Homebirth

[Bobkins]

I'm hoping to get some advice. I am 27 weeks pregnant with my first baby and really interested in a home birth. Has anyone planned to have their first baby at home ? Was it the right decision ? I would like to hire a birthing pool (any recommendations welcome) which I know I couldn't be guaranteed at a hospital. Thanks for your help

I was going to have a water birth at hospital, but didn't get a chance. By the time i got to hospital i was only there 25 mins.
Its not much help i know, the point is, it won't necessarily go to plan.

I had my first baby at home. It was the right decision for us - I think the fact I was more relaxed at home contributed to it all going very smoothly. I don't have any experience of birthing pools, but am sure others will be along who do (but my TENS machine was fantastic).

I had a wonderful planned home birth with my first. I didn't tell any family or friends of my plans (they would have worried) but I asked my midwife about it at around 12 weeks - she was very supportive. homebirth.org has some really useful information.

Regarding pools, I was loaned one free from the hospital for dc 2 and 3. Perhaps a similar scheme operates in your area?

yes, i planned my first birth at home

being at least 45mins from the hospital (and 20mins MIN from the midwife led unit (any probs transfered to that hopsital) I decided that i didnt want to be a passenger in a car during labour

I decided that if i HAD to go by ambulence i would choose to go WITH a midwife IN an ambulence.

My birth was amazing... I had the easiest birth out of anyone i have ever known.

I did natal hypnothearpy (from 16 weeks) and i felt really connected with my baby

I trusted her, i trusted my body, and i saw no reason to go to hosital

i then researched birth and the history of birth and realised for certain that i did NOT want to go to hospital, and increase the risk of intervention, increase the risk of infection, and make my self FEEL un at ease in a place i didnt want to be.

I was al l ready... had my pool / aromatherapy oils / black out blind / birth music etc etc I wanted peace / calm / silence / darkness and i wanted the midwife in the next room

What happened was i wasnt sure if i was in labour (i thought it was pregnancy niggles... having a baby is supposed to hurt yes? didnt hurt, so couldnt be real)
I called midwife and said i wondered if i was in labout about 3pm

they called me at 7pm.... we both concluded it was the very very early stages
i went upsairs to my bedroom, in the dark and was happy by myself.... listening to birth prep cd

at 9.30pm i was sick... called midwife just to tell them... midwife said shall i come over... i didnt mind... still didnt hurt much, she decided to pop round now anyway.... arrived 10pm, unloaded stuff from car, and came to see me at 10.10pm... examined me (i was hoping to be 1 - 2 cm... it was uncomfortable at times but no worse that that).... I was 7cm
20mins later i was a mummy
DD born on sofa, in the light with no music or oils, but it was amazing

I was pretty sure my labour would be fast (my grandmother went from pregnant to mummy in just 15mins) and no labour was longer than 2 hours
Having a homebirth was the best decision i have ever made
it was the safest situation for both myself and DD (8m old)
had i have gone to hospital DD would have been born on the road side, which is one of the most dangerous places for birth

I look forward to planning my second and subsequant births at home

The care i had was Amazing... the ONLY thing my midwife made time to read was my birth plan... which was stuck to, to the letter

Afterwards i had chocolate brioche followed a lovely bath in my nice clean bathroom (finished being re-done at 36+5) then into my lovely comfy king size bed, with OH and our baby by our side in the moses basket

just magic, so much nicer than any hospital

midwife came daily for several days, and my wonderful GP did my babies new born check in my bedroom

I wouldnt have done it any other way

yes i had my first at home. it was the right decision - had a MW all to myself for the few hours it took for DD1 to emerge. all nice and calm and private though. at the point they agreed i was in proper labour and they'd sent a mw - there would have been no way in hell i'd have wanted to go anywhere!

own bed, own bath, own tea and toast. lovely.

I had my 1st (and all 4 of my DC) at home, used a TENS machine for pain relief and a pool for delivery - would highly recommend it if you're low risk. I was surprised my MW was so happy about it for my 1st bt she was great. At the time we lived about 5 mins from the hospital so it was quite reassuring that there wouldn't be a long transfer if it became necessary, I bought an inflatable birth pool frim ebay, and the TENS machine came from there too, never got to use the gas and air with any of them, for eldest child MW arrived at the house 45mins before he did, which I put down totally to me coping better than I'd expected with contractions due to being comfy at home. I hope it goes well for you, any more specific questions, please ask

I had both mine at home.
Was very open to all outcomes but all was well.
I loved that I could just concentrate on the labour and not have to worry about travelling anywhere or being somewhere unfamiliar with strangers.
Best bit was afterwards when were all tucked up in bed together. Totally amazing.

Thank you very much for sharing your positive experiences. I am going to get a tens machine but I hadn't thought of getting one of eBay, so that's a great idea.

My second was a homebirth and I echo the sentiments about what a wonderful relaxed experience it can be.

I wasn't brave enough to request a homebirth first time around but I did have a positive experience in hospital - I do believe it's what you make it to some extent- no pain relief just TENS. I realised afterwards I could easily have coped at home and in fact probably had a quicker birth (in a good way). At the point I had to decide the time was right to go to hospital I really did feel torn away from what had been a mellow (though intense) experience. Arriving at the hospital was quite a shock to the system!

So second time around I asked about homebirth at my booking in appointment, very supportive community midwife team here. They were also brilliant with DH putting his mind at rest at 36 week home visit.

Homebirth can be so much more relaxed than hospital and as a result makes labour smoother BUT don't underestimate how intense labour pain can be, be prepared, I recommend Ju Ju Sundin's book 'Birth Skills'. The main reason for first time mums transfering to hospital is for pain relief.

I am planning a homebirth for DC3 in October.

You can also hire TENS from Boots - have a look at their website.

Trust your own instincts.