Could Anyone Share Their Home Birth Experience?

I didn't have a home birth, but several of my friends did. One of them hadn't even planned to give birth at home, but her second baby came so fast that she had him in the bathroom! Then she planned a home birth for the third one.

I didn't have a home birth with either of my two sons. I had midwives in the hospital with doulas. I just didn't have the confidence to have a home birth and had the option of having a midwife in the hospital. BUT both my sister and sister-in-law had successful and wonderful home births with their children. I was fortunate enough to attend my youngest nephew's birth at home, and it was an incredible experience for the whole family. I guess I would say that if it is something you are interested in and feel comfortable with, there is no reason not to birth at home.

I did home birth 8 weeks ago and it was AMAZING! Both me and my husband both felt like it was the most special, amazing, beautiful experience we have ever been through. Birth is sacred and should be done in a beautiful place comfortable to the woman- for most women, that is their home.

30 hours of natural labor were so much easier in the peace of my home, not dragging an IV machine around, and free to move around and eat as I pleased. I did the birthing in a Native American ceremonial way. I had candles, soft music, and a birthing tub in my living room. Although I didn't give birth in the birthing tub, it was a life saver for the natural labor. I had a big support team. My husband was by my side the whole time holding me, talking to me, doing Hypnobirthing, and pressing on my back. I had a dear friend that backed him up with getting me food, water, and anything else I needed. I also had a friend that was an acupuncturist helping me. I got to go outside and walk around to help the labor. You don't get that kind of freedom in hospitals.

Midwives are not people that boil hot water and have sheets ready. They are highly trained and equipped to handle many different complications. They also know when it's time to go to the hospital. They totally catered to me. I never felt rushed. They answered all of my questions and spent plenty of time with me. I had the same experience as you with my doctors. When it came down to it, I didn't feel like they would respect my wishes. So at 8 months pregnant, I changed to homebirth. The midwives were so knowledgeable and readily available by phone. During the birth, they were there when I needed them but left me alone when I wanted my own privacy. Pamela Qualls is excellent. Her number is ###-###-####.

All that said, homebirth is not for everyone. I have respect for however a woman chooses to birth as long as she is consciously asking for what she wants. The documentary is really well done because it shows the reality of homebirth. Overall it is such a beautiful experience, but most women go through the point of "I can't do this. Take me to the hospital and give me a C section!". I know I did. I think it was very genuine of Ricki to show her own birthing experience so candidly and to show that homebirths don't always go as planned.

I had a home birth and it was great, as long as you are not high risk you should go for it!

my mother's first birth was in a hospital. she hated it. she had her second at a birth center, third at home, and i was there for the last two in a hospital with a midwife attending (which is how i had my own son during a high risk pregnancy.)

you have a lot more control and more support from a midwife, in my opinion. i felt like my midwife treated me with waaaay more respect than several of the doctors i dealt with and even a couple of the nurses in the birth center.

which is to say, home birth is great, i think, if you don't have medical complications, and a midwife is likely to be worlds better no matter where you have your kid. but it depends on the person- some of the midwifes i met i liked more than others, and i felt my sense of trust in someone made a huge difference in their ability to help me focus and feel safe while giving birth.

My first birth was a c-section for a breech baby. It took forever to heal and I did not get to bond with my baby right away. So the second time around I wanted it to be different. I had my son at home with a midwife. The contractions were very easy to get through, and the pain during pushing was not too bad. I had massages, and a tub set up. I dialated quickly, because I was comfortable and in my own surroundings. I delivered a 9 lb 4 oz boy with no tears. I can't enough about a good midwife, the care you recieve prior to birth and the constant presence of her during labor. She always spent an hour or more with me at visits, no waiting, and had tea or fresh fruit. Very different than being rushed in and out of a doctors office. I hope you enjoy all these ladies birth stories and make the best choice for you and your baby. Remember to trust your body and baby.
T.

I just had a home water birth 10 weeks ago with my fourth child, and it was so beautiful! My husband was in the water sitting behind me, and our then-22-month-old son was in the water too. A close friend of ours was with us to play with our son when he didn't want to be in the water, and he was able to be comfortable at home with all of his toys and bed, but yet he was able to be right there when his baby brother came out. We had two midwives there who were so in tune with our family and especially me. Our baby came out face-up instead of face-down, but it was still a smooth and healthy birth. My 15-year-old daughter from my previous marriage came out face-up also, but that was a hospital birth, I ended up with a long, miserable labor. She was pulled out with forceps, and had had a stroke during the process. She has had a difficult life with physical therapy and occupational therapy. Our 2-year-old was born in the water as well, but at a midwifery center. But home was great this time around -- peaceful, family-oreinted, safe, loving, empowering. Good luck to you. Coco

i did not have a home birth- but i had a waterbirth at the birth center in tucson. i don't know where you are, but if there is a free-standing birth center, it's another great alternative to hospital births, especially if you are hesitant because of risks. the birth center in tucson is on the campus of a hospital, so it always makes family who aren't on board feel a little more comfortable. the birth was such a peaceful experience, totally different from a hospital, and it was completely parent-and-baby focused. after having our baby, my hubby & I & our new son just laid together in bed and slept. i'm also a photographer- and would love to see your site if you have one-shoot me an email.

Hi Erin,

Two of my three children were home births and it was one of the best things I ever did. They are now 31 and 33. I also have a 20 year old son, but was eclamptic with him and 38 years old at the time, so I decided to go with a hospital birth--but I made sure things were done MY way in the hospital. I completely agree that they don't always have the mom and newborn's interests at heart in the way things operate there. They wanted to connect monitors to my baby's head and I refused. They hadn't done an internal but assumed that since I'd only had a couple of contractions that it would be hours before he was born. Fortunately, when they told that to my OB, she trusted her gut instead and headed for the hospital. She had time to put her arms through the sleeves of the gown and catch him. I also made other-than-normal choices about some of the automatic procedures. I didn't use any pain medication for any of my children because some of it goes through to the baby. These days I understand that they administer large doses of antibiotics to newborns and I think this is a dangerous practice and would refuse it.

With my homebirths, we had a midwife each time and I had an OB who knew what I was doing and was even on the phone with the midwife at one point. My family was present and it was awesome. With my oldest son, I tore a little and had stitches in the emergency room, but other than that everything went very smoothly. My sister baked a birthday cake and we all partied. With my daughter, who came out "face up" instead of the normal position, I had some bleeding that was not normal, but getting her to nurse, using some golden seal, eating spinach and some other things with iron took care of it all. Had I been in the hospital, they would have taken her away from me and hooked me up to everything possible. Yuk.

There are plenty of books available on the subject and I think I read every one the Phoenix public library had available at the time. I went into doing home births with knowledge instead of fear and asked lots of questions, found out what choices I had and made my own decisions about what I would accept.

Good luck!
K.

Congratulations!! I'm so happy you're thinking that way! Homebirths are wonderful and midwives ROCK. They totally blow hospital birth out of the water.

We had a great homebirth experience with a local midwife, Wendi, and will never, never, NEVER give birth voluntarily in a hospital after such a great experience.

Homebirth is statistically as safe or safer than hospital birth due to the mother's comfort, the lack of unnecessary interventions, and the continuity of care.

Here is our midwife's website:

http://globalmidwifery.org/

Here is a website that lists other Arizona midwives:

http://arizonamidwives.com/

(My baby and hubby are pictured on Wendi's page on this website.)

Here is a great Yahoo! group that I belong to that is great for asking questions about homebirth:

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/phoenixbirthcircle/?...

I also attend a chapter of the Phoenix Birth Circle, which is a monthly meeting, and is a great place to learn about homebirth:

http://www.azbirthnetwork.com/monthlymeetings.htm

Midwives are wonderful because they take TIME for you - visits are generally 30-60 minutes. You can call them any time of the night or day and they are deeply invested in your emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being. When you are in labor, they will be there whenever you want them and will stay several hours after the birth to get you comfortable and your house cleaned up - not to mention lots of postpartum help. I can't say enough great stuff about midwives and homebirth!!!

I have been hesitant to respond to this today because I knew my view would not be popular with many of you. However, I just saw another post warning against home birth and had to speak up. I had an almost identical situation in that we would have lost our 8 year old son had we done it at home. All those monitors and machines picked up on problems that would have cost him his life. The problem with at home births, many of us don't qualify as being "high risk" and then something goes wrong with the baby not tolerating delivery or whatever. So many of the posts talk about how inconvenient it was for you to deliver in the hospital for one reason or another. This is not about YOU, it's about having that baby placed safely in your arms. It is not about episiotomies or the mothers comfort ultimately. It's about the BABY and I think too many women get sidetracked from that.
We did lose our third child, our daughter, after her birth due to a chromosone issue. Having experienced this, you don't want to take ANY chance in losing a baby. The loss never goes away.

N. S.

It is so wonderful that you are considering a homebirth. The Moms in New Mexico are very lucky in that it is widely available. We have some great homebirth midwives who will bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to your birth. I have not had a homebirth but have attended them as a Doula and can truly say that most of the time they are much more calm and natural than hospital births. Studies have shown that they may even be safer because there are less interventions introduced.

A recent study published in the British Medical Journal showed what midwives, moms and other advocates for homebirth have known all along—homebirths attended by certified midwives are safer than hospital births. Rates of medical intervention, such as epidural, forceps and caesarean section, were lower for planned homebirths than for low-risk hospital births. Planned homebirths also had a low mortality rate during labor and delivery, similar to that in most studies of low-risk hospital births in North America. The study also showed a high satisfaction rate by mothers. In 87% of the cases, no transfer to a hospital was required. The results support the American Public Health Association's (APHA) recommendation to increase access to out of hospital maternity care services with direct entry midwives in the United States.
— BMJ, 2005 June 18, 330(7507): 1416–19

There are many sites on the internet that can give you a great deal of information on homebirths….plus wonderful birth stories from happy homebirth Moms. Please take the time to read as many of these as you can. Then take a childbirth class that will give you tools and techniques that will fully support you during your homebirth, not just teach you how to be a good patient.

I have some wonderful birth stories and information on homebirths I can share with you, if you would like. You can go to http://www.posihd.com/contact.php and e-mail me with any question you might have.

J. Streit
HypnoBirthing Childbirth Educator and Doula

My sister has 7 children, 6 of them she had at home. All wonderful experiences! I've had to have mine at the hospital because I have addison's disease so I had to have IV steroids during labor. I wrote up a birthplan with my last one and expressed to the DR. how important it was that I have a hospital birth as close to a homebirth as possible. It took finding a Dr. that was in favor of homebirths and would support my desires. He was awesome and I had a great experience. I know what you mean by the dr. doing his own thing according to his time schedule. I had Dr. Craig Seal as my OB for 10 years and 3 of my children's births were assisted by him. He definately didn't take into consideration what my desires were. I always felt like I was on an operating table and I had no control of what was happening. Since you have the option, I would grab the chance to have a homebirth. I was with my sister for all of hers and what a beautiful experience! She had 4 of them in the water and she says she wouldn't do it any other way! Pam White is her midwife and she is truly awesome! Good luck and God Bless, A.

Hi, Erin, I had both of my daughters at home and while it was all of the things birth is (difficult, painful, exhausting, messy) it was also wonderful and absolutely fulfilling experience. I felt safe and protected and cared for by midwives who knew what I was going through and who monitored me and the baby carefully. I was able to stay in a comfortable, familiar environment (my home) with only the people I wanted to see in attendance. Home birth is perfectly safe and appropriate for most women, and the midwives in new mexico are very well educated and meet high standards of professionalism. Our accreditation system is one of the most rigorous and the Department of Health has an advisory board that oversees licensed midwives in New Mexico.

That said, homebirth isn't for everyone. You should only have a homebirth if you feel confident about the situation and want the experience. Most midwives offer a free initial consultation in which they will take up to an hour to really speak with you, answer questions, explain their services and give you a chance to see whether or not you connect with them as individuals. Midwives are diverse in their attitudes and lifestyles--you'll find some that fit right in at suburban PTA meetings complete with make-up and frosted hair as well as those who wear Indian print skirts and shop exclusively at the co-op. You don't have to be a certain kind of person to want to give birth at home--well, I mean, other than being a pregnant kind of person.

Good luck.

i've had several friends who have amazing home birthing stories. at the time i birthed my kids i didn't even know it was a choice to deliver at home. i also feel like my hospital experiences were not the best situations for the occasion.. look into a midwife or doula, and know that whatever you feel comfortable with is the right thing to do...(and natural thing to do)

Hats off to all you women who can have a home birth! I'm not one of them for several reaons. But for any women reading this who plan to give birth in a hospital, I want to share with you that not all hospital births are horrible experiences! I had all four of my babies in hospitals - in CA and AZ - and my experiences with each were wonderful. The doctors and nurses were caring, lovely people. Some of these posts make it sound like all hospitals are as clean as a hut in a third-world country and that all the doctors and nurses who work there are heartless. Just want to say thanks to the great hospitals, doctors and nurses who have helped me have wonderful birth experiences over the last 10 years.

I have 2 children 4 1/2 and 3 1/2, and they were both born in the hospital. I guess what I would suggest is to have a birth plan. We did take a birthing class and educated ourselves in what doctors will try to do etc. Since I was in good health, we felt that we didn't want any unnecessary procedures done to our child. We expressed this to our doctor and he was onboard, we typed up our birth plan had our doctor sign it and brought it with us to the hospital. We did not show up to the hospital until I was dilated to 10 (1st child) 8 ( 2nd). I was lucky ,we were able to follow our plan, have no drugs and were pretty much in and out of the hospital. We both felt very empowered by taking the class, and felt we made the right decision for our family. I do realize that this is a personal choice and there are options, good luck..

Hi Erin!

I had my daughter at home last year. I highly recommend home birth! My advice, as both a home birth mom and childbirth educator, is... prepare for your birth! Read all the positive books you can get your hands on. Attend classes that teach about birth as a natural and normal process, one to be trusted, not feared. Talk to moms who have had positive birth experiences... No scary birth stories, please! I teach both HypnoBirthing and home birth classes here in Albuquerque. Please check out www.albuquerquebirthnetwork.org for dates of upcoming classes.

K. Gleason
First Breath... for Pregnancy, Birth, & Beyond...
###-###-####
www.firstbreathabq.com

I wish I had had my last baby at a birthing center so bad. My experience at the hospital was very negative. I was in extreme pain (duh!) screaming and crying and felt the STRONGEST urge to push, but they made me cross my legs for a half hour because my dr wasn't there. I kept saying I don't care, get me the doctor on the floor, I just want this baby out! Every time my body tried to do it's thing and my legs would open the nurse would tell me "I don't catch babies! Close your legs!" Regrettably, I was so delirious with pain that I didn't resist them. Anyways my baby's heart rate plummeted because she was stuck in the birthing canal for a half hour and in distress so they finally let me have her with the hospital dr. All I did was sit up and she fell out because she was so ready to come out. Anyways, they definitely did not seem to care much about my comfort or the needs of the baby. Other than that it was a flawless pregnancy and labor (very fast) so I wish I had had a home birth or birthing center birth. You never know if there will be an emergency, but midwives seem to prevent emergencies from occurring in the first place--preventive instead of reactionary like the western medicine. Keep us updated!

Having said that, I had an epidural with my first and it was awesome. I could still slightly feel, but no pain which was absolutely wonderful, and I recovered very quickly. The extreme relief the epidural offered was amazing, so I will definitely miss that if I have another baby and have it at home. I was able to walk to the bathroom immediately following the birth.

I am having a home birth this time around (I'm nly 7 1/2 weeks). I have a wonderful, Christian midwife. I never thought home birth was for me either, but now after reading all the statistics, seeing what they do in other countries, and thinking about how women have birthed for thousands of years, I have completely changed my mind. I also didn't have the best birthing experience as they tried to push an epidrual on me (though i didn't have one), and kept trying to push formula when I had a hard time breastfeeding. I think you are making a great choice! Please message me if you want my midwife's information. Good luck!

Sounds like you are a good candidate for a home birth. Interview midwives and go with whomever you feel most comfortable. The reason homebirths go so well is that mom feels safe and has complete trust in her birth attendants. I have had three kids, and I tried to stay out of the hospital with all. But my first was a non-emergency transfer for an extremely long labor. My homebirths were wonderful and when women tell me they are "too scared" to have a homebirth, I tell them I'm too scared to have a hospital birth. There is too much risk in a hospital: of infection, of doctors and nurses not honoring your requests, of unnecessary interventions. I wholeheartedly encourage you to pursue a homebirth!

I had a homebirth with my daughter and everything went well. I see that many women have said the same thing. I want to share a different thought....I just read the book called Midwives in which a woman dies in labor at her home in the presence of a midwife. There was a lot of contraversey about hospitals being the safest place to birth...blah blah blah.
There may be times when the results would be better in a hospital, but most of the timea woman's home is the best place to bring forth life for many reasons. Some say it is not worth the risk, but remember that saying that goes something like this ...'it is better to set many guilty men free than to imprison one innocent man'. I see homebirth like that. It is better to have one tragedy in a homebirth than to bring forth every baby in a hospital unnecessarily.
I am proud to say that my child did not sit in her car seat until she was about four weeks old. When you have a homebirth your midwife comes to you. She checks your baby at home periodically and you don't have to do a thing but relax in your pajamas if you want.

I will share my feelings with you. I am totally against it. I know people who have done it, and I would never ever do a home birth. Here are my reasons. When I was in labor with my first child, I quit dialating, his heart rate kept dropping, and if I wasn't at a hospital hooked up to monitors and having a doctor and nurse monitoring that, I would have lost my baby. I ended up having to have a rush c-section- and I am not one bit upset at the doctor because he did whatever it took to save my baby, and possibly me. Now if I were at home, I am sure I would have lost him, and I don't think I would have been fine myself. Doctors and nurses are trained to do what they do, and monitors and machines are there to help you and dectect any problems that might be going on, that otherwise you would have no clue about. I would suggest getting a different doctor if you didn't like your last one. But consider that before you make a decision. At times, your baby's life depends on it.

My first son was a "good hospital birth", but I knew that if I ever had the birthing opportunity again I'd do it differently. This was in 1974, before home birth made a comeback. Nine years later I had a glorious home birth! Two years after that, another home birth. I've attended birthings of three girlfriends and one sister from hospital to home. The most magnificent, gentle, "natural" birth was the water birth at home. It was amazing for all present including dad, but especially for the central characters mother and baby. I can't say enough wonderful comments about it. The water birth was a precious way for the baby to make the transition from womb to world. Remember that having a home birth requires a mother to take responsibility for her health and strength; to completely surrender to the process mentaly, emotionally, and physically. Read about successful home birth experiences, know what you're doing, and employ a competent midwife. Best of luck. My home birthings are some of my favorite memories.

I know you've gotten lots of great responses, and they're great. When I lived in the Phoenix area, I gave birth at Bethany Women's Birthing Center. I hear they also have one on the East side of the Phx metro area. Although I would prefer a home birth, insurance wouldn't allow it, and I had my daughter under water at B.W. It was the best thing ever!!!
My sister has given birth to her two kids at home, one underwater, and she only has good things to say about it. Good Luck!!! M.

People always say to me, "You had a home birth? WOW you must be brave."
I tell them "No I'm a chicken about going to the hospital!"

Birth is natural and is not an illness and shouldn't be treated as one.
As long as you have a Dr or Midwife who brings lots of equipment to keep you and baby safe until an ambulance arrived if you needed it, you will be fine.
A midwife is trained in the subtle art of childbirth and doesn't rush the process.

My two home births were so empowering and gave me the ability to recover very quickly.
I was even confined to bed for four months with my second one, and was still able to give birth at home.
Good luck and all I can say is it was WELL worth it!
The Mommie Mentor, www.proactiveparenting.net

I had my first son in the hospital and it went fine -- except for the level 4 episiotomy that I was left with that I'm convinced I didn't need. When I got pregnant for the second time, I was considering home birth for two reasons. One of my sisters-in-law had hers at home, and a friend of my good friend had 2 10 pounders at home with no tearing at all. And secondly I had no maternity insurance. I was determined that home birth was what I wanted. I went to my friend's friend's midwife, Mary Henderson (I HIGHLY RECOMMEND HER!)even though she is in Phoenix and I'm in Gilbert. I have had the most excellent care and the best births ever. I'm now pregnant with my fourth, and I'm back in Mary's hands even though I now have maternity insurance and it would cost far less to have a hospital birth since my insurance only pays a fraction of out of provider care. It is so nice to have one person, well two, she has a partner, care for you the entire time and make sure they're there for your entire birth, not just 5 seconds at delivery. People always ask, "what if there's an emergency?" I respond with I have the best care possible with someone exceedingly capable of handling emergencies. Plus, I have heard of far more awful things happenening at hospital births than I ever have at home births. I would love to talk more about it, feel free to email me if you have more questions.

My mother had one child at home and it was awonderful experiance for all of us. I came up stairs to get ready for school and there was the Doctor asleep on our couch. He was trying to start a group called PUSH (Parents United in Safe Homebirths) but was killed in a car accident. I have a really great friend who has 6 kids all at home in a birthing tub. I think if you have a great Midwife or even a great Doctor who will do it at your home, then do it!

Good for you for considering a home birth. As you can already see you will get so many mixed reactions about the idea of a home birth the number one thing to remember is it's your journey. You know your body and birthing is a natural process. Birth has been going on for ummmm... ever. It wasn't until recent history that women were even allowed to give birth in hospitals. Birth in our modern society is politics as usual.

I had my first child six months ago. I started out not wanting to go to a hospital but not wanting a home birth. I found Bethany Birth Center, took a tour and had my heart set on it. I went one day for a check up and it was closing. From what I understand due to new insurance guldelines it became impossible for them to keep it open. I then toured just about every hospital in Phoenix. WOW! One told us your baby is "going to have problems and will most likely keep you in the hospital for at least two days." another gave us a 30 minute presentation on the parking and another provided a list of close by places that deliver. I don't know about you but this wasn't what I was expecting to find out on my tour.

We were taking a Hypnobirthing class with Debbie Catz, who I strongly recommend, becoming educated about the birthing process and the business birth has turned into for hospitals and it all made me consider homebirth. I stumbled upon Mary Henderson, a midwife in Phoenix. She has delivered over 2000 babies at home. We consulted with her and decided to do it.

I gave birth in the comfort of my own home and for me it had so many benefits. My birth was all natural 2 1/2 hours. I strongly believe it was so short because my body didn't tense up from all of the pressure in a hospital. Not to mention hospitals are like drug pushers, all they want to do is inject you to "make you more comfortable". I could go on and on and on. I really have become such a strong advocate of women once again owning their birth process. If you have any questions send me a message so we can talk. I'd love to help you make an informed decision.

I am the mother of three beautiful, healthy children ages 7, 6, and 4, all born at home. I am a Christian and while I would never condemn someone for going to the doctor, I find great joy in trusting the one Who created my body to also care for it as my Great Physician. I've often observed, however, that I wonder how even non-Christian people can put themselves in a place (the hospital) where sooooo many things seem to go wrong. I agree with the other lady--I would be scared to death to have my babies in a hospital!

All of our babies were born in the comfort of our own home, in surroundings and atmosphere that was familiar to my baby and myself, not under glaring lights and in a place full of every disease known to man. I was not jabbed with needles, given IV's or pills of any kind, not nipped or snipped, and not whisked away for an "emergency" C-section, even though my first baby was in the birth canal for some time. We had three perfectly healthy babies at home surrounded by the people who loved us most and had prepared themselves with the proper knowledge to be able to assist (we didn't even have a midwife--just my mother, my husband, and an 6-time-homebirther aunt of mine), instead of with panicky or busy doctors who had no personal or emotional interest invested in us. While birth is never fun (!), the births of my three children were sooooo amazing and are filled of memories of loving family, wonderful prayers, and precious happy, healthy babies making their entrance into our home and family.

It's a personal decision for every woman and her husband to make, but I can't imagine ever giving birth any other way! So many people nowadays seem to think of birth as some kind of a medical crisis requiring trained professionals to see you through... forgetting that women have been successfully giving birth naturally--and without trained assistance--for thousands of years. Until the past few decades, ALL women had homebirths--since the creation of the world. It's not a "freaky" thing to want to have your baby at home. It's NATURAL. :-)

It's apparent by the posts on the thread that women who have had home births like to talk about them and I guess I'm no different. Feel free to write if you have any questions at all! :-)