Anyone had a home birth with SPD/ Sciatica/ severe back pain in pregnancy

[Reallytired]

I am booked for a home birth but I am suffering complete and utter hell with my back. I am fearful that if my midwife finds out I will be refused a home birth.

From researching on the internet, I think that a homebirth would be the best option. It will stop me being tempted to have an epidural and I will have access to a birth pool, and it will be less stressful than being in hospital.

You can't be refused a homebirth. What are they going to do, take you to the hospital in handcuffs?

Tell them what you want to do and it is up to them to provide the care. If they have weeks of notice then staffing issues is their management problem, not yours. They may try to persuade you out but it is still ultimately your choice.

Make sure you ask them for any medical reasons why they wouldn't recommend it and say you will give it some thought and make an informed decision.

Also, if you haven't already done so join homebirth.org.uk

I had SPD in pregnancy and had a homebirth. As Snowlight says they can't refuse you one. The only time they try and persuade you to go to hospital is if you or the baby's safety would be compromised which isn't the case with back pain.

BTW I had a waterbirth...was bliss , well as much as giving birth can be

I have v bad SPD and am planning a home waterbirth. My mw has said the only concern she has having a home waterbirth with me is the actual process of getting in and out of the pool - do you think you could manage it?

xxx

I don't know if my back problems are quite that severe, although I am only 31 weeks. Its bad enough for me to find walking difficult, but not impossible. The hardest thing at the moment is the sheer pain. Still I do worry what I will be like in 9 weeks time.

My mother and husband will be with me and I am I sure they would help me out of the pool. I am only planning on using the pool for the first stage and I will do the second stage on land.

I didn't have a home birth, but had sciatica throughout the last few weeks of my second pregnancy. I have got to be honest and say that I was desperate to get into hospital to get a bit of pain relief, not from the labour but from the sciatica.

captainpeacock, did the sciatica disappear after the birth of your baby. I had an epidural with my son and it was bliss, but I am nervous about having a needle inserted into my very poorly back.

Did you get to see an obstetic physio? What birthing positions did you choose? With my son I gave birth kneeling. I find it agony lying on my back.

I had bad SPD and have had 2 homebirths, fortunately my labours are quite quick, I had both of them on our bed, most of the labour I was in the foetal position curled up with the gas and air and only went onto my back for the final pushes which was my choice, I wasn't asked to be in any position by the MWs.

TBH the SPD was the last thing on my mind once the labour pains kick in and I was so lucky it goes practically the minute the baby is out.

I know 9 weeks can seem like an eternity when you are in so much pain, I was so miserable during my last pregnancy but now she is here it was so worth all that pain.

I was told that if the pain is only in pregnancy it is not sciatica but pelvic girdle pain, sciatica is to do with pressure on the sciatic nerve which apparently is not affected by pregnancy. A lot of people think and call it sciatica but it's different.

I saw a physio a lot during last pregnancy but basically even she said theres nothing she could really do and delivery was the only cure, my ligaments were so soft every time she tried to realign my pelvis it snapped back.

Rest, some painkillers and soothing baths helped me the most.

No, reallytired unfortunately it didn't go after birth, but once I had had him I felt that I was ok to take volterol (don't know if it is ok to take whilst pregnant or not but wouldn't have taken the chance). I had a shot of pethadine once I was in labour and this seemed to carry me through what was a relatively quick birth and into the next day and I was just joyous that I could walk around normally for a while. I didn't have any physio offered to me, but this was 11 years ago so maybe they do that now. I laboured on my back but, because of the pethidine, I could bear it and also, no matter how quick, labour is pretty much agony and kind of upstaged the pain of the sciatica. I think the sciatica took about 2 weeks to go after I had given birth iir.

Reallytired, I would really recommend a waterbirth. The water takes all the pressure off your back. You feel weightless. I remember sighing with relief as soon as I got into the pool.

I'm actually really worried about how I'll cope next time if for some reason I have to have a hospital birth on dry land. BTW I had quite a long labour and am normally a wuss with pain.

I have bought my la Bassine pool and planned a home birth. I am just a bit scared that the midwife will come up with some sh!t excuse why I need to go into hospital.

I didn't have a homebirth, but did have a waterbirth with just gas and air in a MLU, and it was so very straightforward I didn't even need an internal exam at any stage. I had bad SPD, and my community midwife told me it can actually help with labour - your pelvis is loose, that's the problem, but it stops being a problem when you need to get a head through it!

My only reason for avoiding a homebirth for my next would be: I'd be scared in case the G&A ran out, the pools at the hospital are so very, very lovely, and they have this amazing LED light-changing focus object thingie on the ceiling, that was fun. But I can't see why SPD or back pain should stop you having one, and my cmw seemed to think it was fine as an option with SPD.

I have got terrible SPD, but my consultant and mw both suggested a home water birth would be best for the pelvis.