Dont have a homebirth, you'll Die!

[mummy2aiden]

so I recently told a friend I'd LOVE to have a home birth if I ever have another baby and she responded with "what, do you want to die" ..

Also, during the convo she mentioned she stayed in hospital for 2 weeks and said she hated it, and I said "Another good thing about a home birth, no hospital" and she said "But you have to go there after you have the baby to get it checked, incase they need treatment." ........ ???

Does anyone have some info on home birth vs hospital birth? re: interventions, csection rate etc .. Thanx

[Schmickers]

Hi there mummy2aiden,

Facing misunderstanding or fear in the community regarding your decision can be frustrating!

I have lots of reputable scientific studies on homebirth at home, but I'm at work right now and don't have access to them. It's Dw's birthday and we are going out tonight, so I may have time to pop on and post some stuff, but it may not be until late.

Rest assured, your friend's ideas are based more on hollywood drama than on the real science around homebirth, and rvery reputable study that examined a planned homebirth with a trained health professional found that for women with low risk factors, it was as safe as hospital birth, if not safer. Your midwife can perform your newborn baby check, and if you would like a medical baby check, it can be performed by your GP or through your local hospital maternity clinic.

[mummy2aiden]

Thankyou!! I am single though .. so this probably is'nt going to be quite some time yet, if ever, lol... But its what I'd like to do .. I've recently had a vbac .. so a home birth is the next step

[willow5]

I would like to have a home birth too, but I really don't think I'm having any more babies I wish I had been a bit more educated with my first 2, I was more well informed with DS3 , but still didn't get to the home birth. *sigh*

(I noticed your ticker today is 3 months, 3 weeks & 3 days BF 3 threes )

[mummy2aiden]

LOL, i didnt even notice that on my ticker .. hehe

I wish i was more educated with my first too.. The "reccommended" epidural just incase .. ugh ..

My daughter was a VBAC so I don't think I trusted my body enough this time for a homebirth, unfortunately, but I know I can do it now ..

[Kazbah]

2 weeks was a long time for her to be in hospy - sounds like she may not have had an easy birth, and maybe that's where she's coming from?

I guess that the ultimate answer is that it wasn't until the 1940's that hospital birth became "normal", and it was Queen Victoria who pushed her doctors to find pain relief during birth. So the human race did pretty darn good until then to manage to survive. Sure, there were cesareans but these were only performed to birth a child during or after the mother's death ...

I've just been researching spinning babies (google it!) and they have a pile of positions to give birth in during the various phases / descent of the bub through the birth canal, to give optimum positioning - have a look, it's an entire science in itself!

[mummy2aiden]

Yeah she had a csection, then came down with pneumonia [already had a flu] so they kept her in ..

I used spinning babies info with my daughter .. My son was posterior, and I had a csection due to 'deep transverse arrest' .. Basically he didnt turn and got stuck .. I dilated fully, but it took a long time .. this time Ayva was posterior during the pregnancy so i used to come on bellybelly on my laptop with my bum in the air on my hands and knees to help her turn ..woulda looked funny though lol ..

[deletedit]

I sort of had a hospital 'homebirth' and I'm still alive ...

Had the baby on the hospital floor on a blanket I nabbed off the bed 1/2 hour after getting there. All the midwife did was play catch, and got me a milo and bikkies afterwards. I went home 12 hours later. They did all the baby poking and prodding aaaages after the birth, by which time he was quite thoroughly fed and snuggled

[mummy2aiden]

Lol, yeah I had my daughter less then an hour after arriving at the hospital ... Though i was on my hands and knees on the bed .. Then I fed her for 2 hours while they got someone to stitch me .. I came home the next day .. They also didnt do checks or anything till 7am .. And she was born at 3:05am .. It sounds like you had a great birth too ..

[Cassius2]

I've had both a hospital and homebirth and i can say with COMPLETE confidence that the postnatal care after my homebirth from my midwives was 110% more involved and personal than what i received at the private hospital where i had DD1. for example they gave me pethidine despite the fact that i was a couple weeks before my due date and this conspired against my DD1 because she was a bit tiny and ended up with breathing complications and needing to be on oxygen for 24 hours.
with a homebirth you are visited every day for the first 4 days at home and they stay with you for hours. checking on you and bubs (and partner!) and basically just being there to help you out. many are also LC so can help quite awesomely with BF too! they do the heel test at home (and let you BF while doing so...BF while they puncture the heel is awesome as bubs doesnt feel the pain and is as happy as larry...i remember vividly the crying from DD1 at the hospital).
midwives also do the 6 week check and importantly, they are available on the phone whenever you need them. antenatally, postnatally, the whole works. each antenatal visit is at least an hour and this gives you all time to make sure that everyone feels happy and listened to.

After my HB experience this time i could never go back to a hospital birth (unless there was medial reason of course!).

[trishalishous]

during the pregnancy so i used to come on bellybelly on my laptop with my bum in the air on my hands and knees to help her turn ..woulda looked funny though lol ..

it does look funny, DH took pictures of me in that 'graceful' position.
I had a traumatic birth (unavoidable intervention, I was resuscitated after a uterine inversion and major hemmorhage, all with zero pain relief) and I'm an avid home birth supporter.
if pregnancy number 2 goes to 'plan' ill be at a birth centre, and then pregnancy 3+ will be homebirth.
I would have free birthed if I'd not had complications.
I know where you're coming from, I've had zero support from people, and been called crazy, too! :hugs:

[~Lashes~]

i had a ambulance birth, and im still alive, bub had a low teprature, from being born in a ambulance with all doors open at 6:50am but were alive and well. im sure having a home birth inside were its not as cold would be more benifital! (im most comfortable at hospital, but she didnt want to wait that long!)

[mummy2aiden]

Cassius: Because I went home the next morning after giving birth I got home visits the first few days and they did the heel ***** test at home. But they were really quick. Just weighed her, checked her over and checked my stitches and left.

Trish: Im very glad no one was here to take photos of that .. haha .. But I have no idea what a uterine inversion is?

Sarah: Wow! You must have had a really quick labour! My sons labour was 17hours and I dilated fully, but ended up with a csection. My daughters birth was completely different. I had her less then an hour after arriving at the hospital. 3 hours and 5 minutes all up! I'M guessing my next baby will be super fast!

Im 99% sure that the way my sons labour was handled led to the csection. But he was my first and i was 16, so i just listend to the drs. They 'reccommend' an epidural, knowing my waters broke really early (2cm) and that he was posterior. All of those led to deep transverse arrest. It wouldve been great if they suggested some positions to me *sigh* .. Oh well, hes here and healthy and thats what matters

Do you have to pay for midwifes to attend? Just curious I had a student doula attend my daughters birth, Who, funnily enough, is actually a midwife at adifferent hospital

[trishalishous]

Trish: Im very glad no one was here to take photos of that .. haha .. But I have no idea what a uterine inversion is?

DH is quick with the camera
Basically as I had twins (only DD made it to term) I had two placentas and one was fused to my uterus wall, so when the placenta came out, so did my uterus *eek*
not pleasant!!

[Smoke Jaguar]

Well, I'm not a ghost...some of the BB girls have seen my mortal, homebirthing body in the flesh Safer Childbirth by Marjorie Tew is an excellent and easy enough read that compares the risks, including the comparisons between both over the last few centuries It's about $40 on Fishpond website, or else your library might have it.

[~Lashes~]

Sarah: Wow! You must have had a really quick labour! My sons labour was 17hours and I dilated fully, but ended up with a csection. My daughters birth was completely different. I had her less then an hour after arriving at the hospital. 3 hours and 5 minutes all up! I'M guessing my next baby will be super fast!

she was the quickest, 3 and a half hours, but me thinking id have plenty of time as both the boys were 17 and 18 hours, was waiting for a lift to the hospital, well bub had other plans! almost had her on the couch!! this next one is apparently another grl, so i think it will be another fast one.

it couldnt hurt to ring your local midwives clinic and ask a few questions. im sure they would have all the info you need to know.