Is there a home birth thread on MN?

[WestYorkshireGirl]

I've been trying to find a home birth thread on the talk boards but not having any luck. Is anyone else planning for a HB imminently? I am hoping for a home water birth in around 2 weeks with an independent mw and it would be great if anyone else was also in the same position or had recently had a HB.

I second floradix for bringing up iron levels....and plates full of brocolli!

Needtosleepzzz will ask for expectant monitoring at my 'induction' appointment on Thursday, by my dates (12th Jan would be EDD) I will only be 8 days over and the baby is moving lots.

Congratualtions Angelica, will this be your second DC?

Just wanted to say good luck to hackneyzoo today, I hope they agree to letting you wait a while longer (as long as everything is okay) and I hope you're not too fed up. Honestly, I'm only 37 weeks and I've had enough!

I'm just wondering what the midwife looks for when she comes for a home visit to book you in for a homebirth. the midwife is comming on tuesday.

Apart from making the house a bit neater and providing some cake or something is there anythign else i need to get ready?

Also Hackneyzoo how are you doing?

hazchem My mw came last week and we went through all the risks and what I needed to provide and what the cmws would provide. She didn't even look around (after I'd cleaned and cleaned all morning!) but she did get my birth ball out and demonstrate some good moves for early labour All in all I tihnk she was here for an hour, she's so supportive of hbs I have my fingers crossed that she's the one to deliver this baby!

Hope hackney is doing okay and has her feet up!

Oh, forgot to mention that I had to sign a piece of paper to say that I understood what having a hb entailed and that I had read all the info they gave me.

needtosleepZZZ thanks for that. It's put my mind at rest.

I'd like to join the list too. I'm 31 weeks pregnant, due 23/03/11 but as I normally go to 42 weeks I'm expecting something like 06/04/11.
This will be dc4, but 3'rd homebirth. Dd2 had to be transferred to hospital because she passed meconium but she was 42+2 the day she was born.
Different circumstances for me as I'm in Greece and have a GP and an independent midwife booked. I will also need a gyneo/obstetrician linked to one of the hospitals here, as back up, just in case I need to be transferred. Hoping not to as I don't fancy ending up in a Greek hospital.

Dealing with a painful varicose vein at the moment and I need to go for a venous doppler scan to check that I'm not at risk for DVT.

I'll just add my name to the list.

Hackneyzoo EDD 9/1/11 DC3 (DD 3.8, DS 2)
hastingsmum EDD 30/01/11 (DS1 5 + DS2 2.5)
Earlgreyismynectar EDD 9.2.11 dc2 (DD1 aged 4)
NeedToSLeepZZZ EDD 10/2/11
EauRouge EDD 18/02/11 DC2 (DD 2.3)
Knittakid EDD 24/02/11 DS1
Hazchem EDD 26/2/11 pg1
mannicmummyhavinabiccy EDD 28/02/2011 (DD10, DS3)
me23 due 23/3/11 pg#2 (dd 5)
Zafnoodles EDD 30/3/11 pg#1
Pettyprudence EDD 30/03/11 pg1
newyearsday EDD 8/5/11 pg1(ds1)
toodles EDD 23/03/11 pg4

Ooh, 06/04 is a great date, it's my birthday Hope your varicose vein gets better soon.

I've got the community MW coming round on Monday to do final checks for a homebirth, does anyone know what I should expect and what I can do to prepare (other than try to persuade DD to put her toys away)?

hackneyzoo - I hope you got to wait or have had your homebirth. I refused induction with dd2 when I was 42 weeks but ended up in hospital because she passed meconium 2 days later. I actually blame the midwives in my area - they were putting so much pressure on me to go into hospital I was really stressed and started hating them all that came to my house and especially the ones on the WANDA unit where I went in to be monitored.

In the end I had a very good hospital experience as I was put on the Consultant ward with very experienced midwives who didn't bat an eyelid that I was 42+2. They saw 43 weekers in there. Dd2's heartbeat did not waver at all, therefore not in distress, she was just more than ready to come out and her gut had matured. My waters had started going at least 24 hours earlier but I think I was so stressed over the midwives actions that they delayed my labour starting. In fact, ironically, the nicest midwife I spoke to was the one on the induction unit who told me, while I was crying on the phone telling her I was refusing to come in for my induction appointment a few days earlier, that I had to calm down. When you're stressed you release adrenalin. Adrenalin stops labour so she told me that I had to start to relax. When I got to hospital and met my new midwives who were really lovely, I relaxed and dd2 was born in around 2 hours. Nothing wrong with her.

Good luck to you and hope to hear your birth story soon.

Just to clarify my first three were born in the UK not in Greece. This is a new experience for me here and there are far less homebirthers in Greece than in the UK. Most people would think you were a complete loon to even try a homebirth here so there's noone to talk to, apart from the GP and midwife.

I'm also keeping my real EDD secret as they don't normally let you go over 40 weeks here (not my GP) and if I told people that I was 42 weeks they would look at me in horror and then all the stupid comments would start. I had enough of those in the UK with my other kids so for the medical professionals it's the real EDD, for the rest it's 2 weeks later.

Hello EauRouge, hope you're enjoying the weekend!

I wrote a bit about mw home visits earlier in the thread but I know they vary in different areas. I think the main reason is to explain what you need to provide and to cover what they can and can't deal with with (1st/2nd degree tears= yes, 3rd/4th=no for example).

I know in some areas they bring stuff with them but mine didn't, she said they'd do that at the time. It wasn't a long visit, about an hour and she didn't want to inspect my home

toodles you must have some stamina to go 42+2! I really don't want to be induced but can't imagine holding on that long..... Sorry you had such horrid mws at first, you'd think midwifery would be more of a vocation, all the mws I've met have been lovely but maybe I just got lucky.

I went 41+4 with DD and was talked into having a sweep which I didn't want and it was quite painful. I was so upset about it I was in tears for ages :( I asked about daily monitoring and was told no, I would 'have' to be induced at 41+5. I'm sure this is one of the reasons I had such a long labour.

This time if I go over and get offered a sweep I shall put my foot down!

Needtosleep, yes, still in my pyjamas hope you're having a good weekend too. Will have a read of your post. My mum has got it into her head that the MWs won't let me have a home birth if my house isn't spotless so she came round to clean the other day and started suggesting ways I could rearrange the furniture. In the end I dragged her out to the garden centre (she can never resist) because she was stressing me out so much. Like I'm going to rearrange the entire bloody downstairs of my house at 36 weeks pregnant!

Just a quick update.... I had a baby girl yesterday morning! went into hospital for meeting about induction and for monitoring. The mws were actually very supportive and didn't put any pressure on. Was 40+11 and really fed up and so agreed to induction as long as I could labour on the new midwife led unit. By the time they got round to examine me for an induction I was already in labour and 4 cm. Was then told I could carry on with my hb plans. Decided to take a peak at the mlu and by the time I got there was in quite full on labour. Dh and I decided to go home but by the time I got to the exit of the hospital it was the point of no return! Mlu was empty so we went back. The Mw left us to it. Dh fell asleep on the double bed! Contractions got painful after an hour so Mw hooked up the g and a and left me to it. About 30 mins later I asked to get in the pool, it was bliss, didn't need the g and a. Mw left us to it agon. 40 mins later I told Mw baby was coming and Ds pretty much pushed herself out! Was all very hands off. I held her in the pool until the placenta stopped pulsing . She seemed to be having trouble breathing and was whisked away.
It turned out she must have swallowed some fluid when my waters went so ended up in scbu. She is doing well and has to stay in for a course of anti biotics. But will be home in a few days. She is breastfeeding no problem and weighs nearly 9pm! So although I didn't get the hb the labour and birth was a really positive experience and I guess Ds would have ended up in hospital either way.
So although I loved my hb with dc2 , being on the mlu this time was also good so it wasn't the end of the world that things didn't go according to plan.
Ds managed to be born on ds's birthday too! Good luck to everyone else! I really found the whole process amazing and am over the moon to have dd2 and can't wait to get her home.
Sorry if this is a complete ramble, am writing on my phone from scbu and am slightly exhausted!

Lol Eau Rouge at thought of rearranging furniture at 36 wks pregnant! We spoke about this earlier in the thread & Needtosleep is right, it's no house inspection! Just more of a tick box exercise & the opportunity to talk it all through.

My box of Midwives kit is due to be delivered next week when they'll officially be on call for me at 38 weeks! I had the positioning scan this week which went well as bub now head down! (spending time with your arse in the air definitely works! It remained back to back & mobile but has been back to my front today so I have started sitting on a low stool from time to time to encourage engagement! Hope it doesn't decide to move again! I'm feeling absolutely whacked but down with a bad cold which doesn't help!

Toodles, I'm impressed that you're sticking to your guns for homebirth in a country less open to the idea. Sounds like you very much know what you're doing! Would love to hear your previous hb stories.

Congrats Hackneyzoo! I'm glad you had a good birth and I hope your new DD is well enough to go home soon.

X post Hackneyzoo! Congratulations! It sounds like you had a lovely birth experience & I'm so pleased after all of the thought you put into it that it turned out this way. Water birth sounds awesome indeed and sounds like you managed your pain brilliantly & what a good weight! My MIL claims there's a bit of gravity behind them when they're a good weight like that, maybe she's right after you said DD pushed herself out! I hope you're recovering well and your DD will be out of scbu very soon X

Huge congratulations hackney! The birth sounded quite wonderful actually, it doesn't matter where you are as long as you feel comfortable and in control and it the MLU sounds great.
Hope DD continues to do well and you get her home in no time, lots of cuddling to do, enjoy!

Hackey well done ! so pleased for you. thatsounds like a realy lovely birth. Great that DD is breast feeding sounds like she'll be home soon.

Congratulations hackney DDs birth sounds like a lovely experience, hope she's home soon. Welcome to the world little girl xx

congratuLations hackneyzoo, sounds like you had a wonderful experience of labour and birth, I hope dd is out of scbu soon.

i had an unassisted homebirth (midwife stuck in traffic) it was the most amazing thing ever!!

Congratulations hackey!!! hope you can all go home soon!

Congratulations hackey x Glad it all worked out for you, hope you and DD are home soon.