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 had a home water birth with my 1st child in September 2010 and it was wonderful. Didn't need any pain relief except the warm water and labour was quick n trouble free - 2.5 hours in total and I was in the pool 30 minutes. Waters broke in the pool, which was nice and tidy! We didn't use the plastic sheeting, lamp or torch!

MrIckle - this is one of the many reasons why I have chosen a homebirth - if I dont like it, I can transfer to hospital at any point (although it will probably be a bit late if I decide once I'm crowning ), however, if i am at hospital and dont like it they wont let me go home (well my midwife hasnt seen it happen yet!) Opting for a homebirth is giving me more options than a hospital one and enabling for me to decide what is right for me and my baby as the birth progresses. I dont expect to transfer though unless i medically need to but its nice to know at the back of my mind that i have options.

Had a homebirth for my first baby in Oct 2009. A wonderful experience! Just over 5 hours for whole thing, never needed pain relief and no hassle about trying to get to a hospital at 3am. Planning second homebirth now, dd is due 30 April 2011.

FWIW, I was the only one in my NCT group to choose a homebirth and had the best birth experience - it may be that luck and genetics played a part too but I think being relaxed and in my own private space was a major factor. Wishing all the home birthing ladies out there all the best for their new arrivals!

Just had the most wonderful home assesment with a new mw, she gave me the go ahead and some great advise, feel so happy now, as though a weight has been lifted :) so looking forward labour now ( never thought I'd say that! Lol) just hope she is on call when it happens.

Mannimummy that is how I felt after the home assesment. I felt (and still do) really excited and encouraged. She was so reasuring and realistic at the same time. I do think midwifery is such and amazing skill (set of skills).
Pool arrives today and my mum next tuesday and i'll be ready to go.
I've lined up about 5 sewing projects and several knitting projects that have to be finnished before the baby arrives so i'm sure as soon as i start on them the labour will start.

MrIckle, I aimed for a home birth, but ended up in a midwife led unit for meconium in waters for dd2, still a lovely birth with one midwife throughout and very enjoyable, I think you are right about keeping flexible, but there's no harm in having a preferred plan and I would plan a HB again.

Hi,
I'm planning a home water birth for my 2nd who is due in three weeks.

I had a HB with my DD1 too. I am properly militant about HB and went ahead with it against medical advice (but with the support of my independent midwife) when it turned out my dd was breech. Labour was great - less than 6 hours start to finish - but dd was quite shocked so she had to transfer in to hospital in an ambulance with my dh. I followed half an hour or so later after the placenta was out etc. So that wasn't ideal! Hasn't put me off though, and things will be different with this head down baby :)

We have been testing our birth pool over the past few days, timing how long it takes to fill etc. It takes AGES! So, do we just keep it semi-filled and top it up when we need it? (Obviously, we would do a complete water change every few days.) It is taking over the living room though...

Can anyone talk to me about what they hope to do for their third stage? Hadn't really thought it through as it was so medicalised last time. Seems a shame to use the syntocin (sp?) if I've managed to HB with no drugs, but not sure if I will want to be sitting there for an hour waiting to deliver the placenta naturally....any ideas/experience appreciated!

I'm planning a physiological 3rd stage if everything has gone naturally up to then.

However, if things are taking ages, or I'm knackered, or it's a really short cord etc. and breastfeeding hasn't got things moving, then I'll probably have the injection at that point. There's no reason they can't give it later to get things moving - it doesn't have to be immediately after delivery. I definitely want to wait until after the cord has stopped pulsing, but after that I'll play it by ... well, ear doesn't seem quite appropriate, but you know what I mean!

This thread has gone very quiet, how is everyone doing? I'll be 37 weeks on weds, having homebirth kit dropped off on friday. Have had 2 disappointing appts with other mws in the team who both were trying to obstruct my homebirth plans and impose conditions on them dropping off the kit.
one of which was my hb was 9.9 which really isnt low and mcv and ferritin levels fine so not really anaemic but normal haemodilution, also tried to make me see consultant because before pregnanct had bordeline thyroid result when I've had them checked 3 times in this pregnancy and always normal.
It angered me as

1. These are not valid medical reasons to caution againsr a homebirth, as a trainee mw myself I have already been taught about medical conditions and effects on pregnancy/birth.
2. They seemed to forget it is MY decision alone.

Anyway my usual mw called me today she is a SOM and the team leader she agreed cons appt waste of time and cancelled it and said she will be dropping off my kit next friday no mention of anaemia etc
feeling a lot more relaxed now. Though will still send a letter to the head of midwifery about the attitudes of these 2 mws.

Midwife is coming to do the home birth visit next week for my 36 week appt - I am excited but not sure why as i am sure that not a lot will happen! I think i'm just generally excited that baby will be here soon-ish!

I'm having a sweep tomorow, my due date, which I hope works, as not so dp has just walked out on us for the second time, and have had to call my mum up as I have no one where I now live, she can only stay 3 days, so if dc3 doesnt arive, lord knows what i'll do If the homebirth plans work out, than at least kids will be with me, but ive had the week from hell, evil mw sent me to consultant to talk me out of homebirth, was beond words trumatic! HE told be my baby was going to die unless I went into hospital! he wasnt the consultant, just part of her 'team' I said I have done my research and belive it safe, he tried using my heart murmer as reason, then thyroid then back to hb levels, I now have notes that have his and mw stating am going against advise and risking our lives! I also refused a blood test (as mw covered me wirh my own blood last time),so also says in notes 'refusing medical test at own risk'! this is writen by the same mw who hasnt been able to test urine for past 3 appointments as she has forgotten test sticks!!! but the worse thing is am actually doubting myself and am and ready to throw in the towel and just go to the hospital, as everything I do at the moment is wrong. but really dont want to labour alone.WWYD?

manicmummy please write a letter to the head of midwifery, the consultant and mws have no right to treat you this way as a student mw myself it makes me very angry, as I have posted I have had similar experiences. Have you seen the page www.homebirth.org.uk/hb.htm There is a template letter re homebirth with hb levels considered low!
I had written a letter to HOM and community midwifery manager, but before I sent it Team leader sorted out homebirth kit and cancelled cons appt but I will still send it (amended) as if it wasn't for her this would still be going on. They cannot refuse you a homebirth.
I hope you nanage to sort things out with your partner it is so what you don't need right now

mws dropped off the homebirth kit today feeling very excited now and can't wait to go into labour am 37+2 so could be a few more weeks yet.

Hi everyone, not been on here a while but thought I'd drop a line to let you know that I did indeed have a homebirth! Harry was born on 10th Feb at 7.26pm. It was a great experience although the second stage was so fast I think it left me slightly in shock! In a nutshell I started to have contractions at 2am and it remained sedate and easy to handle until about 5pm. This was totally different to my first experience of labour which in total lasted about 12 hours with a more prolonged second stage. In this time I timed the contractions, breathed my way through them & my Doula had arrived too and we went for a long walk which helped. By 5pm the pain was stepping up, contractions lasting longer / closer together & that's when I called the MW. She arrived by 6pm and I was 6/7cm and REALLY wanting gas & air which I eventually got! I was lying on my bed which I had pre-prepared (clean sheet underneath ready for post birth! B&Q plastic decorating sheet, old shower curtain, lots of old towels and topped with a clean (old) white sheet - it all came clean in the wash!). Lying on the bed in my side, breathing my way through the contractions. My body started to push which I had never experienced before, a bit scared by the speed and the power if it all though this was all internal, I didn't express it. Suddenly realised I was about to have a baby & I was lying down! Not what I'd planned! Said I have to move & get upright! MW's said too late (& I really couldn't move) so DP & my Doula got their weight behind my upper back and lifted my to semi upright. From being fully dilated to Harry being born lasted just 8 mins. There was a struggle to birth the head which turned out to be his hand up to his face (he's a real finger / fist sucker!) this caused a slight labial tear but that was it. Third stage was straight forward. I had stitches for the tear and the angle poise lamp I'd borrowed from my mum was invaluable for this so definitely include it if you're planning HB! We had skin to skin & I breast
fed, then was bliss to shower in my own shower & get into lovely clean
bed sheets in my bed! All in all a great experience, DP was great & felt v supported by my Doula who was brilliant. I made a playlist of music which was still playing once he'd been born and I had lavender oil burning in a diffuser, all v ambient! All the very best those of you planning HB, I can thoroughly recommend it X

congratulations earlgrey - your birth story makes me jealous & excited at the same time!

congratulations earlgrey

Hi ladies this is my third DC I am still early and hope for my first home birth, I have a very bad latex allergy cannot touch even for a second I trust that wont be a problem will it? but thought I would sign on here in case I have any questions and to read your wonderful stories if that is ok I have not read all the thread but read a bit and some lovely stories I will read it all through later if his is ok?

Congratulations Earlgrey!

Congratulations earlgrey Thank you for your birth story. I am getting excited now at 39+6!

I'm 34 weeks with my first and more than considering a homebirth, but am starting to feel concerned ... should I have been ramming this down my MWs throats at my appointments ? I asked MW at appointment when I was 31 weeks if she had any info on HBing she just said "you'll only be able to have gas & air, but we'll bring everything you need"... at my most recent appt MW was asking if I'd been on the hospital tour ... should my preference have been noted on my notes ?

I have previously presumed that they were waiting until I was a certain point along before pointing me in the direction of local antenatal/ Parent Education classes, which has resulted in my first one not being until 19th April... I don't want the same to happen re homebirth!