Home Births - who cleans up afterwards?

[pastabest]

I'm expecting my second DC after a textbook straightforward birth with DC1 at the local birthing unit.

The midwives are pushing for a home birth again (they did with DC1 too but we opted for the birthing centre) DP has surprised me by being vaguely positive towards the suggestion after feeling it was completely out of the question last time.

However this time we have DC1 and will therefore have childcare issues. It will be a summer birth not a winter birth (this makes a difference, we live remotely and can spend large amount the of winter inaccessible other than by 4x4).

I didn't particularly enjoy the birth centre, despite being the only person in they forgot about me, and I was crowning before anyone checked back on me after 4 hours of being there. I wasn't offered any pain relief and the lovely birthing pool remained very empty as they apparently weren't expecting me to give birth so quickly.

The thing one thing (aside from all of the usual concerns over hospital transfer times etc) putting me off a home birth however is the mess afterwards. Who wants to deal with that after you have just given birth?

Slightly worried about my carpets/ lovely new mattress as well....

[eddiemairswife]

I had 2 at home and really don't think there was much mess. I had a waterproof sheet and a draw sheet over it, so the undersheet and mattress were protected. In those days you were given an enema before the birth, so that reduced the mess.

[TooTiredToBeCreative]

It’s reLly not that messy. I bought a shower curtain to cover the sofa and put an old sheet on top of it with a couple of inco pads. The whole lot was rolled up and put in a bin bag. The midwife took the placenta to dispose of at the hospital.

[RhinestoneCowgirl]

I've had 2 home births in my living room. We put some plastic sheets down, covered with old towels.

I didn't do any clearing up, think it was midwives (assisted by my mum).

[keepingbees]

I was advised to buy a groundsheet from a diy shop. The midwives are really good and cover up what they can with whatever sheeting you provide and their own disposable waterproof pads. My waters broke when I was standing in my living room and it was quickly cleaned up. As others have said it's not that messy really and any mess is dealt with. The placenta and everything is taken away by the midwife to be incinerated at the hospital. By the time the midwives left my house was as normal.

[RNBrie]

It didn't take long at all. Midwives did it after putting me to bed with the baby. Best advice I had was having an old double duvet to hand. Its more comfy to hang out in than a shower curtain and then it went in the bin and everything was as good as new

[eddiemairswife]

On both occasions the midwife wrapped the placenta in newspaper and gave it to my husband to burn.

[GummyGoddess]

Dh drained and put away the pool. Midwives mopped up the blood on the bathroom floor (dc didn't want to be born in the pool apparently) with our old towels and dh chucked them into the bath for soaking with washing powder.

That's it, no mess! Towels annoyingly came out spotless as I was hoping to have ruined the old ones so I could finally convince dh to throw them away.

Only had a small trail of blood when I was helped up from the bathroom floor, I was comfortable and didn't want to move from my towel nest, and was walked into the bedroom. We have wooden floors so wasn't a problem, if you have carpet maybe be aware. I also had disposable baby bed wetting sheets on the bed to protect it from the blood.

[mintbiscuit]

Midwives were pretty good about cleaning up. For both homebirths. We used old towels, waterproof sheets, bedcovers and just binned everything. Really wasn't that messy at all.

The good thing about a homebirth is you have 2 midwives in attendance so you get their full attention.

[Bue]

Agreed, not much real mess. Someone threw out the bin bag of birth stuff and DH threw the soiled towels in the washer (although we used old ones so could just as well have thrown them out). I had the baby in the bathroom and found some blood spatters later (I delivered the placenta and was stitched on the bathroom floor) but no big deal as you eventually have to clean your bathroom anyway.

[Salene]

I gave birth on my bathroom floor by myself and it looked like a blood bath, minutes after the birth the paramedics burst through the doors. As I was getting changed ready to get in ambulance one paramedic was holding baby and the other cleaning the mess with a towel which they took away with them for disposal

So if they sorted the mess I would think midwives would also do something similar and when I say a bloody bath I mean a blood bath as my waters went on the floor and it’s just a cold stone floor so that mixed with blood and placenta and nothing to absorb it you can imagine how bad it looked

[MrsGB2225]

I had an unplanned home birth on my bathroom floor.
The midwife took away the placenta but my mum and husband cleared away and cleaned all the bloody towels (there were a lot of them!!) I'm sure it would have been easier to clean up if we were prepared for a homebirth.

[Thesunrising]

I had a Home birth in a birthing pool. There was no mess outside the pool (apart from the areas of the house where I vomited copiously). The contents of the pool was pretty gross though. Midwive took placenta but husband and my dad had to empty the pool with buckets as we had no electric pump - I shudder to think what was in that water as it really didn’t look good...

[lampert]

@Thesunrising this is my big fear! I desperately want a Home birth with pool (and yes I’m aware it may not work out that way). However by DH is squeamish and will not cope well with a disgusting blood (and god knows what else!) filled pool.

The one I want to get comes with a pump to empty it, sieve (he’s grossed out about that!) and a liner so in theory it shouldn’t be too bad. It wouldn’t bother me but I’m not sure I will be in a fit state to start cleaning up shortly after the birth!

[Phalarope]

I didn't think it was that messy. DP did the clearing up. He says it was horrendous! DS born just before midnight, and I think DP got to bed at about 4. But to be fair, we'd moved a lot of furniture about to make space for the pool, and he moved it all back again. I think the midwives stuck all the towels and stuff in the wash. I didn't care, I was all tucked up in bed with a newborn (and I'd made DP put clean sheets on the bed earlier in the night!).

Er, the room needed a good airing after the grim contents of the pool had been drained...

[BrokenBattleDroid]

As above, midwives do it very easily.

I would buy a packet of tena lady bed pads so bed sheets only need changing if it isn't contained on the pad.. Also useful for sitting on after it you don't want to get dressed properly. Any leftover are useful for nappy free time for the baby!

[noodlesandtomatoes]

They deal with everything. Just prepare by having some plastic sheets. I buy plastic decorating sheets - they're cheap and massive.