Sarah Wratten is a mum, teacher and singer, who was heavily pregnant with her second child as lockdown began in March 2020
Four weeks before her due date, Sarah Wratten, now 31, was looking forward to her maternity leave. A week later, she and every other pregnant woman in the country were classified as an at risk group, being told to take care and not go out due to the lockdown.
The cases were increasing. “It suddenly got very scary, and it was unclear whether or not my husband, Max, would be allowed into the hospital with me,” she said. She also feared contracting the virus and then not being able to give birth.
“I was really worried about my baby. It was absolutely terrifying hearing about the number of deaths on the news. I was frantically googling, ‘Do newborn babies die from Covid-19′,” she said.
Giving birth during a lockdown
When her baby was due, Max drove Sarah to the hospital. “Max wasn’t allowed into the hospital with me until I was literally in active labour, as it was the rule at the time. I walked into the hospital by myself, with no one there, in the middle of the night, while having massive contractions,” she said.
“I had forgotten my essentials bag and I remember thinking, “don’t panic, stay calm,” and actually, the hospital staff were incredible. They took all the pandemic fear out of me and my son’s birth was really calm and lovely,” said Sarah.
Sarah gave birth in April 2020. “People say giving birth is the hardest thing you’ll ever do, so if you’ve given birth during a bloody pandemic, then you’ve absolutely smashed it out of the park.”
People say giving birth is the hardest thing you’ll ever do, so if you’ve given birth during a bloody pandemic, then you’ve absolutely smashed it out of the park
Lessons from staying home
A family of three is now four. After returning home, both Sarah and Max were working from home, with their newborn son Ellis, and daughter, Evie, who wasn’t able to go to the nursery. “We never used the word Coronavirus at home, because we didn’t want to scare her,” she said.
Sarah’s parents were briefly by her side after the birth of their grandchild, but couldn’t stay long due to the travel restrictions. “It was really tough saying goodbye to my parents, thinking how I’m not sure when we’ll actually see them again,” she said.
At the same time, she said, “It was hard for my husband because we didn’t have a place to work in the house besides our daughter’s bedroom. He had to do his calls with Ellis screaming in the background, and no one could help look after the babies for us to get some extra sleep.”
However, there were some positives. Sarah shared, “I look back now on photos of us at that time and I remember how hard it was, especially with a newborn who doesn’t sleep, and trying to get a hang of feeding him, but with that said, those were some really fond memories.”
She continued, “We got so much closer as a family and my husband, hats off to him, I couldn’t have been in lockdown with anyone else but him, he was absolutely incredible. I fell in love with him all over again.”
Rapid fire questions with Sarah Wratten
Star sign: Cancer
Best colour: Green
Favourite holiday: Christmas
A children’s show you like: Bluey
Weekdays or weekends: Weekends
An artist or band you enjoy: The Cranberries
A song you love to sing: Dreams by The Cranberries
Your favourite family activity: Hiking in the countryside
Three daily essentials: Coffee, cake, a massive stock of arts and crafts
Advice to someone reading this: Don’t try to be perfect, that’s impossible