Homebirth 'mess' ??

[pbo]

I'm hoping to have a homebirth, 1st baby and from what I've heard it gets very messy (cue stories of blood spattered on walls, permanent fluid trickles etc). Is there anything you can do? Another question - I'm due on Friday, sometimes I can't tell if I'm having another BH or whether it's the baby squirming...am I just completely inept??

Mine wasn't messy at all and what was there was cleaned up by the mws. I put a plastic sheet (the kind you put under wooden floors) down topped with an old duvet and this is where I gave birth. All the gory stuff the midwives take away in a bag. I do remember reading something about buying hydrogen peroxide just in case any blood goes on a carpet but we have wooden floors so it wasn't applicable.

We got two shower curtains from Poundland - one for the bed, one for the floor.

Not too messy anyway though.

I've had two home births and never any mess other than a machine load of washing. The midwives are great.

I would recommend a plastic sheet for after you give birth too, to replace the one that's on the bed - assuming you're planning to use the bed.

2 home water births, not much mess. Easily chucked in washing machine. We had carpets in rented house, no problem! Have fun!

Ok, off to buy a couple of plastic sheets, rented house with wall to wall carpet and wallpaper, even if I don't like the wallpaper at all I don't think they'll appreciate any decorations Hope the MW pulls through for me so I don't have a full wheelie bin for a week! Thanks for the advice!

never had a homebirth, but my waters gushed HUGE this time round and there was so much bloody fluid round DS when he was born on the floor the midwives had to get a mop.

Apaprently I bled a fair bit (JoFen amy contradict me as I dont remember much but she was there) but what I do know is I never saw onw bit of mess if that helsp? thers dealt with

(Oh I found those pampers change mats warmer and softer to sit on as my waters leaked, TMI)

2 home water birth here too and no mess whatsoever. All went down the drain so the speak plus the MW's took the placenta

As all above say.

Do you know what? My fave towel has a lovely stain on it that has survived 2 years of washing.

The MW all know what to do and so will you.

I had to go to hosp anyway and that was fine. It's great you're trying. Jsut have yuor cheapo plastic covers and old towels ON TOP of the pile!!!!

we had to get an industrial carpet cleaner cos I managed to give birth on the carpets and not the plastic sheeting. It was a bit messy.
Luckily for me I was carted off to hozzie and left all the yuck and the placenta in the middle of the floor and when i got home 9 days later everything was clean

we used tarpaulin sheets (very cheap from Tesco) under lots of old towles sprea over the floor and disposable bed mats for the bed.

Don't know how much mess there was but the MW cleaned it all up anyway. We'd had a new carpet laid the week before () but there wasn't on dot of any bodily fluid on it at all

Agree with others. Have had 2 homebirths, very little mess. Old towels and plastic sheeting is all you need. Good Luck.

No major problems here and I didn't give birth anyway near my stack of old towels and sheets, so we just used what was too hand. The MWs took away the bad stuff for incineration. The rest of it we jut washed. One sheet has a very small blood/iron stain that has survived 2.5 years. It is a much-loved reminder when I find it when I'm making the bed! It's teeny tiny - about the size of a pumpkin seed - so I don't always see it.

DS was an unplanned home birth - no shower curtains handy - and it did get a bit messy. Home insurance paid for carpet cleaning and actually would have replaced them had I wanted them to.

No mess at my HB either, we covered the floor and sofa (I birthed on my knees leaning on a ball which was up against the sofa, not laying down on my bed!) with a big length of waterproof table cloth stuff, you know, the stuff that is shiney plastic on one side, normally with some kind of garish revolting pattern on it (mine was bright greeen with huge red roses on it!), and plain whits fabric/flocked on the other. We put it pattern side down and the white side up, the white side was soft and comfortable to sit/kneel on and didn't get slippy when wet (like shower curtains etc do) and you can either throw it all away afterwards or wash it. You can buy it from fabric shops etc, mie was a remnant, and was about 4 metres long and a metre wide and cost £4.

I'm having a homebirth in a few weeks, and the midwife told me to get 2 cheap shower curtains and 2 large sheets to cover the bed, so even if i don't want to use the pool, we have the option of the bed/floor. I've also bought some disposable change mats for the bad afterwards (tmi but after my son was born i bled quite a lot)

Hope it all goes well

or have a water bith (birth pool in a box) and all the 'mess' will be contained, for dh and/or midwife etc to empty later!

Worked for me!

We made a mess for both my home births. While dh was emptying the birthing pool, the pump went too fast, disconnected and splashed water (bloody water) all over the wallpaper.

For my second home birth, the plastic sheet I had on the bed was cracked slightly. I lost a lot of blood and the mattress is now ruined.

Be careful!

I've had two HB's, not much mess but then my waters didn't break ( I'm told babies being born in waters is lucky!!) I would recommend plastic sheeting on the carpet with an old blanket/ towel/ sheet on top. It can get a bit slippery if you are standing just on the plastic. Best wishes, relax and enjoy!

I had a birth pool but didn't manage to get in it - a plastic tarp (from camping shop) on the floor with loads of old towels. Gave birth on the sofa rather unexpectedly and a bit of blood got on that, DH washed it in vanish a few hours later and it came out no probs.

The MW put all the gory stuff including old towels and the old nightie I was wearing into a bag (they asked first if I wanted to keep it - as if) and took it away. There was no other mess at all, they even washed up their tea cups!

I wore old knickers until it was virtually time to push as I knew from first time around I leaked pretty much constantly. A maternity pad in old knickers sorted that out though. Loads of old towels should see you through! Have a ball!

No mess for my HB, but I was in a pool so it all went down the drain. I did have a 'nest' ready to go in case I didn't like the pool... I bought 2 shower curtains and sewed them either side of an old duvet to make it waterproof, and then put an old duvet cover that I didn't mind getting ruined over it so it wasn't all plasticky. So I had a soft and comfortable waterproof duvet to put on the sofa/bed/floor, wherever I wanted to be. I lay on it on the sofa after the birth.

We put some old lino under the pool, but I don't think any mess ended up on the floor. I had some disposable changing mats on hand and stepped out of the pool onto one of them in case I dripped anything. But there was no real mess to speak of in the end.

Good luck, and I hope your HB goes easily and well!

my hb last week was a mistake and we didnt have any plastic sheeting or anything so it was pretty messy, plus I ranged around the bathroom and bedroom a bit. carpets old though anyway so keen to change...

I wasn't planning a homebirth (and didn't have one) but my mw said that she always advises clients who haven't planned a home birth (i.e. if things go too quickly for them to get to hospital) to consider giving birth in kitchen! (generally washable floor and access to water as well as food/drinks I guess)