Antenatal Care
Your pregnancy can be a magical experience, especially if you feel nurtured and well-supported throughout. My years of experience can help you navigate the journey, whether you’re having a low-risk pregnancy, or one with additional complexities to take into consideration.
Antenatal Care is included as part of the Complete Midwifery Package, or you can select an Antenatal-only package which provides antenatal care instead of (or alongside) NHS care. You can also combine Antenatal Care with a Postnatal Care package (see below) to have my midwifery services before and after your birth, for example if you are planning to give birth by cesarean or planning a hospital birth. Additionally, I can provide single, stand-alone Antenatal Visits for reassurance or to discuss birth plans and options.
An Antenatal package is a great option for those who want continuity with their care provider, additional support or reassurance during the antenatal period, or for people with added complexities in their pregnancy who would also like midwifery care in addition to the care they’re receiving from their consultants or obstetric teams.
Antenatal Care begins with a Booking visit, usually around 8-12 weeks into your pregnancy, which is done in the comfort of your home, lasts about 2 hours, and includes questions about your medical, surgical, obstetric, social and mental health histories. After the Booking visit, further visits are usually scheduled every 4 weeks up until 28 weeks, every 2 weeks up until 36 weeks, and then weekly until the birth (although this schedule is flexible and can be tailored to meet your individual needs). Each visit lasts about an hour, and can be scheduled Monday-Friday at a convenient time for you.
Seeing the same midwife for all of your antenatal care provides an opportunity for us to get to know each other and build a trusting relationship. Although checking on the physical health and well-being of you and the baby is an important part of this care, I employ a holistic model of care which means that your emotional, psychological and social health and well-being are equally as important. Antenatal care provides an opportunity to discuss your expectations, hopes and desires in depth, as well as allowing plenty of time for birth education and preparation, exploring your birth preferences and options and answering your questions. I can also arrange for scans and blood tests to be done privately or through the NHS, and can refer and collaborate with other healthcare professionals as needed, as well as accompany you to consultant visits or scans.
Antenatal care is a family affair, and partners, children and other family members are all very welcome to attend visits—this can be especially helpful for future big brothers and sisters to prepare for welcoming their new siblings. Antenatal care also includes access to my (large and constantly growing) library of pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding books and support by me as your midwife by text or phone throughout your pregnancy.
Antenatal Pricing
Single Antenatal Visit: £200
Antenatal Package: £2,400 (includes 12 visits plus a breast(chest)feeding & newborn session; additional visits can be added to this package, which will cost £200 each.)
Bellymapping at the 38 week visit. (Photo shared with permission.)
Postnatal Care
The first few weeks after giving birth can be exhilarating, bewildering, exhausting and everything in between as you adjust to life with a new baby! Having a known and trusted source of support through this period can help transform your experience and give you confidence and reassurance.
Postnatal Care is included as part of the Complete Midwifery Package, or you can select a Postnatal-only package which provides care starting from right after you give birth. I can also provide single, stand-alone Postnatal visits for reassurance or to discuss or debrief your birth experience.
Providing compassionate, high-quality postnatal care is one of my favourite parts of being a midwife, as it’s such a privilege to be able to witness the birth of a new family! Postnatal care starts the day you come home from the hospital (or the day after, usually Postnatal Day 2 or 3), and visits continue on Postnatal Day 5, 7, 10, 14, 21 and 28, with the option to extend care through 5-6 weeks if desired (additional visits can also be provided during this time as needed).
Postnatal visits last 2 hours and includes checking in on your emotional and mental health and well-being, as well as a head-to-toe physical exam which will assess your breasts/chest, abdomen, uterus, bleeding, stitches and wound healing. A full physical exam will also be done on the baby, including assessing baby’s skin, umbilical cord, nappy output and weight gain. I also provide the Newborn Bloodspot Screening test on Day 5 if desired.
Postnatal visits are never rushed, and allow for plenty of time to answer all of the many questions that come with having a new baby. My expertise as an IBCLC can help to ensure that breast(chest)feeding gets off to the best start possible, although I am knowledgeable about and able to support all infant feeding choices. Additionally, I have years of personal experience with baby-wearing, and can help you add sling and wrap use to your parenting toolbox (and boy are they versatile and fabulous tools to have!).
During the postnatal period, my aim is to provide reassurance, answer the many questions you have, promote your personal rest and recovery, help guide you through the steep learning curve of parenting during the first few weeks, and help to nurture you so that you can focus on nurturing your amazing new baby.
Postnatal Pricing
Single Postnatal Visit: £240
2 weeks of Postnatal Care: £1,500 (includes visits on Day 2/3, 5, 7, 10 and 14 plus being ‘on-call’ so that I am available to you the day of your birth or the day you come home from the hospital)
4 weeks of Postnatal Care: £2,000 (includes visits on Day 2/3, 5, 7, 10, 14, 21 & 28 plus being ‘on-call’ so that I am available to you the day of your birth or the day you come home from the hospital)
Antenatal & Postnatal Care
Antenatal Care plus 2 weeks of Postnatal Care: £3,800
Antenatal Care plus 4 weeks of Postnatal Care: £4,300
What People Are Saying
“We can only highly recommend Ali.
We hired her as a private midwife because due to COVID-19 we wanted to be out of the hospital as soon as possible after the birth. Being first time parents is very daunting and we thought extra postnatal support would be helpful. And right we were. Even though I’m a paediatrician myself, I still felt completely out of my depth and couldn’t be more grateful for the support Ali gave us in those first couple of days.
We arranged for Ali to come an hour after we were home from the hospital (16 hours after the delivery). Ali stayed with us for 2 hours very calmly and patiently explaining everything there is to know to get through the first night. Both exhausted and overwhelmed she gave us the confidence that we could do this.
Her lactation expertise was invaluable. But also checking up on myself, making sure everything is healing well down below, was so reassuring. Ali is extremely professional. She has a wealth of knowledge and is kind and caring. Nothing negative to say honestly. She was also fully compliant with COVID-19 safety measures as well. “ —Ariane
“I first met Ali when I was about 35 weeks pregnant. She came to help me and my partner in the capacity of lactation consultant, but little did I know that she would become a whole support system for me before, during, and after the birth of my little boy.
Ali is an exceptional midwife, lactation consultant, and antenatal educator. Without her guidance, I would not have been so prepared for what ended up being an emergency c-section nor would I have stuck with breastfeeding through my baby’s first few weeks of life.
Ali blends evidence-based medicine with compassion and love: she helped us with everything from getting educated about induction, learning how to harvest colostrum, and what to do with our baby’s mild tongue-tie (we chose a frenectomy).
When the adrenaline of the new baby wore off, after my c-section scar bandage came off, and after we could be officially discharged from medical care, I found I still needed support. There are so many questions one has as a new parent and so many decisions that need to be made. This is where Ali stepped in as a kind of new parent coach or post-partum doula.
Ali was there when I had panicky questions about going back to work, my baby’s weight gain, sleep choices, exercise and weight loss, how to wear a sling, and ultimately what kind of parent I wanted to be. She helped me navigate all the fears, worries, and questions, and she supported me to tune out unhelpful advice and lean into my own intuition about my baby and his needs.
She was there for me when I needed her most: when I felt vulnerable and unsure, and when googling solutions or asking other people for advice was doing more harm than good. Because of Ali’s support, I didn’t experience the loneliness that’s so common among new mothers. I knew I had someone who had my back, and who could care for me as I was learning to care for a new life. We had in-person sessions, but sometimes I just needed a phone call or a WhatsApp message to keep me going, and Ali was always there to hold space and root me on.
Having Ali as a cheerleader in those first 12 weeks was invaluable. I can’t recommend Ali enough and I can safely say that both my baby and I are thriving because of her support.” —Cat
Midwifery Care in the Time of Covid
While Covid-19 has changed some of the ways that I practice and provide care, many aspects of midwifery care remain the same. For more information on the precautions I am taking to keep us safe during this unusual time, please read the FAQ here.