It’s a fairly common occurrence these days that I tell someone I am a postnatal doula and a slightly blank look passes over their face before they tell me that they’ve heard of a doula being involved in birth but didn’t realise you could be involved after baby is born as well.

Not only can it be difficult getting out the house with a new baby but it’s not always easy to find out what groups are on locally. I’ve put together this list of groups that are local to me in Hook, Hampshire. I have been to a lot of these when my boys were younger, or they come recommended by others.

As I cycled through Charlton I checked my watch. I’d left work later than planned and the journey home had been slow due to the wind. It was well past six which meant Laura will have had to do bath time alone - normally not an issue but as she was now 39 weeks pregnant, the physical aspects made it a lot harder, not to mention the fact that she’d be tired by the combination of pregnancy and looking after an excitable 18 month old.

I had a few days to go until my due date for my second baby. A friend came round with her two young children - she was a year ahead of me with her boys and I had been watching what life was like with two with a similar age gap, I did feel a little nervous! We had the normal kind of day that you have with an 18 month old - trip to the park, lots of snacks, not much chance to sit down.

We moved house when I was 37 weeks pregnant with Albert. I had two older boys, one about to turn 4 and start school and a 2.5 year old. We had been trying to move for a good six months but things kept falling through and it was getting closer and closer to my due date and my eldest starting school.