When my second child was born, just under 14 months ago, I went through many months of misery as a result of an abandoned homebirth. I was left, alone, without the help of my midwives who had declared me not in true labour a few hours earlier and who were unable to return in time due to “staff handover”. In the end, a shaky paramedic looked on as I birthed my daughter myself on the dining room floor. Even now, it can be painful looking back. As a supporter of homebirth and freebirth, I feel strongly that being abandoned in transition contributed to my birth trauma, months of anger and anxiety and a lingering feeling of failure.