home birthing has a lot to offer- its not about “playing with lives”- its about being informed and making the right decision for you, not for anyone else. and how else will we make up our minds if we don’t discuss it? its good to look at both sides of the coin.
Pregnancy and childbirth are normal life events. About 85% of all pregnancies and deliveries have normal outcomes. Because of this, home birth is a reasonable and safe option for women who want to experience a natural way of bringing their babies into the world. Some women prefer the idea of having a birth at home instead of at the hospital because they do not want to be treated as if they are sick. They want to be surrounded by friends and family in a warm and loving atmosphere.
Home birth is for low-risk women only. High-risk women should have their labour and delivery in a hospital, where appropriate facilities such as [caesarean section](http://javascript%3Cb%3E%3C/b%3E:ShowContent%28%27gloss_holder5961%27%29) are readily available if they are needed.
If you plan to have a home birth, you will need to have a certified [midwife](http://javascript%3Cb%3E%3C/b%3E:ShowContent%28%27gloss_holder6058%27%29) to oversee your pregnancy and childbirth. Your midwife will stay with you throughout your entire labour and delivery. Midwives provide a natural approach to childbirth. They use methods of relaxation and positioning to help ease the pain.
**Advantages of home birth**
Although planned home births are not yet mainstream in North America, they are quite common in Europe. Women are becoming more interested in this form of birth. Home birth is increasingly being seen as a safe, natural, and satisfying way for low-risk women to bring their babies into the world. Ninety per cent of women who have had a home birth say they would choose to have their next baby at home too.
Studies have shown that planned home births for low-risk women with certified midwives are just as safe as hospital birth for both mother and baby. Home births do not appear to affect the rates of complications or deaths in mothers or their babies. An added bonus of home births is that they are associated with the use of fewer medical interventions, such as induction of labour, fetal monitoring, [vacuum extraction](http://javascript%3Cb%3E%3C/b%3E:ShowContent%28%27gloss_holder6197%27%29), or caesarean section, when compared with hospital births.
If you have a home birth, you may feel more “in charge” of your labour. You might feel more comfortable moving around and adopting alternative positions to help move your labour along. You may feel a sense of strength and empowerment in your body, and you may have a sense of trust in your body’s ability to carry out this very natural event.
**Disadvantages of home birth**
If you are keen on obtaining [local](http://javascript%3Cb%3E%3C/b%3E:ShowContent%28%27gloss_holder4583%27%29) pain medication during childbirth, giving birth in a hospital is a more suitable option for you. There is nothing wrong with wanting pain medication or realizing that you need it during your labour when you didn’t originally intend to take it.
One obvious risk of giving birth at home is that, if an emergency caesarean is required, or if the newborn baby needs to be resuscitated, the facilities to do so will not be readily available. However, certified midwives are trained to identify complications and determine if a woman or her baby is changing from low-risk to high-risk. If you or your baby develop complications during or after a home birth, the midwife will transfer you to a hospital right away, and the [obstetrician](http://javascript%3Cb%3E%3C/b%3E:ShowContent%28%27gloss_holder1489%27%29) on call at the hospital will take over your care. If you are considering home birth, make sure that you are seen by a certified midwife, and that emergency transportation to a nearby hospital will be immediately available if necessary. You should also discuss your plans with your [family physician](http://javascript%3Cb%3E%3C/b%3E:ShowContent%28%27gloss_holder9534%27%29) and determine his availability in the case of an emergency.
SCG, they gave me pitocin with my younger two boys - not to induce labor though. I had been in labor for a number of hours and once my water broke the contractions stopped. Once your water breaks, the baby needs to be born pretty quickly because theres a pretty big risk of infection. They had to get my contractions restarted.
You dont have to sign anything or agree to anything that you dont want at the hospital. I outright refused to sign the epidural consent and I brought a special red pen with me - I used it on the "consent for emergency c-section if necessary" to write NO SPINAL ANESTHESIA". If you dont want epesiotomy, make sure they know or write it in the consent. I never had one. If your doc knows what to do, you probaby wont tear even if baby is big.
The thing that bothered me most was that in a hospital, they want you on your back with a monitor around your tummy. Its very uncomfortable. If you can go to a birthing center, they allow you to do whatever is comfortable for you. Getting into a comfortable position makes it so much easier - so much that you might not even need any other pain releif. I've heard some wonderful things about the "birthing ball" - Its an inflated rubber ball thats almost hip-high. you sit on it and gently rock or bounce. After being in labor 3 times, i think that would be a great thing to try.
Anyway, IMHO the very best option is a birthing center, next is hospital....I'd not risk home birth after working for a perinatal pathologist. Not to worry those of you who want a home birth but really why take ANY chances yeah?
ahh, i see, mama. i have a friend who just about refused to go into hospital with her second baby until she was 100% sure the baby was on its way, even after her water broke. mind you, she lives pretty close to the hospital too. her reasoning was similar to yours- she was like, i want to be able to walk around and use natural pain-relief techniques and i absolutely don't want that belly monitor. her first birth was more or less a forced inducement and then when that didnt work, a forced c-section cos baby was 10 days late. i say forced because she didnt want either- she was willing to wait a couple more days but docs didnt. i know it left her completely disillusioned and hearing that, it led me to start researching hospital policies. this time around, she also made a birthing plan which i guess laid out all her preferences for her doctors.
I guess i'm an outcast here :( .....cuz i was born in my house.
No you are not :D I was also born at home but that's because when I was born long time ago, and that too in a village, there weren't any hospitals in villages. So going to the hospital was a bit difficult, I guess. Now villages have hospitals and health care centers, so it's almost as if you are going to the hospital.
As far as "hospital delivery is always safer than home delivery", each minute, many women are giving birth all over the world in places like the Africa, South America, South Asia, and other poor places and a majority of their children are born without any problems. So being at hospital or home really doesn't matter as much. Yes it's nice to have access to immediate help in case it's needed. If it's gonna go wrong, it can happen in house or at the hospital, no one knows.
Shikra, those places you mention - Africa, South America and South Asia - have the highest rates of infant mortality on the planet. Yes, hundreds of thousands of babies are born miraculously without the intervention of modern medicine. Yet so many who require assitance do not get it because it isnt available. If you are lucky enough to have it available, like I've been saying - why take ANY chance? Especially since when it comes down to it, minutes or even seconds can make the hugest difference.
^ I agree. That's why I didn't say all of those babies are born normal. And I also agree with your answer that you gave to SomeGroovyChick when she said call 911 when immediate help is needed. There isn't enough time to call them when things start to go wrong. So yes, per my last couple of lines, Yes it's nice to have access to immediate help in case it's needed. Birth can go wrong at any place, be it a hospital or at home.
If you have made up your mind I hope it will work for you.Inshallah it will be fine,if you have easy normal biths.For me its hard because they have to induce me and all other medical difficulties.
Thanks Sis...
Can everyone over here stop encouraging home birth............when you don't have a choice its different but where you have a choise, why in the world would someone ever go for home birth. The only reason why it did not happen back during the daays were because of the lack of hospitals or money but any day you will not be able get the attention/facilites of a hospital in a home. So stop playing with lives here and suggest appropriately.
No one is forcing you to have a homebirth...and you're not supposed to be in this thread...you're probably not even married yet.
Shikra,** those places you mention - Africa, South America and South Asia - have the highest rates of infant mortality on the planet. **....
And Its not because of homebirths but bcoz of lack of hygiene, medicines and trained staff etc.