Hi, Im on my third pregnancy and thinking of having a home birth! Would love to hear you experiences and any words of wisdom. I have had two normal deliveries with out any complications.

I had my first at home, and it was a wonderfully calm experience. My biggest fear was of having the birth process dictated to me by hospital protocols and time lines - and I felt a homebirth allowed me to do things my own way in my own time. As it turned out, my CMW wasn't very supportive so we wound up using IMs - the only thing I'd change would be to sign up with them sooner next time.

Have a look at www.homebirth.org.uk and join the homebirth UK email group. And then look forward to having a decent cup of tea before curling up with your new baby in your own bed

I had a home birth with no.2 and it was lovely - not just the birth itself which was great but the part just after the birth - we took our first bath together by candlelight and then snuggled into bed with bacon sandwiches and champagne. Fantastic. If you have had two straightforward deliveries already then you are an ideal candidate for a homebirth. I guess a lot will depend on the support network you have around you but I'd say if you are keen then go for it.

everybodies experiences all sound lovelly!!! I have never heard of a bad home birth!! which is reassuringil definitly check out those web sites thx....

kyd - just had my third baby 6 weeks ago, having had two hospital births previously, the home birth was fantastic. Would recommend it totally to anyone who wants one. The luxury of getting into my own freshly made bed two hours after giving birth and being surrounded by my family was wonderful, no other babies around just mine!

Hi,
I had my first baby at home 8 months ago and can't begin to tell you how fantastic it was. I had a water birth with two brilliant midwives who just let me do my own thing (no shouting to push or internals). The result? One very happy mum and adorable, calm baby who has settled straight into family life. I also got to spend a very special first night with my DD and DH in our bed with a glass of champagne and buttered toast!

Top tips? Book a pool (the mess is contained!) and trust your body to do what it is capable of.

Good luck
xx

I had a home birth with my first and it was great. Watched DVDs in my living room in early labour, then into the pool in our dining room where I flobbed about inhaling most of London's stock of gas and air until having our DD. I'm a very practical person and not at all 'earth mother'-like (not a criticism of those who are, just what I'm like) so it wasn't a communing with nature decision, I just dislike hospitals and wanted to be more in control, which I was.

The continuous care of the midwives, the involvement of my DH and the fact that I could then sit on my own sofa and have a cup of tea the whilst eating biscuits before having a shower in my own bathroom was fantastic. We then had no presure on us to go anywhere so could just sit there going 'OMG. A BABY!' a lot.

Even typing this is making me a bit teary remembering how awesome it was (mother nature has obviously done her work and ensured I've forgotten the gory details and the pain!) though that could be pg hormones as fingers crossed number 2 is on the way and I will definitely be going for a home birth again.

I will shut up now, I promise, I would just say, be open-minded. One thing I was very aware of was that it was entirely possible I'd have to go to hospital if things went awry and if so, then that was the way it had to be.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

i had a homebirth for my second and it was fantastic, it happened really quickly and didnt really hurt that much as i was able to walk around and do what i wanted and pace through the contractions. the midwives only just made it though, i had her within 15 mins of them pulling into the drive. the gas and air had frozen in the boot of the car so i didnt get much pain relief but i was so calm they didnt know the babys head was crowning at first. one of the midwives was on the phone to the hospital to say they were here etc and then she said 'oh my god i have to go the babys here!!!'. it was nice as they stay for a while to check you are ok and it was lovely to get into my own shower and bed. my little boy slept through it in the bedroom upstairs , so i didnt have to disturb him and it was nice to introduce him to his new baby sister when he got up in the morning.
i had a terrible hospital birth with my first and i have such bad memories and i will certainly not go into hospital again if i can help it.
My husband was in the middle of major renovations on our new home when i had my home birth but the midwives didnt mind as long as it was warm and had cups of tea as it was a really cold january.

the only problem is that the relatives then turn up really early the following morning because they dont think you need time to settle in as you havent been anywhere.

I had a lovely homebirth with our first and am hoping to do it again in November! The midwife was great, she had to stay a certain time after delivery to watch for problems but she strung out her paperwork as long as she could and then left, so all 3 of us snuggled up in our bed together - it was lovely, really can't imagine DH going home and baby in a plastic cot on his own
Good luck