If you had a homebirth, what were your essential items?

[Mij]

I'm hoping for a home birth with DC 2 (had an intervention-free birth with DD, only got to hospital at stage 2 so did most of it at home anyway) and just wondering what things you were either very glad you had/did, or wished you hadn't bothered with (or bothered worrying about in advance) when you birthed at home? Apart from having the right people around, of course .

I'm also wanting to hire a pool (NHS one is booked but we have an immersion tank and I'm told most people don't get theirs filled up in time having to wait for the thing to reheat!) so any recommendations there also gratefully received.

Thanks

I had a lit candle to focus on during contractions; I don't know why but it really helped me get through them without despairing

oh and if you have your 'hospital bag' ready it can have the baby outfit, big sanitary towels etc etc that you will use anyway after the birth! so you end up unpacking the bag and using the stuff if in Hospital or at home.

The dust sheets I used were really good btw - no messing about with duvets and plastic as they are plastic backed dust sheets. They don't slip as they are for decorating, are waterproof, comfortable and are huge - we used ours one under the birth pool, one over sofa / floor and one spare which we didn't use.

I had two home births one in water one out. Rescue remedy was an essential item both times.

For the birth pool I also found the little plastic steps (we have ones from Ikea) which children use to stand on at sinks etc extremely useful for sitting on as it saved my poor knees !!

Not sure if it's been mentioned already but I've heard that one of those table top protectors (furry on one side and plastic on the other) are good for the floor. Put plastic side down so you can sit/kneel/walk on the soft furry side!

Thanks everyone, lots to think about there.

I have a ball and would not be without a TENS machine (I put mine on earlyish and didn't need anything else - although I've just realised i can't have that and be in the pool..!).

pmsl at anglepoise for stitches. Our MW would also struggle to find a mirror in our house (not low but no-maintenance here ) but we do have a couple of really lovely original anglepoises!

It's weird, I hadn't really thought about stuff to do in early labour: as I hadn't realised that's what it was last time I just did what I'd normally be doing, so just assumed I'll do the same again!

Packed bags: DD took us by surprise, being firstborn and early, and I had to yell instructions to DP on where to find stuff to pack in between (by then pretty intense) contractions! Don't want to be doing that again.

6inch glad to hear your immersion tank did the job - worried about ours as it takes bloody ages to reheat. Seriously considering blowing cash we haven't got to hire heated one.

Need to put up nets or something in front and back rooms I think. I'm fairly uninhibited but don't really want to be flashing my norks at the neighbours, and last time I needed to get naked. Startled the MWs somewhat by charging into labour room chucking off clothes muttering 'can't be doing with these'.

reallytired my mate had the same experience - went for a wee and almost dropped her poor DS down the loo!

Lots of good ideas already on here.

I had my 1st DS at home but for no reason whatsover he didn't breathe and he had to 999 into hospital pretty quick!! He's absolutely fine now though thanks to the excellent care of Community Midwives and Paramedics - lots of oxygen and bagging. A sign (IMO) that Homebirths are safe even when things do go wrong.

So the one thing I would recommend having at hand is your purse and mobile phone packed in your 'hospital' bag. JUST IN CASE! I managed to lose quite a bit of blood and make a right old mess staggering round the house trying to find them.(DH and DS had already been rushed into hospital without me and by this time I knew he was breathing and on the SCBU)

Other useful things for us were...

An electric radiator for warming towels (too hot for central heating)

A bucket (for the placenta or any vomit)

Tasty midwife snacks

An answermachine!

Flannels.

Lots of ice to crunch.

Hope all goes well for you.

probably already mentioned, but the things i most valued were... all my favorite things (cream eggs, fav drink etc...); we bought the small inflatable pool - as cheap as hiring a big plastic one, and was actually perfect for me - fairly short - comfy but sturdy enough to lean on the side; MY choice of radio station (even if not what your hubbie would normally listen to - more distracting than a familiar cd i found); i used picnic blankets - (rubber backed, can get them cheap from home bargains etc) to protect floor, although not needed in end as everything took place in the pool - we use them on the beach now!; I also found my hubbie puring warm water on my back very soothing; gas and air def helped this time, better when i actually used it properly...; prob won't be getting a tens machine this time, as my 2nd labour was fairly fast (4hrs) so i got straight into the pool - have a feeling this one will be quicker still, so won't be time to mess with the tens. Good luck - having my second child at home was such a positive experience - although it obviously still hurt!!

If you can't have a birth pool for whatever reason, you can't deliver in the bath, but they are lovely. You can be in there for hours. I would recommend blutack, to block off the overflow pipe to make it nice and deep, to cover your bump.

Hi all - have bn lurking here, reading with interest. Am due in July and joined the other hb thread. If it helps I can post the whole list my midwife gave me on Tuesday at our "planning the hb" mtg? Most of it already mentioned here by you experienced ladies, but a couple of other bits that I hadn't noted elsewhere (apologies if duplicating):
ensure pool/bed not in a corner - need access all around & can't move pool once full
lip salve - gas & air very drying apparently
accurate clock
large cushions/beanbags to help with comfort esp for internal exams
camera (!)
sidetable for midwives to unpack their stuff onto
vital to do a trial run with pool filling

Hope that helps - let me know if you want the whole list she gave me?
Nx

Birthpool in a box from NVT- excellent and makes a great paddling pool for after.

Plastic covering (from builders Centres) to protect carpet or whatever.

Camera.

Dark coloured towels.

Old dressing gown (one that can be worn and taken off easliy to get in pool and thrown out if becomes covered with birthy stuff)

Bag of hospital stuff (just in case you need to be transferred)

Dextrose tablets (when don't fancy food)

A bowl (in case you are sick- we did not have one first time round and had to laugh when husband ran to get a bowl and came back with a cereal bowl for me to be sick in!)Strangely I had never heard of being sick in labour but afterwards loads of people said they were! (and that was without any drugs)

torch for delivery in water (head torch great from Rohan and the like if you are feeling extravagant!)

I had one home birth with first DC and second DC was laboured all the way until his bottom appeared and had to transfered as was breech! (all ended well in vaginal delivery- if you are interested.)

PMSL at head torch - just wondering who for! I used to work in film camera teams and have a great head-strap for my smallest maglite, so already well equiped .

Full list would be useful, mamanicky, for comparison to the one my midwife hopefully will give me - just brought my next appointment forward to 33 weeks cos realised if we were going to talk hb plans then, DP should really be there and he's going to Europe the following week. And I want more time to get myself organised!

pools am a tad bewildered by the choice now, and wondering what the fark we're going to do with the dining table to make space for one anyway. It's huge (compared to the room). And solid oak - well, 'tis supposed to be a family heirloom in the making.

MSG FOR REALLYTIRED

Hello, just been reading this thread and have just joined.

I'm hoping to have another homebirth with No3 and really want a birthing pool this time. I noticed you (reallytired) were planning to sell yours & it's the one I'm wanting to buy. If you've not already sold it I wondered how much you'd want for it & what the kit contains?

Thanks

This thread has been excellent. I am due in July and I am planning a homebirth. We are thinking of getting an old sofabed for me to give birth on as our bedroom is upstairs and the toilet and kitchen are downstairs.

On a homebirth site, the MW said to get turkey roasting foil, wrap some towels in it and put them in the oven on a low temp so they are toasty when baby comes.

I have a school age son and DS2 is due 2 days before school breaks up. What do you do with your kids if you go into labour around tea-time? We don't have any close friends or relatives nearby and my boss is going to be one of my birthing partners, along with DH.

I am reluctant to put a telly and DVD player in his room for a birth, but we are taking over the living room. I guess if I had Ben-10 on a continuous loop along with an endless supply of Nintendo DS games, he'd be fine in the room with us, but I don't want to freak out a 6 year old lad. Any tips?

second babies almost always come during darkness. we are programmed like that.