Anyone know what my "rights" are wrt to home birth if I go beyond 40+14?

[floozieinthejacuzzi]

I'm 40+13 (officially, but 40+8 by my dates), today (second pregnancy) so I won't have any midwife on call cover after tomorrow. I'm due to have a midwife appt at some point today to have another sweep done (had one on Mon, no joy), and I just know that she is going to tell me that cover won't be extended beyond the 40+14.

Am I still entitled to have midwife cover for a homebirth if I chose to go beyond the recommended dates?

Has anyone else been in a similar situation? and what have you done?

The thing is I don't believe the nhs due date is correct. Had long discussion on Tues with consultant about it, as they recommend induction at 40+12, which I declined. They say edd is 12th, I say 17th (I was charting bbt when we were ttc, so I know exactly when I ovulated. Scan date suggests I conceived before I even ovulated). But they won't budge from the official due date (even though my evidence is factual - v annoying!), which puts my home birth plans in jeopardy unless I go into labour this minute (which unfortunately doesn't seem like it's going to happen).

Also, does anyone know if I go post-dates and I cannot have the home birth whether the MLU would take me when I finally go into labour or is it straight to the CLU because I'd be past 40+14 (officially) at that stage?

I really want to avoid CLU as that is where I had to go when DD was born, and had the usual constant monitoring (meconium in waters), lying on bed for 10 hrs, augmentation, episiotomy etc etc- obviously not what I was hoping for. I can't understand what's taking this baby so long. I wish he/she would just hurry up and get here, and save me all this stress! DD was born at 40+4. I thought subsequent pregnancies should be shorter!

Anyway back to the original dilemma re home birth "entitlements" post dates, any advice gratefully received!

nannyl You don't have to call a midwife for a homebirth although they are supposed to send one if you call them.

RandomMess which would be preferable? - an unassisted homebirth because they didn't make it on time, or an unassisted hospital birth because they were too busy with other labouring women?

Hmmm well the time with grade 3 meconium I was very glad to be in the hospital!

I'm not able to have any more dc so I'll never know now - would have loved just to go into spontaneous labour tbh!

Xenia, you have said that 1 of your twins was born 7 hours after the other one in a local hospital, so did the homebirth go wrong or right.

Perfect home birth. Second twin did not want to come out that day. He's much more laid back even now. I suppose in the old days you would have waited 2 days but it's not that safe so we needed a drip to speed up his contractions nad he was a normal birth in hospital. We were all home that night. It was all really lovely and just as I wanted it but like all births not predictable and probably the first time a births registrar has had twins born in different London boroughs on the same day. What I liked was feeling totally in charge, my midwives, I paid them, my decisions throughout. And of course luck - many births go very wrong and this didn't. Technically the twin who came first was a visitor to the hospital so he did not have to be discharged that night (is seen by a doctor before we left) and his twin did.

Xenia,
Wow! I am amazed at your courage of having a homebirth with twins. I'm glad it went well. My mother and uncle are twins who were born 15 hours apart. I think in the past it was very common.

I think with the nhs, it is a lot of luck who you get a for a midwfe. I had a lovely midwife for my nhs homebirth. I can see lots of advantages in having a private midwife, though there were advantages in having a midwife linked to my GP surgery.

Actually the plan was 4th child at home. Hired midwives. (Caroline Flint think birth centre now closed down). Then discovered it was twins which is risky. Plenty of them die etc. So then we decided to find an NHS hospital which would let my private midwives in to do the births which we did. They come to your house first which is nice and one twin just came fairly quickly - that was why he was a home birth. I had never realised you might have two separate 5 - 7 hour labours with twins. Imagine giving birth once adn then having to start up all over again. I never heard of it. You imagine one twin comes out and then the other but that's the thing with birth - it's risky and sometimes fatal and often unexpected things happen. Anyway it was all pretty good as the babies were doing fine so we just decided to go to hospital for the other - my decision.

I remember there had been a court case which held that a woman in labour is able to take her own decisions even if that kills the child and I was hugely comforted by that (not that I would jeopardise that but the child in utero is yours and your decision whether that be birth totally alone or at home or hospital).

The other reason the private midwife worked well is I work for myself. Every hour waiting at an NHS clinic loses me opver £200 or something like that. So to have just about every appointment here at home where I was working was brilliant. I certainly no way could have afforded it with the first 3 children though.

When I found out it was twins I asked my GP whose wife was an independent midwife too by coincidence whether there waqs any point in paying for private midwives from that point on. He said even more point as the NHS can so mechanise and " production line" twin births. He was right.

first in my area they would be fine home birthing you all the way to 40 +14

the guidelines on induction were set around 'risks of induction exceeding those of post term at 42 weeks'

if you did have meconium staining that would be a transfer in thing anyway..

if you search for nickelbabes birth thread she went to 40 +15 and got hassle from consultants..

there is no evidence that these inductions have lowered the stillbirth rate.

and induction can take days - it doesn't necessarily mean the baby gets out any sooner.

40+16 (she hung on until after midnight. )

the thread about the doctor being mean to me

oh, yeah, they can't deny you a homebirth.

if your dates are not as far along as they say, then keep fobbing them off.

be polite but firm - you must read the nice guideline and arm yourself with all the facts.

if you are induced, they will firmly recommend that you stay in the hospital.
if you go over 40+12 (by your own dates), you can keep them sweet by having monitoring.
i went for 2 lie-on-your-back-strapped-to-monitors and one growth scan at 40+12 and 40+13.
then on 40+14 i told them i would agree to a VE with a sweep. where i was 3cm and 80% effaced.
i went into labour the next day (40+15)

the meanie doctor registrar (i think that's what they call her - it just said reg on my forms) shouted at me and went slightly hysterical. i laughed and told her off. she apologised and backed down.

you just have to stick to your guns.

and don't forget to ring the hospital to let them know you won't be keeping your induction appt

when you call the /MW they're bound (as in they have to) send someone to you if you refuse to come in. you booked it.
just repeat (or get someone to repeat for you) "i am unable to come to the hospital, i am comfortable where i am, please send a midwife"

dd was born looking not like a shrivelled prune - she hadn't lost all her vernix and didn't poo until much later that day.
no meconium in the waters.