Of the 863 planned homebirths (not counting many more which weren't reported) in 2009, 25% were first time mothers. The normal physiological birth rate (non-instrumental vaginal) was 99.5% - so that means a very high normal birth rate for those 216 first time mothers.
I have supported many first time mothers choosing homebirth in Melbourne over the last few years, and for the most part these were lovely straight-forward births. There were two that took a while because the baby was posterior or asynclitic - but being a home really worked in the favour of these mothers - they had the time and the support to wait till their babies could move to a better position and both gave birth at home - without even tearing. Both these labours unfolded over 60 hours - I very much doubt they would have ended with a mother pushing her baby out herself with no tears, had these two mothers been in hospital. A third mother also had an asynclitic bub, and we actually transferred that time, and the labour ended with an epidural, synto and a ventouse extraction, and a tear requiring suturing. However this mother strongly felt that had she started in hospital rather than at home, her labour could well have ended with surgery. This mother went on to have a home water birth with her second baby. So those are three first time labours that were challenging - but ended with positive outcomes that probably could not have been achieved had they been in the hospital system. All the rest of the first time mothers I have been with had straightforward home births. So my perception is homebirth is great when you have a normal easy first time labour - but if you are going to have a curve ball or an extra challenge such as a posterior position or an asynclitic position, it's even better to be at home where you will not be "timed out".
I really appreciate all your stories (and welcome any more!) as they've really given me confidence! We're on the list (!) for the Sunshine Midwife/Homebirth Program and will hopefully meet our midwife and her helper in the next few weeks.
This forum is absolutely AMAZING compared to other ones online, the honesty and matter of fact way all you guys write makes me feel so much more comfortable. I've tried out a few other forums, and feel a little lonely in that everyone is chatting about OBs and no real other alternatives.
This week, my Ina May book arrived as well so I've been catching up on a whole lot of US women and their home birth stories... and I bet this is just the beginning... I love learning thoroughly about new things, and since I've never been pregnant before, I'm soaking it all up!
Yep my first birth was a homebirth. I wanted homebirth to be my first because I knew it was the best option and wasn't going to settle for second best by having a hospital birth for my first otherwise I'd always regret it. Plus having your first birth at home where you feel comfortable was for me the best thing to do, nothing like having more control over something youve never experienced before that way you can't be pushed into things you wouldn't want to do.
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