This is Jasmin's story

Hairdresser / 23 years / from Schwerin

Tell us a little more about yourself.

My name is Jasmin, I'm 23 years old and I come from Schwerin in beautiful Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. I am a trained hairdresser and am currently on parental leave for the second time.

When did you realize that you really wanted to have children?

I always wanted to be a mother at an early age, but I also wanted to offer something to my children. That's why I did my school and my training first. I worked for 3 years and built something for myself.

How did you experience the births of your children?

I was always afraid that I wouldn't be able to get pregnant or that I would never have children in general. My grandmother suffered from cervical cancer in her early 20s and was no longer able to have children. Since I had already had two operations for a tumor myself, I was naturally afraid that the same thing would happen to me. I constantly had cysts in my uterus. As a result, I have already had two miscarriages because the cysts burst. As a result, I lived in constant fear during my next pregnancy.

In October 2019 I gave birth to my first daughter via emergency cesarean section. My water broke exactly one day before the due date. But I didn't have any contractions. 12 hours later I was induced with the help of tablets. It was horror. My body struggled a lot and I was in a lot of pain. With each contraction the heartbeat decreased until suddenly it was completely gone. An emergency cesarean section was necessary. I was scared and didn't know what was happening. Luckily the surgery went smoothly.

Afterwards I developed postpartum depression in the form of severe fear of loss. I was very afraid that something would happen to my daughter or my husband. My daughter had multiple seizures in 2020 and we were in the hospital for months. We had all the tests done, but they were all unremarkable. It was the worst time of my life. During the first attack I expected the worst because she passed out and her breathing was shallow. It was a very bad time, but it brought me and my husband closer together.

We always wanted to have our children close together, as our siblings are 12-15 years apart and we don't think that's great. So we decided to try again. We didn't expect that it would work the first time, like it did with our daughter Mia. The day after we received a positive test, Mia had her last seizure. At first we were afraid of a second pregnancy because everyone said we would have a blast. Especially after the last birth. But should we always live in fear now? Something can always happen to the children. Many tried to convince us to abort the child. But we would never have had the heart to do that. We therefore decided to keep the child.

Through this experience I became stronger and more confident. I started posting on Instagram and telling my story. I like to share my experiences and also like to help. In my second pregnancy I was completely different. I wasn't afraid because I had learned to listen to my body. Nevertheless, the doctors scared me that there would be another cesarean section. I didn't want that and totally refused it. I wanted a normal birth. Despite scar pain, the risk that the scar could burst and many other problems, I went through with it and had my son spontaneously and without painkillers in April 2021. It was a very beautiful birth. I was proud of myself for listening to myself and finding faith in my body again. I was able to allay the fear of many women not being able to have a normal birth after a cesarean section. It's wonderful to be a mother of two and I'm happy to have two healthy children, because that's not a given. My husband's daughter is severely disabled.

What do memories like your birth and print poster mean to you?

Time just goes by so quickly and the babies grow up so quickly. I'm even more pleased about the posters. It's just a beautiful memory and I always get goosebumps when I see it. It's so sad that they grow so quickly. We chose the sibling poster because we hope the two will have a strong bond. Because later they only have each other when we can no longer be there for them.

How do you cope with everyday life with two children under 2 years old?

It's not always easy, but both children are easy to care for and things couldn't be going better in general.

What plans do you have for yourself when both children go to daycare?

Next year, when the children go to kindergarten, I will start working again. From home, as I am currently in the process of becoming self-employed. I plan to become self-employed in the cosmetics field so that I can decide when I work and when I spend time with my children. I'm afraid I'll miss everything else.

Are you currently happy?

I am more than happy.