Another bad statistic case for homebirth :(

[Schmickers]

I am with Trillian. I would not choose to Freebirth with my DW or children as I believe it is less safe than either a homebirth or a hospital birth. It also greatly concerns me that as independent midwives struggle so hard to legitimise their livelihood and make the real benefits of homebirth known to the public, that those efforts are hampered because - as the OP states clearly in her thread title - so many people consider freebirth as the same thing as homebirth, when they are very, very different.

This is also one of the reasons why I would not homebirth twins, nor would I recommend it to someone else. A twin pregnancy is not a "normal" pregnancy in physiological terms, and while it is a very special and treasured experience, it is also one that should be approached with a healthy attitude and a certain level of caution. Things are more likely to go wrong during a twin birth.

My condolences go out to the family involved in this event.

[Traveller]

I very strongly considered homebirthing my twins because, although there is a higher degree of risk, many of the potential risks can be discounted before labour (namely those risks concerning the presentation of twin1). In my case twin 1 was cephalic, so I was not concerned. Equally my twins were not identical and were full term, so many of the other risk factors did not concern me.

In the end I did go to a midwife unit in a hospital though, because I decided in my case I was uncomfortable with a 50 minute blue light transfer to hospital time. However this was my choice, made in collaboration with my obstetrician and midwives. If I had been forced into a corner of hospital managed medical birth with mandatory epidural and continuous monitoring, or doing it on my own unassisted I would have most likely chosen the latter. So are the times we live in sadly. I wonder if the women this story concerns was faced with such a dilemma?

[AngelsMum]

If I had been forced into a corner of hospital managed medical birth with mandatory epidural and continuous monitoring, or doing it on my own unassisted I would have most likely chosen the latter. So are the times we live in sadly. I wonder if the women this story concerns was faced with such a dilemma?

I had these same thoughts. It may be very likely that the mother was never given any say in how she'd prefer to birth, but rather told how she would have to follow hospital policy.

What bugs me about discussions like these is that there wouldn't be a discussion if it happened in hospital because it is assumed "everything that could be done, would have been done." At the same time completely discounting the usual cascade of interventions may have led to the outcome. Instead the whole thread would have been offering condolences to the mother and her family instead of trying to find blame.

Whether I would choose to freebirth twins or not is really irrelevant. Each woman has the right to autonomy over her own body, which includes the choice of where & how to give birth. I doubt very much this woman would have entered into freebirthing lightly.

[Dedicated Doula Gillian]

This is so sad...
My thoughts and prayers go to the family.