Home Birth?
By16 weeks pregnant with first. I plan on using the Bradley method. My ideal setting would be a home birth, with a certified nurse midwife. I have so many question though, and Im not sure if its a good idea. Is it safer for the baby to be born in a hospital? Am I putting my baby in danger? And if I do decide for a home birth do I have to decide right now, or can I continue seeing my Dr, and then switch to midwife when I am ready?
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10 Comments
April 11th, 2010 at 5:44 pm
It is more dangerous to have a home birth. If something went wrong and you had to have an emergency c-section or something you would have to wait for an ambulance (5-10 minutes), be loaded up (2-5 minutes), drive to the hospital (5-10 minutes), then be prepped for surgery (10-20 minutes). All that time would not have been wasted if you would have been in a hospital. If you decide to have a home birth, at least make sure you live 10 minutes or less from a hospital. Good luck.
April 11th, 2010 at 6:24 pm
As long as you are having a healthy, normal pregnancy, you should be able to deliver safely at home and a home delivery in these circumstances can be more healthy and beneficial to you and the baby than a hospital birth. The only reason why you should go to a hospital is if you’re having a problematic pregnancy or develop some sort of health problem.
You can continue seeing your doctor but should go ahead and also start consulting with midwives to find the one that’s best for you. You might also want to consider finding a doula as well but that can wait until longer in the pregnancy.
Best of luck!
Peace,
Jenn
April 11th, 2010 at 7:18 pm
It is good to have a midwife from the very beginning so she knows your pregnancy.
I also believe home birth is a good idea for low risk pregnancies. Germs live in hospitals because thats where people go when they are sick. You can’t say the germs at home are worse either because where do you go when you leave the hospital!!!!
Plus medicalizing pregnancy is a new thing. Many babies were born at home, even Jesus was born in what can be equated to be a barn. If you develop problems though you might want a hospital birth.
Also check if there are any birthing centers near you. Its less hospital like but a little safer than being at home if anything does go wrong.
April 11th, 2010 at 8:02 pm
I always wanted to do that but I think its a great idea… its defenitly more family oriented! If the nurse midwife knows what she is doing then there shouldnt be any problems. If it were dangerous they wouldnt let you do it.
April 11th, 2010 at 8:37 pm
all i can tell you is my mom has 5 children, 4 of which were home births, me included, and all our births went smooth and without problems. talk to your midwife, she’ll go through it with you and answer all your questions. i have one baby, she was born in a hospital, it went fine but i definately plan on having a homebirth with my second. good luck. x
dont know WHAT lottie 25 is talking about, i live in ireland also and you CAN have homebirths here.
April 11th, 2010 at 9:28 pm
hiya….
with the first they normally prefer to have ye in hospital(in the uk anyway )… i totally understand why ye want a home birth though as i had one and it was perfect but he was my 3rd…
if its a planned homebirth then they are fully aware of what ye want blah blah so herefore will have the equipment etc with them if not then close by… i must say i could of shot my midwife…where it was so quick(30 mins from start to finish) she couldnt get the gas and air cylinder working so i had no pain relief!! other than that its somuch more relaxing being in ye own home etc…
there are risks both in and out of hospital(i have since moved from the uk to ireland and they dont allow homebirths)
talk it through with the doc/midwife ..nothing is concrete when it comes to planning with babies lol so dont worry about making decisions now!
best of luck
xx
April 11th, 2010 at 9:59 pm
You should see a midwife as early as possible if that is really your plan. I had my daughter completely natural, and it would’ve been great to have her at home. I just couldn’t do it, because if something went wrong- every minute counts! How close are you to the hospital? If things didn’t turn out well, I wouldn’t want to blame myself for the rest of my life, but that’s me.
If you have a really good feeling about it, and you have all your questions answered about it, and still feel really good about it, then do it! Usually medical interventions are what cause many complications anyway. If you’re at home, you’re not going to have the epidural and drugs available, which can definitely help you have a natural birth. Think about exactly why you want to have the baby at home. Are those reasons worth taking the small chance that if something goes wrong the ER or OR isn’t right across the way? Many hospitals are great, you just want to make sure you have a birth plan and a supportive Doctor or midwife. Good luck, you’ll do great!
April 11th, 2010 at 10:41 pm
SO MANY peopls have at home or midwife births. I think it is actually more safe then having a baby in the hospital, when you get there they just start pumping you with un necessary drugs, that actually lead you to having to have a c-section. They can overdose you which or the baby, and complications happen. ALL c-sections could be avoided, but everyone gets over anxious and BAM you’re in the ER tearing that baby out. All midwifes are trained to deal with any complications that arise. That is their job that is why they are certified. I am using a midwife and I feel so comfortable with her, and it’s much more of a one on one connection, they are there for anything I need. If I were you I would stick with what you feel is right, and I would move to a midwife now, so they can keep up with your pregnancy. Don’t switch from a doc to a midwife at the last second.
April 11th, 2010 at 11:28 pm
Studies show that, for a low-risk pregnancy, home births are just as safe, if not safer than a hospital birth. Home births with low-risk pregnancies have the same mortality rate as hospital births and have less maternal and fetal injury than hospital births.
Here are some links about home birthing:
http://www.gentlebirth.org/ronnie/homesafe.html
http://www.homebirth.org.uk/
http://www.mothering.com/discussions/forumdisplay.php?f=20
April 11th, 2010 at 11:58 pm
I’m getting ready to have my third homebirth with licensed midwives. Statistically, they are as safe as or safer than having a baby in a hospital. If you totally disagree with the medical model for childbirth, then homebirths are a wonderful alternative. The medical model generally includes lots of monitoring, IVs, epidurals, laboring on your back, episiotomy, cutting the cord immediately, suctioning, possible use of vacuum, forceps or other interventions, etc. Personally, I feel safer having my babies at home. Good midwives will know if you need to be transferred to a hospital. It’s usually not a big deal. Bradley is very good for a first timer. I also used this method. I also found Hypnobirthing to be a very good complement to what I learned in Bradley. Lots of people will have opinions about your homebirth, but the most important thing is to totally educate yourself about all of your options and to make the choice that’s best for you. Good luck!