Amelia’s first pregnancy was a bubble of blissful ignorance. She didn’t try to absorb all the information out there and trusted that her body would know what to do when the time came. In contrast, being more aware of what happens during birth as well as what could go wrong meant she struggled to relax in the same way, second time round. She felt increasingly anxious as the due date got closer.

A close link between mind and body defined both experiences. It was as though her brain needed to fully relax in order to let her body bring new life into the world. Her contractions only started when childcare was sorted for Joshua and her waters broke once she had made it safely to hospital and seconds after she told her baby “it’s time to come now”.

Motherhood has provided Amelia with the deep sense of purpose she knew she needed, but didn’t expect to find here. Becoming a mum, it turns out, is the wonderfully unexpected solution to a restlessness she’d been grappling with for a long time.