, that's it. You're doing it! You're doing it!
0:00:10 > 0:00:12Little pushes, Em. Little pushes.
0:00:12 > 0:00:13Ohh, my gosh!
0:00:13 > 0:00:16When we're at our most vulnerable,
0:00:16 > 0:00:20we all need someone who isn't afraid.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23I'm your midwife, and I'm going to be looking after you.
0:00:23 > 0:00:28Midwives are responsible for bringing our children safely into the world.
0:00:28 > 0:00:29"Hello, world!"
0:00:29 > 0:00:32You have to make a very, very intimate relationship
0:00:32 > 0:00:35with somebody you've never met before in your life.
0:00:35 > 0:00:37I apologise.
0:00:37 > 0:00:39You've not done anything wrong.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42You're having a baby. You've not killed someone.
0:00:42 > 0:00:46But now they're facing the highest birth rate in 40 years.
0:00:47 > 0:00:50Too many women having babies, that's the problem.
0:00:51 > 0:00:55- Parents are more demanding... - I just don't feel like she's been getting any answers.
0:00:55 > 0:00:58..and pregnancies more complicated.
0:00:58 > 0:01:01We're worried. Do you know we're worried?
0:01:01 > 0:01:05When you see a baby come out like he did, you just think, "Oh, no."
0:01:07 > 0:01:09Yeah, I'm fine. I just delivered my first baby.
0:01:09 > 0:01:12That was the best feeling in the world!
0:01:12 > 0:01:16This is what it's really like to be a midwife in Britain today.
0:01:19 > 0:01:22SHE SCREAMS
0:01:33 > 0:01:36- What's the weather like at the moment?- It's bloody freezing.
0:01:36 > 0:01:40I can't cope. I'm not very good with the cold at all.
0:01:40 > 0:01:42How many layers have you got on?
0:01:42 > 0:01:44I've got two pairs of tights on, two pairs of socks,
0:01:44 > 0:01:47two T-shirts and my uniform on!
0:01:48 > 0:01:51And I'm still cold. My hands are freezing.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57Di Davies is a community midwife in inner-city Manchester.
0:02:04 > 0:02:06- Morning!- Hello, hi.- Are you OK?
0:02:06 > 0:02:10Yeah. Just don't tape me or anything. He managed to sleep...
0:02:10 > 0:02:14She's on a routine visit to Deman and Ali from Kurdistan.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23When she saw them yesterday with their day-old baby,
0:02:23 > 0:02:25they seemed confident about what they were doing.
0:02:27 > 0:02:29When I said, "Has baby got a basket?"
0:02:29 > 0:02:31you said, "We've got everything."
0:02:31 > 0:02:34I said, "That's very good, and baby needs to sleep in a basket."
0:02:34 > 0:02:36Do you remember what I said about the blankets?
0:02:36 > 0:02:38- Ah, do not wrap it.- Ah! see?
0:02:38 > 0:02:41I told, nobody listened to me.
0:02:41 > 0:02:43Will you listen to me?
0:02:43 > 0:02:47This... Yesterday we talked about the blankets.
0:02:47 > 0:02:49HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE
0:02:49 > 0:02:52- OK.- Yeah? So baby, when baby's sleeping,
0:02:52 > 0:02:54needs to be at the bottom.
0:03:00 > 0:03:02So here, like this.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06Over the top, like this.
0:03:06 > 0:03:08Di visits new parents to make sure
0:03:08 > 0:03:10they know how to look after their babies
0:03:10 > 0:03:13in the crucial first few days at home.
0:03:14 > 0:03:16- And inside, no hat.- OK.- No hat.
0:03:18 > 0:03:21So how is feeding going? Feeding OK?
0:03:21 > 0:03:23- Yeah.- No problem?
0:03:23 > 0:03:25And how many bottles is baby having?
0:03:25 > 0:03:29So that's what baby's had all through the night,
0:03:29 > 0:03:31that one bottle?
0:03:32 > 0:03:35Yes, she did one from that one also.
0:03:35 > 0:03:39When you make bottle, that bottle can only be used for one hour.
0:03:39 > 0:03:41One hour.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44When one hour finished, throw away.
0:03:44 > 0:03:46- OK.- You understand?- Yes.
0:03:46 > 0:03:51If the bottle is made and left there all the time overnight,
0:03:51 > 0:03:54and you keep just feeding the baby the same bottle,
0:03:54 > 0:03:56while the bottle is staying there,
0:03:56 > 0:03:59there's lots of germs and bacteria in the bottle.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02They breed in the milk, and then you give that to your baby.
0:04:03 > 0:04:07Can you put that bottle in a pan with boiling water
0:04:07 > 0:04:10for ten minutes? Now.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12- For ten minutes?- Yeah.
0:04:14 > 0:04:16- We'd know nothing.- Bubbling water.
0:04:21 > 0:04:22- Have you had much sleep?- No.
0:04:24 > 0:04:28I get no sleep, cos the baby crying all the time.
0:04:30 > 0:04:33- All right, I'll see you tomorrow, darling.- See you tomorrow.
0:04:33 > 0:04:34All right. No problem.
0:04:34 > 0:04:39Di will check up on Deman and Ali twice in the next ten days.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43She'll only discharge them if she's sure their baby will be OK.
0:04:46 > 0:04:48It was difficult, but it was all right.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51They're a really nice family and obviously haven't a clue.
0:04:51 > 0:04:55They'd use the same bottle all night
0:04:55 > 0:04:58and just kept giving the baby a bit more, a bit more and a bit more.
0:04:58 > 0:05:02That baby is brand-new
0:05:02 > 0:05:04and got a sterile gut
0:05:04 > 0:05:09and it's been having milk that's been sat breeding germs overnight,
0:05:09 > 0:05:12and if we hadn't picked that up at that point,
0:05:12 > 0:05:15then that baby could have ended up in A&E.
0:05:19 > 0:05:24Di is one of 55 community midwives at Manchester's St Mary's Hospital.
0:05:25 > 0:05:29Between them, they look after almost 5,000 new babies every year.
0:05:31 > 0:05:34The community midwives have to work out
0:05:34 > 0:05:38which mums are coping with a baby and which mums are struggling.
0:05:39 > 0:05:43The vast majority of women that we look after are absolutely fine
0:05:43 > 0:05:46but very occasionally, you know,
0:05:46 > 0:05:51something will come up that will give us cause for concern.
0:05:51 > 0:05:53And you never know when that's going to happen,
0:05:53 > 0:05:55you never know who that woman is.
0:05:57 > 0:05:59Next on the list this morning
0:05:59 > 0:06:02is a woman who came home from hospital yesterday
0:06:02 > 0:06:03after giving birth.
0:06:03 > 0:06:05I am a really nosy person
0:06:05 > 0:06:09and I love seeing people in their own environments, how they live,
0:06:09 > 0:06:11what their houses are like.
0:06:23 > 0:06:27I don't understand what that means. It's all in legal speak.
0:06:27 > 0:06:29I think it's a bailiff's notice.
0:06:36 > 0:06:37It's an empty house, that.
0:06:39 > 0:06:42SHE LAUGHS
0:06:42 > 0:06:44Welcome to my life!
0:06:45 > 0:06:48I'll ring the hospital and see if they've another address for this lady.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51She's around, because she's had a baby
0:06:51 > 0:06:55and she only came home last night, so she must be somewhere.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58I'm getting in the car, I'm not standing here.
0:07:04 > 0:07:08"NUMBER NOT IN USE" TONE
0:07:10 > 0:07:13Number not in use.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16Right, this is a worry.
0:07:16 > 0:07:17This lady is...
0:07:19 > 0:07:22Had her baby yesterday,
0:07:22 > 0:07:26so it's first day after having a new baby, and we don't know where she is.
0:07:27 > 0:07:311-2-8-7. She's obviously done a flit from this house.
0:07:31 > 0:07:35"NUMBER NOT IN USE" TONE
0:07:35 > 0:07:37One in ten of the woman Di looks after
0:07:37 > 0:07:40suffers from postnatal depression.
0:07:40 > 0:07:44Every year in Britain, between five and ten babies are abandoned,
0:07:44 > 0:07:47so it's vital that Di tracks down the baby and its mother.
0:07:49 > 0:07:52So what's the worst-case scenario for that baby?
0:07:52 > 0:07:54That it's not fed, and we don't find it today.
0:07:57 > 0:08:00DISTANT SIRENS
0:08:05 > 0:08:07You must be short of footage
0:08:07 > 0:08:10if you're filming me putting things in the boot.
0:08:11 > 0:08:15Joyce Pemberton is one of the team's most experienced midwives.
0:08:17 > 0:08:19I've been a midwife for 30 years now.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22Sometimes it seems an awful long time
0:08:22 > 0:08:25and sometimes it just seems like yesterday.
0:08:25 > 0:08:28Is it the same? Are you the same?
0:08:29 > 0:08:31I'm older. I have to dye my hair more often.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37Joyce is on her way to visit a 21-year-old
0:08:37 > 0:08:40who's single and due to give birth in just two weeks' time.
0:08:42 > 0:08:46She's one of the mums the team is most worried about.
0:08:48 > 0:08:52Fizah is a young lady who...
0:08:52 > 0:08:55It's her first baby.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58She hasn't got a consistent partner.
0:08:58 > 0:09:01I'm not sure if the back door's open
0:09:01 > 0:09:04as last time I came, the doors weren't working.
0:09:06 > 0:09:10Oh! There we are. So secure.
0:09:11 > 0:09:14She's had a few pickups along the way.
0:09:14 > 0:09:16The young woman she's going to see
0:09:16 > 0:09:19spent most of her teenage years in care.
0:09:22 > 0:09:23'Doors closing.'
0:09:23 > 0:09:26At least it's a clean lift and it doesn't smell of pee.
0:09:26 > 0:09:27'Lift going up.'
0:09:30 > 0:09:32How would you feel, Joyce,
0:09:32 > 0:09:36if Fizah was your daughter and she was pregnant?
0:09:36 > 0:09:39Oh, I'd be very anxious.
0:09:39 > 0:09:40'Second floor.'
0:09:40 > 0:09:44Joyce is concerned about how Fizah might cope with a newborn,
0:09:44 > 0:09:48so she referred her to Manchester's Vulnerable Baby Service.
0:09:50 > 0:09:52One minute!
0:09:52 > 0:09:54OK! It's Joyce!
0:10:02 > 0:10:06'She was very upset about the fact that I'd done this.
0:10:06 > 0:10:09'She was very worried about being referred to social services
0:10:09 > 0:10:12'and I was very clear that this was not social services.'
0:10:14 > 0:10:17Really, we're just making sure that you know
0:10:17 > 0:10:21all the things that you need to know before you go into labour.
0:10:23 > 0:10:26Is it about... Like, so how many weeks am I now exactly?
0:10:26 > 0:10:28Is it around about 38 weeks?
0:10:30 > 0:10:34Because I'm sure the last time I checked, it was, like, 37 weeks!
0:10:35 > 0:10:38I should have worked this out before I came.
0:10:38 > 0:10:41Second or the third, I just know it's sooner than I thought.
0:10:41 > 0:10:44Right, so have you got the nursery sorted?
0:10:44 > 0:10:49Pretty much. I've got everything there, it just needs to be organised.
0:10:52 > 0:10:53Right!
0:10:53 > 0:10:57- I've got the stuff there, it just needs to be...- Wow!
0:10:57 > 0:10:59That's very smart. Oh, I love it.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02There's a mini wardrobe for him on the floor that my niece put together.
0:11:02 > 0:11:04We got the pram three weeks ago
0:11:04 > 0:11:06but I just need to put it together, that's all.
0:11:06 > 0:11:08It needs wheels.
0:11:08 > 0:11:11- Have you got milk? - We're going to get it!
0:11:11 > 0:11:15No, no, I'm just... I'm not hassling you.
0:11:19 > 0:11:23So next time I'm here will be when you've had the baby.
0:11:24 > 0:11:25OK.
0:11:34 > 0:11:36SIREN BLARES
0:11:36 > 0:11:39Some people are easier than others
0:11:39 > 0:11:45and sometimes it takes several meetings for them to...accept us.
0:11:46 > 0:11:49And sometimes they don't.
0:11:49 > 0:11:51And that can be hard.
0:11:52 > 0:11:56Joyce didn't really know about my whole situation,
0:11:56 > 0:11:58being in care and stuff.
0:11:58 > 0:12:02But then, as soon as she found out that I was in care,
0:12:02 > 0:12:04that's when she started asking questions,
0:12:04 > 0:12:07like, did I have enough support and was my family around and stuff
0:12:07 > 0:12:12and she ended up referring me to a place called Vulnerable Babies
0:12:12 > 0:12:14so yeah, that was a bit of a shock.
0:12:14 > 0:12:17How has it made you feel?
0:12:17 > 0:12:20Now, when I think about it now?
0:12:20 > 0:12:21Angry,
0:12:21 > 0:12:23hurt...
0:12:25 > 0:12:27..and just...
0:12:28 > 0:12:30..just worried, yeah. Just scared.
0:12:33 > 0:12:35Once Fizah's baby is born,
0:12:35 > 0:12:37the midwives and the Vulnerable Baby Service
0:12:37 > 0:12:39will keep a close eye on how she copes.
0:12:45 > 0:12:46Di is still looking for the woman
0:12:46 > 0:12:50who disappeared with her newborn baby the day after leaving hospital.
0:12:50 > 0:12:53PHONE LINE RINGS
0:12:53 > 0:12:55Hello, is that Nasiba?
0:12:55 > 0:12:57- 'No.'- Is Nasiba there?
0:12:57 > 0:12:59'No, you've got the wrong number.'
0:12:59 > 0:13:03Is there a lady there who's had a baby recently?
0:13:03 > 0:13:05- 'No, not at all.'- I'm so sorry!
0:13:05 > 0:13:07All right, don't worry. Thank you.
0:13:07 > 0:13:10- 'Hi, Di.'- Hiya. That number,
0:13:10 > 0:13:12a guy answered who thinks I'm mad.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15Nobody's had a baby and it's not her.
0:13:15 > 0:13:20Can you ring the ward and check the discharge address on the paperwork?
0:13:20 > 0:13:23'Yeah, course I will. I give you a call back.'
0:13:25 > 0:13:29Di's been given a new address, just a few streets away.
0:13:39 > 0:13:41SHE KNOCKS
0:13:46 > 0:13:48Hello?
0:13:58 > 0:14:01I'm going to get her phone number off my piece of paper.
0:14:06 > 0:14:08Oh! Midwife!
0:14:08 > 0:14:10Where is baby?
0:14:10 > 0:14:11BABY WHIMPERS
0:14:11 > 0:14:13How old's your baby?
0:14:19 > 0:14:21It gets worse.
0:14:21 > 0:14:23Erm...
0:14:23 > 0:14:26That lady is not the lady I'm looking for
0:14:26 > 0:14:31and it's just hilarious, because they let anybody in the house.
0:14:31 > 0:14:35She has got a child who's 48 days old,
0:14:35 > 0:14:40who she had in Italy, but she's not the lady I'm looking for
0:14:40 > 0:14:42and so she just let me in.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44So I don't know what I'm going to do now.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48I'll go on to my next one, cos I'm not waiting.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51Cos that'll just hold me up now.
0:14:53 > 0:14:56Di has no choice but to push on to the next address.
0:14:57 > 0:14:59With Britain in the middle of a baby boom,
0:14:59 > 0:15:02she has to make up to 13 visits a day.
0:15:04 > 0:15:08Women are coming home a lot sooner from hospital.
0:15:08 > 0:15:11There's a rising birth rate.
0:15:11 > 0:15:15'There's been closures of other local hospitals,'
0:15:15 > 0:15:16which has had an impact on us.
0:15:18 > 0:15:22The way we're working at the minute, we're so busy, we're so pushed.
0:15:24 > 0:15:25You never get a lunch break,
0:15:25 > 0:15:28you don't often accept drinks in somebody's home
0:15:28 > 0:15:31because you don't know when your next toilet stop will come.
0:15:31 > 0:15:34What happens if you don't get through all your visits in a day?
0:15:34 > 0:15:36It doesn't happen. It's not an option.
0:15:36 > 0:15:38You have to get through your visits in a day.
0:15:38 > 0:15:40PHONE LINE RINGS
0:15:40 > 0:15:45- Thank you, bye.- 'OK, bye.'- Do you want an update on our missing woman?
0:15:45 > 0:15:46Yeah, what's happened now?
0:15:46 > 0:15:49I don't know how they've done it, but they managed to find her.
0:15:49 > 0:15:51She's actually in Withington.
0:15:51 > 0:15:53I'm really pleased they found her
0:15:53 > 0:15:57and I've even more pleased it's not in my area and I don't have to go!
0:15:57 > 0:15:58So it's one less visit I'm doing
0:15:58 > 0:16:02but really, I've done the visit and more in the time I spent chasing her.
0:16:02 > 0:16:04SHE SIGHS
0:16:05 > 0:16:08Getting sick of doing my coat up and undoing it.
0:16:10 > 0:16:12Di's final stop of the day
0:16:12 > 0:16:16is to see a couple who brought home their third child ten days ago.
0:16:19 > 0:16:21- Hiya. Midwife. You OK?- Yeah, yeah.
0:16:24 > 0:16:26Di wants to discharge them from the care of her team.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29She hopes this will be her final visit.
0:16:38 > 0:16:42Do you know, how she's sleeping now, she looks very comfortable,
0:16:42 > 0:16:45and it looks very nice, but it's not quite right.
0:16:45 > 0:16:47BABY CRIES
0:16:47 > 0:16:49I sound like I'm patronising you
0:16:49 > 0:16:52but I'm only giving you the best advice, OK?
0:16:52 > 0:16:54So she needs to be...
0:16:54 > 0:16:58The blankets are loosely placed over the top, not tied up like a parcel
0:16:58 > 0:17:02and that's so if she gets too hot, she can kick those blankets off.
0:17:02 > 0:17:03Yeah?
0:17:03 > 0:17:05BABY SCREAMS
0:17:05 > 0:17:09- And no pillows, no sleeping on pillows.- OK.- OK?
0:17:09 > 0:17:11Come on, darling.
0:17:11 > 0:17:15The safe sleeping advice is to prevent cot death.
0:17:15 > 0:17:19I don't know, in this country we call it cot death, but really,
0:17:19 > 0:17:23it's sudden infant death, and most babies who die
0:17:23 > 0:17:26because they're not sleeping in a cot.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28They die on a sofa or they die in a bed.
0:17:28 > 0:17:30Most of them are caused by bed sharing.
0:17:30 > 0:17:37Sofas, what tends to happen is babies get wedged down the side.
0:17:37 > 0:17:40It's horrible, really, to think of.
0:17:43 > 0:17:47So any problems, if you get any concerns about you or the baby now,
0:17:47 > 0:17:50- ring the GP.- OK.- All right.
0:17:53 > 0:17:56Do you ever leave someone's house
0:17:56 > 0:17:59worrying whether they're going to be all right and all?
0:17:59 > 0:18:01Yeah.
0:18:01 > 0:18:02It's not very nice.
0:18:05 > 0:18:08Almost 75% of cot deaths happen in disadvantaged families.
0:18:10 > 0:18:11Ten years ago,
0:18:11 > 0:18:16Manchester had some of the highest levels of cot death in Britain.
0:18:16 > 0:18:19The Vulnerable Baby Service was set up to help mothers
0:18:19 > 0:18:21whose babies are thought to be at risk
0:18:21 > 0:18:25before there's a need for social services to become involved.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29Some women will have their babies taken off them.
0:18:29 > 0:18:30Yeah.
0:18:30 > 0:18:33So there is a line?
0:18:33 > 0:18:35There is.
0:18:35 > 0:18:38And yeah, I've worked with quite a difficult case recently,
0:18:38 > 0:18:42couple of years ago, where a family had four children removed.
0:18:43 > 0:18:46And her mother resented me.
0:18:46 > 0:18:49And...it was very difficult,
0:18:49 > 0:18:53but I'm there not just for the mum, I'm there for the baby,
0:18:53 > 0:18:54all of them children.
0:19:00 > 0:19:02The midwives are concerned about 21-year-old Fizah
0:19:02 > 0:19:05because she has a history of family depression
0:19:05 > 0:19:07and because she's on her own.
0:19:07 > 0:19:10I don't know why, but I just think that's really cute,
0:19:10 > 0:19:13the little feet thing, the little booties.
0:19:13 > 0:19:16I just find that cute,
0:19:16 > 0:19:19because it says, like, "50% daddy", so...yeah!
0:19:21 > 0:19:25Yeah, I never thought I'd get pregnant by a Polish man.
0:19:25 > 0:19:28I could never see myself, like, in this situation.
0:19:28 > 0:19:32Do you know if he'll be around? How much do you think he'll be around?
0:19:35 > 0:19:38I don't know. He's got photos of the scans.
0:19:38 > 0:19:41He's got spare scan photos. He wanted them.
0:19:41 > 0:19:44He's bought some baby stuff, but...
0:19:46 > 0:19:49I don't know if he's going to be around all the time, like, a lot
0:19:49 > 0:19:51and to be honest, I don't think he would.
0:19:51 > 0:19:55Fizah is unhappy that Joyce has referred her
0:19:55 > 0:19:59to the Vulnerable Baby Service because of her family background.
0:19:59 > 0:20:01It runs through three generations.
0:20:01 > 0:20:03My grandma, she's schizophrenic,
0:20:03 > 0:20:09and then from there my mum lost me and my other sisters
0:20:09 > 0:20:11because she was depressed.
0:20:11 > 0:20:12We were taken into care and stuff
0:20:12 > 0:20:15because they said that she couldn't cope.
0:20:15 > 0:20:18My other sister, that's another thing,
0:20:18 > 0:20:20my other sister she's got issues as well,
0:20:20 > 0:20:22and she's lost her kids as well.
0:20:22 > 0:20:25And then Joyce, I don't know,
0:20:25 > 0:20:29maybe she just presumes that I'm going to end up like my family,
0:20:29 > 0:20:34maybe, but, like I said, I do think it's really fair, to be honest.
0:20:35 > 0:20:37I'm...
0:20:37 > 0:20:40I've not been given the opportunity to actually be a mother yet.
0:20:40 > 0:20:42So...yeah.
0:20:46 > 0:20:48When Fizah found out she was pregnant,
0:20:48 > 0:20:51she didn't know how much she could rely on her mum for support.
0:20:54 > 0:20:56I decided to, like, keep the baby and stuff.
0:20:56 > 0:21:02So I first told my sisters, and then I eventually told my parents,
0:21:02 > 0:21:05and yeah, they weren't too pleased, were they?
0:21:06 > 0:21:09No, they really weren't too pleased.
0:21:09 > 0:21:11You got to admit, you did find it difficult, though.
0:21:11 > 0:21:15Yeah, I did find it difficult, but I have learnt to accept it.
0:21:15 > 0:21:17I mean, there was a time when I wouldn't,
0:21:17 > 0:21:22when I wasn't able to say when me and Fizah kept having arguments.
0:21:22 > 0:21:23I said to her, you know,
0:21:23 > 0:21:27I don't understand how you can go through this pregnancy.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30Because it's going to, you know, bring shame on us.
0:21:30 > 0:21:33Well, I've looked at it from all sorts of views, I mean,
0:21:33 > 0:21:38Allah says, God says, but his door is always open for forgiveness.
0:21:38 > 0:21:42Tell me, what was it like when you were pregnant with Fizah?
0:21:42 > 0:21:44Oh, oh, gosh.
0:21:44 > 0:21:48Right, it was when, you know the Berlin Wall came down,
0:21:48 > 0:21:511989, so we went there.
0:21:51 > 0:21:57I was pregnant with Fizah at that time, they invited me to...
0:21:57 > 0:21:59- Oh, you can tell them about that? - The club, yeah.
0:21:59 > 0:22:02- Oh, God.- Nightclub.
0:22:02 > 0:22:04But you weren't drinking anything, were you?
0:22:04 > 0:22:07No, I didn't drink, I had orange juice, they knew that I was pregnant
0:22:07 > 0:22:08so obviously, I wouldn't drink.
0:22:08 > 0:22:14Every time the music came on, I could feel her bouncing along.
0:22:14 > 0:22:18Seriously? Oh, my God.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20I think that's where you get your clubbing instincts from.
0:22:20 > 0:22:23Yeah, maybe.
0:22:23 > 0:22:25That was one of my easiest births, really.
0:22:25 > 0:22:27And easiest, you know, pregnancy.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30- So I wasn't painful, or anything?- No, no, no.
0:22:31 > 0:22:33Who was your midwife?
0:22:34 > 0:22:38- What, when I had my first baby?- Ah!
0:22:38 > 0:22:40Sister Pemberton.
0:22:40 > 0:22:41- Joyce?- Joyce, yes.
0:22:41 > 0:22:46- What was she like?- Very strict, very, very strict.
0:22:48 > 0:22:51She was like, you know, like what you call those...
0:22:51 > 0:22:52Like a nun.
0:22:52 > 0:22:58There was no Joyce, you had to call her Sister Pemberton,
0:22:58 > 0:22:59there was no, you know...
0:22:59 > 0:23:03- Friendly banter.- Um, friendly banter or anything like that.
0:23:03 > 0:23:07But she's a lovely lady, it's just that time she was very, very strict.
0:23:09 > 0:23:13I had postnatal depression, and I was sitting in the house,
0:23:13 > 0:23:15and I was crying, the curtains were closed,
0:23:15 > 0:23:17I wouldn't get up to eat or drink or anything.
0:23:19 > 0:23:21Well, I say I would rather have had support,
0:23:21 > 0:23:24I would have liked to have had a mum that I could turn to.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27When somebody takes your child from you
0:23:27 > 0:23:29first of all, it's really devastating.
0:23:29 > 0:23:32We felt that what social services done to us,
0:23:32 > 0:23:35they did try to make us come apart.
0:23:37 > 0:23:40That eats away at you, you feel guilty, what did I do wrong?
0:23:40 > 0:23:41What did I do wrong?
0:23:41 > 0:23:44Was it something I did that caused this to happen?
0:23:46 > 0:23:48You try to do your best, and you've done everything,
0:23:48 > 0:23:53and yet somebody turns around and tells you you're not a good mother.
0:23:54 > 0:23:56Fizah is due in a few days' time.
0:23:56 > 0:23:59She's asked her mum to be her birth partner.
0:24:07 > 0:24:09Hello, Catherine, it's Farhana,
0:24:09 > 0:24:13do you know that this homebirth is due in now?
0:24:13 > 0:24:16Five miles away, midwife Farhana Farouq has been called
0:24:16 > 0:24:19to help a woman give birth in her own front room.
0:24:19 > 0:24:20Let's go.
0:24:23 > 0:24:27Less than 2% of women in Manchester
0:24:27 > 0:24:29choose to give birth at home.
0:24:29 > 0:24:30When they do,
0:24:30 > 0:24:34it falls to the community midwives to look after them.
0:24:36 > 0:24:39Homebirths can be just as safe, and they cost the NHS less.
0:24:39 > 0:24:43But it's a mother's choice to request one.
0:24:43 > 0:24:45There aren't as many as we'd like there to be,
0:24:45 > 0:24:47so, when they do come about, they are quite special.
0:24:47 > 0:24:51These ladies won't have any social problems,
0:24:51 > 0:24:54they tend to be as normal as you can get,
0:24:54 > 0:24:57and, you know, we don't worry about them in any kind of way.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01Farhana has been a midwife for just five years.
0:25:01 > 0:25:03You're not in a hospital environment any more,
0:25:03 > 0:25:07you're not in a place where you can pull the emergency buzzer,
0:25:07 > 0:25:09and you get all your support in.
0:25:09 > 0:25:10I've not met this lady
0:25:10 > 0:25:13but we just treat every patient like with met them before,
0:25:13 > 0:25:15and their needs come first.
0:25:19 > 0:25:21My name's Farhana, I'm one of the midwives,
0:25:21 > 0:25:23- do you want us to take our shoes off? - No, go on in.
0:25:23 > 0:25:25- Are you sure?- Yeah.
0:25:25 > 0:25:27Uh, uh, uh!
0:25:33 > 0:25:34Ah!
0:25:34 > 0:25:36Sorry, Nina, hello.
0:25:36 > 0:25:38I didn't want to catch you mid-contraction.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44By the time Farhana arrives to take over from another midwife,
0:25:44 > 0:25:4834-year-old Nina has been in labour for 12 hours.
0:25:50 > 0:25:52Keep breathing.
0:25:55 > 0:25:59So far, the contractions are still how they're supposed to be doing,
0:25:59 > 0:26:02we've not examined her because it's every four hours.
0:26:02 > 0:26:05It's just that support, really, now, more than anything.
0:26:05 > 0:26:09First-time mums have a 40% chance of being transferred into hospital.
0:26:09 > 0:26:13Nina's labour needs to progress more quickly
0:26:13 > 0:26:15if she's going to deliver her baby at home.
0:26:21 > 0:26:23- Do you want to try up and down? - I'll try.
0:26:23 > 0:26:26OK. Even if it's just one little step at a time.
0:26:29 > 0:26:32Ah, ah, ah!
0:26:37 > 0:26:39Ah, ah!
0:26:39 > 0:26:43It seems a strange way to spend a Tuesday night.
0:26:43 > 0:26:46An evening, I know, I could have been watching EastEnders,
0:26:46 > 0:26:49Holby City, I know.
0:26:50 > 0:26:54Nina, shall we try and get you to the loo again?
0:26:54 > 0:26:56- For a wee?- Yeah, if we can.
0:26:58 > 0:27:01Let's just do everything we can to try and help this labour.
0:27:01 > 0:27:05So far, Nina has had no pain relief at all.
0:27:06 > 0:27:11MOANING
0:27:18 > 0:27:20Just breathe it away, Nina.
0:27:20 > 0:27:22Bring your bottom on little bit more in the middle,
0:27:22 > 0:27:23it's kind of on one side.
0:27:23 > 0:27:25That's it. Feet together.
0:27:25 > 0:27:28OK, try and relax. A bit cold, it's the jelly.
0:27:30 > 0:27:34It needs to come a little bit further down, OK,
0:27:34 > 0:27:38but baby has come down a lot since examined,
0:27:38 > 0:27:41and I can only just about get in this much of my finger.
0:27:41 > 0:27:44That's how far away your baby's head is.
0:27:44 > 0:27:46I'm just going to try and see what position the baby is in
0:27:46 > 0:27:48but with your membrane still there.
0:27:48 > 0:27:51Right, missus, let's get it back up.
0:27:51 > 0:27:55The more pressure on this baby's head, the waters will go.
0:27:59 > 0:28:02It's been four hours since Farhana arrived,
0:28:02 > 0:28:06and Nina is fully dilated and ready to start pushing.
0:28:11 > 0:28:14It's the end of Farhana's shift.
0:28:14 > 0:28:15MOANING
0:28:15 > 0:28:18She can't stay to deliver the baby.
0:28:20 > 0:28:22Midwife Mary takes over.
0:28:22 > 0:28:25MOANING
0:28:28 > 0:28:31Spotlight down below.
0:28:31 > 0:28:33Right.
0:28:33 > 0:28:35- What's that for?- Just for suction.
0:28:39 > 0:28:41Nina, just come to say goodbye.
0:28:41 > 0:28:44Going to off to bed cos we're on first thing in the morning.
0:28:44 > 0:28:48Yeah, just keep nice and stood up and you'll be fine.
0:28:48 > 0:28:50- Thanks a lot. - All right. All the best.
0:28:50 > 0:28:52Thanks guys.
0:28:52 > 0:28:55THEY EXCHANGE GOODBYES
0:28:57 > 0:28:59LABOURED BREATHING
0:29:08 > 0:29:11Push down really hard together.
0:29:11 > 0:29:13Right.
0:29:13 > 0:29:16Hold it, hold it, hold it, hold it.
0:29:16 > 0:29:19Hold it. Come on, Nina.
0:29:19 > 0:29:22Hold, hold, hold.
0:29:22 > 0:29:25Go on, one long push. It's nearly there.
0:29:25 > 0:29:28Just the colour of the water
0:29:28 > 0:29:34- has just gone a bit with meconium.- Oh, no.- Yeah.
0:29:34 > 0:29:38Meconium - baby pooh - can be a sign the baby is in distress.
0:29:38 > 0:29:42- You really couldn't have done any more.- What will we do now?
0:29:42 > 0:29:45If we were seeing the head at this point
0:29:45 > 0:29:49and delivering the baby, we would just carry on.
0:29:51 > 0:29:54But, however, because we're not seeing the baby's head
0:29:54 > 0:29:56we're actually seeing some of the meconium,
0:29:56 > 0:30:00we do really need to go in.
0:30:07 > 0:30:10NINA MOANS
0:30:13 > 0:30:16Try not to push Nina, just breathe.
0:30:30 > 0:30:34Nina had actually been fully dilated a long period of time
0:30:34 > 0:30:38but, sadly, the progress of the baby's head just was hampered.
0:30:38 > 0:30:42As a clinician you've got to be always thinking,
0:30:42 > 0:30:44is this mother and baby still safe?
0:30:54 > 0:30:57MIDWIFE: Gorgeous. Oh!
0:31:00 > 0:31:03Just in between us. That's it.
0:31:03 > 0:31:06After 30 hours, and three different midwives,
0:31:06 > 0:31:08a doctor delivers Nina's baby boy.
0:31:08 > 0:31:12BABY CRIES
0:31:27 > 0:31:30PHONE RINGS
0:31:30 > 0:31:34After a late shift at the home birth, Farhana still has to be in
0:31:34 > 0:31:37at 8.30 the next morning to tackle an ever-growing list
0:31:37 > 0:31:39of expectant mothers.
0:31:39 > 0:31:44We don't just discuss your medical things with you.
0:31:44 > 0:31:46There's actually a bit in here, it specifically asks you
0:31:46 > 0:31:48about your mental health.
0:31:48 > 0:31:50You could be feeling low in mood which we know is
0:31:50 > 0:31:54normal in pregnancy so your emotional health is now
0:31:54 > 0:31:57asked about during booking pregnancy and also family life,
0:31:57 > 0:32:00you know, if you've got any support etc, things like that.
0:32:00 > 0:32:03What we don't want is for these ladies to be more isolated
0:32:03 > 0:32:05or vulnerable in pregnancy.
0:32:07 > 0:32:10Monique is eight months pregnant.
0:32:10 > 0:32:14She's one of the mums-to-be the team is keeping an eye on
0:32:14 > 0:32:16throughout her pregnancy.
0:32:18 > 0:32:21She's very nice, very lovely, but emotionally,
0:32:21 > 0:32:24needs lots of support. Unfortunately her mum died last year.
0:32:24 > 0:32:26She's not with the baby's dad.
0:32:26 > 0:32:29She has some friends and some family
0:32:29 > 0:32:33but it's not like having your mum when you're pregnant.
0:32:34 > 0:32:37Monique has only just been rehoused,
0:32:37 > 0:32:40having spent most of her pregnancy sleeping on friends' sofas.
0:32:41 > 0:32:45It's an OK area.
0:32:49 > 0:32:51Only if you were brought up around here, though, I think.
0:33:03 > 0:33:06That was on my first birthday.
0:33:06 > 0:33:10My mum was pregnant and I was born 15 weeks premature.
0:33:10 > 0:33:12I weighed one pound one ounce.
0:33:12 > 0:33:16And on my first birthday I was in the newspaper.
0:33:16 > 0:33:18I was basically nearly a miscarriage.
0:33:19 > 0:33:23My mum passed away in February this year.
0:33:25 > 0:33:29January, February, March... Three months after she passed away,
0:33:29 > 0:33:30that's when I conceived.
0:33:30 > 0:33:34I think she planned it.
0:33:34 > 0:33:37Definitely. To keep me focused.
0:33:38 > 0:33:41Me and the baby's dad aren't together
0:33:41 > 0:33:43which I think, at the moment, is a good idea.
0:33:43 > 0:33:46Just concentrate on the baby.
0:33:46 > 0:33:48I have a few worries.
0:33:48 > 0:33:51But all you can do is try your best.
0:33:52 > 0:33:54I think.
0:33:54 > 0:33:56Like many cities,
0:33:56 > 0:33:59Manchester has a higher-than-average number of single mothers.
0:33:59 > 0:34:02Almost a third of mums are on their own.
0:34:08 > 0:34:12Three days before her due date, Monique goes into labour
0:34:12 > 0:34:16and asks for the strongest pain relief she can have.
0:34:16 > 0:34:20It feels mad. It's like you go through loads of things
0:34:20 > 0:34:22that you can't remember.
0:34:22 > 0:34:26You know, when you're in the pain, you can't remember it.
0:34:26 > 0:34:31Now I feel all right. Probably because of the epidural.
0:34:31 > 0:34:33'She was quite bad to begin with
0:34:33 > 0:34:35'because the pain relief was not working
0:34:35 > 0:34:39'but now she's had epidural and she's doing really well.'
0:34:39 > 0:34:44Monique's asked her stepmum, Christine, to be her birth partner.
0:34:47 > 0:34:51Monique and my daughter were best friends at school.
0:34:51 > 0:34:55I was single and her dad was and they brought us together.
0:34:55 > 0:34:57Just because I didn't give birth to her doesn't mean
0:34:57 > 0:35:00that I'm not a mother to her.
0:35:00 > 0:35:02Monique's mum isn't here now
0:35:02 > 0:35:06and I'm sure she'd want somebody here in her place.
0:35:14 > 0:35:17Though he's not been around for much of the pregnancy,
0:35:17 > 0:35:21ex-boyfriend Stephen has turned up at the hospital.
0:35:22 > 0:35:24I've asked for the doctors to review.
0:35:24 > 0:35:29Baby's just dropping its heart rate a little bit.
0:35:33 > 0:35:35After eight hours of labour,
0:35:35 > 0:35:39suddenly, Monique's baby is in distress.
0:35:39 > 0:35:41Have you got any crowns or bridges in your mouth?
0:35:41 > 0:35:45Don't worry about that now. There's no time. Got to get the baby out.
0:35:47 > 0:35:49Yes, we have done.
0:35:49 > 0:35:51The baby is the priority.
0:35:51 > 0:35:54Leave everything as it is and just follow Sue.
0:35:56 > 0:35:59Sit back, sweetheart. If you just follow me, I'll show you
0:35:59 > 0:36:02where to get changed. Come on through.
0:36:02 > 0:36:05Monique needs an emergency Caesarean section.
0:36:05 > 0:36:08Stephen is allowed to go into theatre.
0:36:08 > 0:36:11Get changed in here and lock your stuff up in the locker.
0:36:19 > 0:36:21First one didn't answer.
0:36:21 > 0:36:25I'm not completely numb. I can't feel nothing.
0:36:28 > 0:36:31Wow! Come on, baby.
0:36:34 > 0:36:35BABY CRIES
0:36:35 > 0:36:38Hello. Give it a...
0:36:38 > 0:36:41Show them it's crying.
0:36:41 > 0:36:44Can you just hold it for me? Give us a clamp.
0:36:44 > 0:36:47Congratulations.
0:36:47 > 0:36:49- MONIQUE:- Oh, God.
0:36:49 > 0:36:53There's your baby. I'm going to take him to the baby doctor.
0:36:53 > 0:36:57He's absolutely fine, but I'm going to take into the baby doctor.
0:36:57 > 0:37:02It's routine, it's normal. But he's a fine, healthy boy. All right?
0:37:02 > 0:37:04I'll bring him straight back.
0:37:04 > 0:37:07He's definitely got your colouring!
0:37:07 > 0:37:12No way! Oh, my God!
0:37:12 > 0:37:14Get your scissors.
0:37:14 > 0:37:18It's not quite the same as coming out of the womb but if you just
0:37:18 > 0:37:22cut near there. You have cut the cord. Fantastic! Well done.
0:37:22 > 0:37:25- Shall we weigh him?- Please.- Yeah?
0:37:25 > 0:37:28- He's lovely isn't he? - Gorgeous.
0:37:32 > 0:37:37What do you think? You've gone really quiet. You stuck for words?
0:37:37 > 0:37:40- Yeah.- You've not stopped yacking all day.
0:37:40 > 0:37:42Three point three.
0:37:45 > 0:37:49- Congratulations.- Thank you.
0:37:49 > 0:37:52- I'm trying not to cry. He's stunning, isn't he?- Amazing.
0:37:54 > 0:37:56I've checked with the doctor...
0:37:58 > 0:38:00He's absolutely tiny.
0:38:02 > 0:38:03Hello.
0:38:03 > 0:38:05HE CRIES
0:38:09 > 0:38:14You took your time, didn't you? Yeah, you did.
0:38:15 > 0:38:20- Got your nose.- He's got my nose.- Ohh!
0:38:22 > 0:38:24Look at him.
0:38:26 > 0:38:30I don't know. I wouldn't be able to not be here.
0:38:30 > 0:38:34I don't understand how some people you know are just at home waiting.
0:38:34 > 0:38:36Just don't understand it.
0:38:38 > 0:38:42It's partly me, isn't it? So...
0:38:42 > 0:38:47I'm not the best partner.
0:38:47 > 0:38:51I think that's no reflection on what I'll be like as a father.
0:38:51 > 0:38:52So, erm...
0:38:54 > 0:38:57You know, I'll be a lot better father than a partner.
0:38:57 > 0:38:58Try and separate them.
0:39:02 > 0:39:06I think the initial gorgeous baby and the cuddling stage is amazing
0:39:06 > 0:39:10and then you often do wonder how supportive
0:39:10 > 0:39:13will they be once it gets really difficult and the sleepless nights
0:39:13 > 0:39:18and the stress kicks in and raising a baby is really difficult.
0:39:26 > 0:39:30Five days past her due date, Fizah has also gone into labour.
0:39:34 > 0:39:35I think you've popped.
0:39:42 > 0:39:44- Sorry.- It's OK.
0:39:47 > 0:39:51- Get off me. Shit, shit, shit. - What has happened?
0:39:51 > 0:39:55- This is why I wanted to stay there.- OK.
0:39:55 > 0:40:00- Hello. OK? - Don't touch me, please.- OK.
0:40:00 > 0:40:03I think she's fully dilated, just by looking at her.
0:40:03 > 0:40:05Because I just think she is.
0:40:05 > 0:40:08Thinking isn't the same as examining so I just need to quickly check.
0:40:08 > 0:40:12I'll check but I am sure.
0:40:12 > 0:40:15- Can I examine you? - Not yet, not yet.- Not yet, not yet.
0:40:15 > 0:40:18- Are you having pain are you? - Are you having a pain, darling?
0:40:18 > 0:40:20Don't worry.
0:40:20 > 0:40:24I think your baby... Sorry, I'm getting on your nerves.
0:40:24 > 0:40:27- I think your baby's going to come. - It's coming now.
0:40:27 > 0:40:30- It's coming now.- I think you're very brave, come on.
0:40:30 > 0:40:33Please don't touch me.
0:40:33 > 0:40:35I'm not touching.
0:40:35 > 0:40:39- Voluntary?- Involuntary, yeah.
0:40:45 > 0:40:49Big, deep breaths on that and keep going all the way.
0:40:49 > 0:40:53- Hold it to your mouth.- I can't. - Just hold it to your mouth.
0:40:53 > 0:40:56- I'm trying. - If you want to push, push.
0:40:56 > 0:41:01Hold on like this to the bed. Hold on tight, then push really hard.
0:41:01 > 0:41:04Like you want to do a pooh. Quick push.
0:41:04 > 0:41:08That's it, big long push into your bottom.
0:41:08 > 0:41:11- Keep that going.- Good girl.
0:41:11 > 0:41:15Well done. Keep going.
0:41:20 > 0:41:23BABY CRIES
0:41:24 > 0:41:27After 13 hours in labour and a tricky delivery,
0:41:27 > 0:41:30Fizah gives birth to a baby boy.
0:41:39 > 0:41:41He's a big bit close to the thingy, isn't he?
0:41:41 > 0:41:45- You want me to move the stuff out of the way?- Be careful.
0:41:47 > 0:41:51Would you not like to be recorded, Mike?
0:41:53 > 0:41:55Here's your babby!
0:41:58 > 0:42:02Fizah's ex-boyfriend, Mike, has turned up to drive her home.
0:42:02 > 0:42:08I've already got a name for him - Zade - it means to progress.
0:42:10 > 0:42:14- Do you think it's big? - It's quite big, actually.
0:42:14 > 0:42:18But he'll be all right. Won't you, lad?
0:42:18 > 0:42:22- It is quite hot. Should be all right.- It is quite warm.
0:42:27 > 0:42:32- Yeah.- All right?- Going to struggle a bit. Oh, God. Thank you.
0:42:33 > 0:42:37Goes from the top there, over round is what it's doing there.
0:42:37 > 0:42:40I'm sure we could put it round there like that.
0:42:40 > 0:42:43- There we go.- Is he all right?
0:42:45 > 0:42:47What do you mean it's on the wrong side?
0:42:53 > 0:42:56- You call that careful driving?- What?
0:42:56 > 0:42:58- Who taught you how to drive? - That's what I said.
0:43:01 > 0:43:04- You're driving a bit like a psycho. - And there's a baby in the car.
0:43:07 > 0:43:09Right.
0:43:10 > 0:43:12It's so hot in here.
0:43:15 > 0:43:19- All right, I'm going, yeah? - You going to get going? OK.
0:43:19 > 0:43:21You going to kiss him goodbye?
0:43:21 > 0:43:24- Give him a kiss goodbye. He's your son.- Why?
0:43:24 > 0:43:28Because he's your son. He's part...oh...
0:43:31 > 0:43:37- Daddy's saying bye-bye. See ya. - See you.- Bye.
0:43:47 > 0:43:51Joyce will now keep a close eye on Fizah.
0:43:51 > 0:43:54I think it's not going to be easy for her
0:43:54 > 0:44:00as it's not going to be easy for any young single parent.
0:44:00 > 0:44:04In two weeks, Fizah will have to attend a meeting
0:44:04 > 0:44:07at the Vulnerable Baby Service to review how she's coping as a mum.
0:44:10 > 0:44:13I don't like feeling like I'm being judged.
0:44:13 > 0:44:17She thought just because I was in care and because, you know,
0:44:17 > 0:44:21I was living by myself that I didn't have any support, so, obviously,
0:44:21 > 0:44:24that doesn't help either when people make assumptions of you
0:44:24 > 0:44:27and, like, judge you and stuff.
0:44:27 > 0:44:30So not a great experience of your midwife?
0:44:30 > 0:44:32No.
0:44:32 > 0:44:35I'm just being honest.
0:44:38 > 0:44:41A day after coming home,
0:44:41 > 0:44:44Fizah has asked that Joyce doesn't visit her at all.
0:44:46 > 0:44:52I'd have liked to have been involved with her postnatal care,
0:44:52 > 0:44:55but if it's not what she wants
0:44:55 > 0:44:58then we do have a team of midwives
0:44:58 > 0:45:00who all provide the same level of care.
0:45:00 > 0:45:03But you stand by the referral?
0:45:03 > 0:45:05I do, yeah.
0:45:10 > 0:45:13You're almost finished now?
0:45:13 > 0:45:17Determined to talk about that, aren't you? And I'm determined not to.
0:45:17 > 0:45:22- Well, you are!- I am, yes.- You're retiring.- That's right, next week.
0:45:22 > 0:45:25How are you feeling about that?
0:45:27 > 0:45:28It's happening.
0:45:30 > 0:45:34After 30 years as a midwife, Joyce has handed in her notice.
0:45:36 > 0:45:40I think midwives were almost respected in a different way.
0:45:40 > 0:45:46When I started, the midwife was very much part of the family.
0:45:46 > 0:45:50Now, because communities have broken up,
0:45:50 > 0:45:53midwife isn't generally as known.
0:45:58 > 0:46:01Hello, it's the midwife.
0:46:01 > 0:46:03There's nobody here. Look.
0:46:03 > 0:46:06- Excuse me.- Yes. - Nobody lives there now.
0:46:06 > 0:46:10I just figured that out. We haven't got the other address.
0:46:10 > 0:46:14- I'll have to ring.- Number 33.- Number 33 on this street?- On this street.
0:46:14 > 0:46:16Did I visit you?
0:46:16 > 0:46:19- I think you did, actually. - You look ever so familiar.
0:46:19 > 0:46:21- I've got three under five. - That's right.
0:46:21 > 0:46:26- It's up while ago now, isn't it? Was it last year?- Yes, for Isaac.
0:46:26 > 0:46:27No, no, no.
0:46:27 > 0:46:31I'm coming to get you. I'm coming. I'm coming.
0:46:31 > 0:46:35Come on! Come on, come on, come on. There we are!
0:46:38 > 0:46:42I'll miss the patients. I'll miss the clinics.
0:46:42 > 0:46:44I will miss them, yes,
0:46:44 > 0:46:47but sometimes it comes the right point to go and this just seems
0:46:47 > 0:46:49like the right point to go.
0:46:54 > 0:46:59Midwife Nikki Quinn has come to check on Monique and her baby boy.
0:47:04 > 0:47:07This is what I need to know. Is this too warm in here,
0:47:07 > 0:47:09- or... I don't know.- It feels fine.
0:47:09 > 0:47:12As long as it feels fine to you, that's all right.
0:47:14 > 0:47:18Monique's ex, Stephen, has stayed the night.
0:47:18 > 0:47:21- Hello.- Hi, you all right?- Yeah, you?
0:47:23 > 0:47:25Doesn't scare me!
0:47:25 > 0:47:27Hello!
0:47:27 > 0:47:32Oh! I've been waiting to meet you.
0:47:37 > 0:47:40- What's he called?- Cole.
0:47:41 > 0:47:45So, you know he's to be on his back and his feet at the bottom.
0:47:45 > 0:47:48We always said they don't really need a hat inside
0:47:48 > 0:47:51because we want to make sure they're nice and warm
0:47:51 > 0:47:53but don't overheat them.
0:47:53 > 0:47:55How are you feeling?
0:47:55 > 0:47:58It's all right. Just tired now.
0:47:59 > 0:48:03But it's good, yeah, he's cute, isn't he?
0:48:03 > 0:48:05Think I worry about him more than her, you know,
0:48:05 > 0:48:07when he's crying or something?
0:48:08 > 0:48:11I don't know much about it.
0:48:13 > 0:48:16None of my friends have had kids and a lot of my family's
0:48:16 > 0:48:17not in Manchester.
0:48:17 > 0:48:21Yeah. So you've not have that much exposure to them.
0:48:21 > 0:48:24I've never really... I'd be the person that wouldn't hold a baby
0:48:24 > 0:48:25or anything.
0:48:25 > 0:48:26Now you've got your own!
0:48:26 > 0:48:31That was like Grandad, yesterday, he come to visit but wouldn't hold.
0:48:31 > 0:48:32See you. Take care.
0:48:32 > 0:48:34Keep on changing those nappies!
0:48:36 > 0:48:38It's kind of a nice surprise that he's around
0:48:38 > 0:48:43and he seems to be bonding with his son and helping out a lot.
0:48:43 > 0:48:46So it's nice to see because I didn't know he was around.
0:48:46 > 0:48:48I presumed he wasn't around, to be honest.
0:49:04 > 0:49:07With Joyce off the case, Mary steps in to visit Fizah.
0:49:09 > 0:49:11Hi, how are you doing?
0:49:15 > 0:49:16KNOCK ON DOOR
0:49:19 > 0:49:23- Hello!- Hi! - Is it all right to come in?- Yeah!
0:49:23 > 0:49:26So, how does it feel to be at home?
0:49:26 > 0:49:28- It feels good.- Yeah.
0:49:28 > 0:49:32I feel like I'm happy, I'm genuinely happy.
0:49:32 > 0:49:34I feel really good about it.
0:49:34 > 0:49:36BABY CRIES
0:49:36 > 0:49:39And if you can, I know you feel like you're choking him,
0:49:39 > 0:49:41but just get the teat completely to the top.
0:49:41 > 0:49:44That's what I was going to ask, like, when I try and wind him,
0:49:44 > 0:49:50sometimes something will come up and then other times nothing.
0:49:50 > 0:49:53Like, I was just wondering, do they always have wind?
0:49:53 > 0:49:56You know the times when it doesn't come up, is he just like fast asleep?
0:49:56 > 0:49:57Yeah, yeah.
0:49:57 > 0:49:59So it's not bothering him,
0:49:59 > 0:50:01so, just keep him upright, just for a little while.
0:50:05 > 0:50:07There we go.
0:50:07 > 0:50:10So you literally would say that you pop him in right at the bottom
0:50:10 > 0:50:12so his little feet are nearly touching there.
0:50:12 > 0:50:13So a bit more lower?
0:50:13 > 0:50:16Yeah, no, that's fine because he's right there, no, that's perfect.
0:50:16 > 0:50:19I'm not a supermum. I don't know what I'm doing, this is first time.
0:50:19 > 0:50:22- There is no such thing as supermum. - I know, there isn't!
0:50:22 > 0:50:23All the booklets!
0:50:23 > 0:50:27In every aspect of your life there isn't a super...
0:50:27 > 0:50:30Super teacher, super midwife, supermum, we're all...
0:50:30 > 0:50:34human, we all...make mistakes.
0:50:39 > 0:50:43After five days at home, there's been no sign of Fizah's ex, Mike.
0:50:49 > 0:50:52OK, I've just got to leave it to cool down.
0:50:56 > 0:51:01I still think he looks a lot like his dad at the moment. Definitely.
0:51:03 > 0:51:06But he's not been back to see him either, so, yeah...
0:51:06 > 0:51:08Yeah, it doesn't matter.
0:51:10 > 0:51:12He's missing out, so...
0:51:15 > 0:51:20Fizah is anxious about her meeting with the Vulnerable Baby Service.
0:51:20 > 0:51:22I mean, to be honest,
0:51:22 > 0:51:24I never thought I would be a mum at this age.
0:51:26 > 0:51:28It is strange, definitely.
0:51:29 > 0:51:33It's strange that the normal for you is that babies get taken away?
0:51:33 > 0:51:36Yeah, that is, in our family.
0:51:36 > 0:51:37Do you know what, I never...
0:51:37 > 0:51:41I didn't even think about it like that way, in that way.
0:51:41 > 0:51:45But, yeah. In our heads, we think that's what's going to happen.
0:51:45 > 0:51:47Like, that's what tends to happen most people
0:51:47 > 0:51:49because of what's happened.
0:51:49 > 0:51:51It just makes me want to cry about it when I think about it.
0:51:54 > 0:51:57Yeah, you just... You just think that it's a normal thing that
0:51:57 > 0:52:01once you have a kid, that they'll take...take it away.
0:52:05 > 0:52:07And how does it feel to have him?
0:52:07 > 0:52:10I love him to bits, so much.
0:52:10 > 0:52:13That's why we're scared of having children, like.
0:52:19 > 0:52:23I just want to make sure he's happy and safe and I just want to...
0:52:23 > 0:52:26Like I said, like I said before, I want to get on with things.
0:52:36 > 0:52:38Thanks, Jean!
0:52:38 > 0:52:41Oh, it's open, thank you.
0:52:44 > 0:52:46Monique has been home for ten days
0:52:46 > 0:52:49and Farhana is visiting to see how she and Stephen are coping.
0:52:51 > 0:52:55A lot of the ladies do say, oh, you know, he's really trying now,
0:52:55 > 0:52:58now the baby's here, he's really trying hard
0:52:58 > 0:53:03or whatever. But if it lasts a lot longer than that, we don't know.
0:53:09 > 0:53:10Who is it?
0:53:10 > 0:53:11Hi, it's the midwife.
0:53:20 > 0:53:24- Hi.- Hi, are you OK? - Are you dyeing your hair?
0:53:24 > 0:53:25- Fake tan.- Fake tan!
0:53:26 > 0:53:28BABY STARTS TO CRY
0:53:28 > 0:53:29Oh, smelly boy!
0:53:31 > 0:53:33All right, you're not smelly, then.
0:53:33 > 0:53:37Is that just me upset him?
0:53:37 > 0:53:40Is this now your permanent residency?
0:53:40 > 0:53:43- You're not... No issues with that?- No.
0:53:43 > 0:53:46Keeps me up all night, don't you?
0:53:46 > 0:53:50- Look at your legs!- Yeah, I know! - One's tanned, one pale!
0:53:50 > 0:53:54That's what motherhood does to you. Makes you lose the plot!
0:53:54 > 0:53:57- Daddy around?- Yeah, he's here, yeah. - Oh, fine.
0:53:57 > 0:54:00No, just because I didn't want you to be on your own
0:54:00 > 0:54:03- and coping with the baby on your own. - Oh, yeah. No, no.
0:54:03 > 0:54:06- Do you've family about?- Yeah. - Friends?- Yep.
0:54:09 > 0:54:10Stinky...
0:54:10 > 0:54:13- How are you feeling within yourself, physically?- Fine.
0:54:13 > 0:54:15- Tired?- Yeah.
0:54:16 > 0:54:18- Thank you very much.- Thanks.
0:54:18 > 0:54:22- So he's 7lb 3oz now?- Yeah.
0:54:22 > 0:54:25Monique is discharged from the midwife's care.
0:54:27 > 0:54:30I've definitely seen it bring more families together
0:54:30 > 0:54:34than break them apart, especially when it comes to the father.
0:54:36 > 0:54:38Once that baby's here,
0:54:38 > 0:54:42it just makes something click in the brain and they just...
0:54:42 > 0:54:47they really get involved, and it's really, really nice to see that.
0:54:49 > 0:54:53Stephen's taken two weeks' paternity leave.
0:54:53 > 0:54:55He's going to stick around to help bring up Cole.
0:54:55 > 0:54:57Ohh!
0:54:57 > 0:54:59Got the hang of that.
0:55:00 > 0:55:01What about you and Stephen, then?
0:55:03 > 0:55:04Um...
0:55:07 > 0:55:09Any chance you might...?
0:55:09 > 0:55:12I don't know. See what the future holds.
0:55:12 > 0:55:13See how it goes.
0:55:13 > 0:55:18I think just Cole is the most important thing.
0:55:18 > 0:55:20He smiled when I said that.
0:55:20 > 0:55:24Just as long as we both do best by the baby,
0:55:24 > 0:55:25that's all that matters.
0:55:34 > 0:55:37Fizah's baby, Zade, is 19 days old.
0:55:38 > 0:55:42It's the day of the meeting of the Vulnerable Baby Service.
0:55:42 > 0:55:46I feel really, really nervous. Very, very nervous.
0:55:47 > 0:55:51And my room is a state as well, as you can see.
0:55:51 > 0:55:55I've been trying to find, like, a "perfect" top
0:55:55 > 0:55:58but I just couldn't find anything, so...
0:55:59 > 0:56:02I'm just... I'm just tired of, like, trying to fit in to, like,
0:56:02 > 0:56:05a stereotype of what I should look like as a mum.
0:56:05 > 0:56:07I'd just rather be myself from now on.
0:56:10 > 0:56:12I feel really dehydrated...
0:56:12 > 0:56:15'I have no idea what they're going to say or...
0:56:16 > 0:56:17'I just don't know.'
0:56:31 > 0:56:34Shall we start? We've come back together again
0:56:34 > 0:56:36to review the plan that we did last time,
0:56:36 > 0:56:38if you remember last time.
0:56:38 > 0:56:40So, what date was he born?
0:56:40 > 0:56:4110th March.
0:56:41 > 0:56:45- 8:37.- Yeah, 8:37!
0:56:45 > 0:56:48- And what's his name? - Zade Nabil Mahmood.
0:56:48 > 0:56:51- Can you spell it?- It's Z-A-D-E.
0:56:51 > 0:56:55So, in terms of how you are now, how are you getting on, Fizah?
0:56:55 > 0:56:58I've just been getting on, just trying to...
0:56:58 > 0:56:59Yeah, bring him up as much as I can.
0:56:59 > 0:57:03You look really, really well. Really well.
0:57:03 > 0:57:07- Yeah. Are you enjoying yourself? - Yeah, definitely.
0:57:07 > 0:57:10And how's it been going from a midwifery point of view?
0:57:10 > 0:57:12Every mother, whether it's your first or your fifth baby,
0:57:12 > 0:57:17you're getting over sleepless nights, probably for the last month before you're delivered,
0:57:17 > 0:57:20and then the actual delivery and the labour,
0:57:20 > 0:57:23and Fizah's just gone from strength to strength,
0:57:23 > 0:57:26and is making a really, really, really good mum.
0:57:31 > 0:57:34She really looks very well. She was anxious last time,
0:57:34 > 0:57:38and nervous and not really able to communicate
0:57:38 > 0:57:41as well as she was today, and she clearly looks very happy,
0:57:41 > 0:57:44and the baby's thriving, so it's lovely to see.
0:57:46 > 0:57:50It's agreed Fizah will be seen by the midwives for another ten days.
0:57:52 > 0:57:55The Vulnerable Baby Service no longer needs to see her.
0:57:58 > 0:58:02I don't know... I just feel really shocked because, like...
0:58:02 > 0:58:06I thought they were going to bring up more stuff, but I'm really happy now.
0:58:06 > 0:58:07I'm just...
0:58:07 > 0:58:11I just can't wait now, just to get on with things proper and... Yeah.
0:58:11 > 0:58:14Like, I'm just glad that is over, completely.
0:58:25 > 0:58:27Hi, it's the midwife!
0:58:53 > 0:58:56Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd