I gave birth in the bath and let strangers watch
I invited millions of strangers to watch me give birth
Pointing my camera at my son Prince, then 1, I followed every wobbly step. ‘Good boy,’ I beamed to my littl’un. It was November 2016, and since Prince was born I’d been filming all the big moments in our lives.
First word, first steps, first birthday,
It’d started out as a bit of fun, but I’d upload them onto my YouTube channel Legacibirth.
My husband Chazz, then 21, got involved, too, and our posts got more and more views, until we had tens of thousands of followers.
‘I’m going to document everything,’ I told Chazz when I fell pregnant with our second child Romeo.
Every scan, antenatal appointment, my baby shower.
My followers loved tagging along on my pregnancy journey.
Then, in December 2017, I gave birth to Romeo in a birthing pool in our living room as Chazz filmed. We had midwives there, and Prince, of course. But I did it naturally, without any pain relief – and, after a four hours in labour, Romeo arrived in just two pushes. Afterwards, we posted the highlights on YouTube. ‘Make sure there’s no nudity,’ I told Chazz as he edited the footage. Watching the birth back, I was amazed.
‘I can’t believe I did that!’ I laughed.
A natural, people commented online after watching our film.
I became an advocate of home births, offering advice on how to get through labour without drugs. ‘We all deserve to have the birth we want,’ I told my followers.
I tried to keep things positive and upbeat but, when I had a miscarriage in March 2019, I wanted to be honest.
‘It still doesn’t feel real,’ I sobbed into the camera. You’re so brave, people said. Their support helped me get through it.
So when I fell pregnant again a few months later, I decided to take my filming a step further.
By now, the camera was part of our lives.
The kids enjoyed it, too. ‘Can I show everyone my train set?’ Prince would ask when I got out the tripod.
And it felt natural to share those moments with other people – the good and the bad.
So… ‘I’m going to livestream the birth,’ I announced to Chazz.
I also wanted to do it alone, without midwives there to help
‘Let’s do it,’ Chazz grinned. He’d been amazed how well I’d done, barely making a sound, during my contractions with Romeo.
So he had every faith that I could cope.
As soon as I felt the familiar twinge of labour in January 2020, I did my hair and make-up.
‘I want to be able to watch it back and feel happy,’ I smiled to Chazz.
Plus, it also gave me more confidence.
Then I dressed in a bikini, because I planned on giving birth in our bath tub.
And a skirt and top with the slogan The Natural Birthing Queen – my nickname on social media.
Once my waters broke,
My followers tagged along on my pregnancy journey
I got Chazz to set the camera up in the kitchen, where me and the boys made smoothies.
‘There’s a while to go yet,’ I smiled into the lens.
As with my previous births, I relied on positive affirmations each time a contraction hit.
‘That feels good,’ I cried out, gently stroking my tummy.
As the contractions became more intense, I moved to the bath, my lower half just out of shot under the warm water.
‘Babe, can you check there’s enough battery left?’
I asked Chazz as he positioned the tripod a few feet away.
Then, eyes closed, I thought about my breathing, keeping it as steady and rhythmic as possible.
Prince, then 4, and Romeo, 2, wandered in and out of the bathroom.
But I was aware that they weren’t the only people watching.
As I got closer to the final moments, hundreds of thousands of my followers had logged onto YouTube to watch.
‘Each wave of pain is bringing me closer to holding my baby for the first time,’ I told them, smiling.
Worrying that the lighting wasn’t quite right, I asked Chazz to adjust it.
‘Should I turn to the right slightly?’ I whispered, wondering if I was sitting at the best angle.
‘No, it all looks great,’ he smiled with a thumbs-up.
There’d been no complications – so, as I’d hoped, I was delivering the baby by myself.
It was just me, Chazz and the boys…
‘A lovely intimate, family moment, just us – and all of you watching at home,’ I laughed.
I screamed loudly from the effort of pushing the baby’s head out.
But another push later, and my baby plopped into the bath.
‘It’s a boy!’ I laughed, scooping him up.
‘Well done!’ Chazz grinned as Prince and Romeo gathered round to stroke their new little brother’s head.
‘Thanks for watching,’ I told the viewers before we stopped the camera rolling.
Afterwards, we admired our new arrival in private, but messages of support soon came flooding in on YouTube.
Reading them later, as I fed my new son Hero and waited for the midwives to check us over, I felt such a rush of pride.
You made it look so easy, one follower said.
Magical, thank you for sharing, said another.
If I can do it, so can you, I wrote.
Although natural birth isn’t for everyone, I was determined that other women would feel empowered by the footage. The video went viral. It’s now been seen by more than a million.
People are always asking if I feel embarrassed that so many people have seen me giving birth.
But it makes me proud. It’s such a beautiful experience, I’m glad that I shared it.
I can’t wait for Hero to watch it when he’s older, and for him to see the moment that he came into the world.
Not many people get to do that.
Especially knowing their first moments on earth have been witnessed by so many.
I wondered if I was sitting at the best angle