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Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

Original poster

Anyone have a home birth with their first baby?

76 replies

chelle85 · 21/05/2017 16:23

I am a FTM currently 27+4 and seriously considering a home birth (I don't plan to have more children so this is kind of only shot of a home birth)

My pregnancy is low risk and I have been practising hypnobirthing and hoping for a drug free delivery.

But being a FTM there is of course this little niggling voice that keeps trying to persuade me it would be safer to just go to hospital. I intend to try to speak to midwife at my appt on Wed but so far she has not been particularly helpful with information.

I feel on the one hand at home I will have undivided attention of midwife (reviews of my local hospital rushing people onto delivery suite as they are crowning fill me with dread) and can be transferred to hospital if needed. I just worry of any 'emergency' reasons for being transferred and how long this would take (20mins from hospital plus wait for ambulance)

Anyone willing to share their home birth stories to help me decide

OP posts:
tmc14 · 21/05/2017 16:26

Hi, I'm a FTM who is planning a home birth (I'm only 14+2 at the moment). Can't offer any insight but look forward to hearing others stories.

peppatax · 21/05/2017 16:26

I did it and had the best first time m experience of anyone I know! Was in labour for 13 hours, fully supervised by midwives for 11.5 hours of them. Low risk and I was fit, young and healthy. PM me if you want more specific details as don't want to out myself!

firsttimer12345 · 21/05/2017 16:31

28+6 here and hoping for a home birth too for our first. We live very close to the hospital so feel confident that if anything went wrong we would be there quickly.
Hoping to make the most of a calm home feeling rather than stressful hospital situation.

BroomstickOfLove · 21/05/2017 16:35

I had a home birth with my first and had a far easier and more straightforward birth than my friends whose babies were born in hospital. I do know quite a few people who were transferred to hospital during their home births, but they also generally had a better time than people with similar complications who started off in hospital.

yayayahey · 21/05/2017 17:09

I did and I live on an island. My sil had both of hers on the island at home too.

picklemepopcorn · 21/05/2017 17:14

I did, it went well. I hurt my tailbone so DC and I had a trip to hospital afterward to work out what was wrong.
Dc2 was induced so had to be in hospital. Not as good for me.

The arrangement in my area was that you would know your midwife team quite well, and they you, for a home birth. Hospital was a bit random- whoever opened the door to you! I didn't know her and I didn't like her much as she treated my birth plan as an 'if convenient'. I didn't get to go to the cottagey rooms with the birthing balls, and had DC on a high birthing bed with no freedom to get down and move around.

BertieBotts · 21/05/2017 17:16

I planned a home birth for my first pregnancy. I ended up transferring in because labour was taking so long but I was still glad that I planned it.

Most transfers (particularly in first labours) happen due to lack of progression or wanting more pain relief - not urgent medical emergencies. This means that you have plenty of time to make the transfer. Even in an emergency, it can take time to track down anaesthetists, prepare the operating theatre, etc, which they can do while waiting for you to arrive so in reality not much quicker than you'd get this help from being in hospital already. 20 minutes is an okay amount of time to get there, from what I remember.

You halve your chance of a c-section by planning a home birth.

TittyGolightly · 21/05/2017 17:17

I wanted one but I was induced so was a hospital birth. My friend had one though that sounded amazing.

ShutTheFridgeUp · 21/05/2017 17:23

I had a home birth with my first (and so far only) child, and it was the most incredible experience! Being surrounded by my own things made a huge difference for me, I was relaxed and in control the whole time and birthed my baby in a pool in my kitchen. Wouldn't change a thing and will definitely be aiming for the same again next time.
I had a lot of negativity (mostly friends and OH's family) about my choice, but I stick to my guns and believed in my body and my choice and definitely proved them wrong!!

Thingymaboob · 21/05/2017 17:27

I work with midwives and 50% of first time home births end up going into hospital.

pollybythesea · 21/05/2017 17:27

Great to hear these stories, I am a FTM at 19+1 right now and planning a home birth. In my area there is a homebirth team of midwives and they have been managing my care since 16 weeks. We are about 15 mins from hospital but I feel confident that is enough time.

Thingymaboob · 21/05/2017 17:32

@BertieBotts I don't really understand how planning a home birth can reduce your chance of a c section by half. You either need one or you don't. If you're planning / been offered a home birth it means you're incredibly low risk and therefore less likely to need one. Just because you've planned it doesn't mean it decreases your chance.

GingerHanna · 21/05/2017 17:32

I'm a FTM, 14+2 like tmc and planning a home birth. I'm in the Netherlands and 30% of births are at home and I've deliberately chosen a midwife practice that is very pro-home birth. No pain relief available though so looking into hypnobirthing and will also hire a pool for at least pain relief even if I don't actually give birth in it.

Good luck!

TittyGolightly · 21/05/2017 17:38

*@BertieBotts I don't really understand how planning a home birth can reduce your chance of a c section by half. You either need one or you don't. *

It's about the mindset.

Thingymaboob · 21/05/2017 17:42

@TittyGolightly let's say I really really want a natural home birth. Let's say, pregnancy is not progressing, baby is distressed or there's some other emergency, mindset will have nothing to do with the decision to carry out a c section! Mindset might affect decision to have baby at home. However, mindset has nothing to do with decision to carry out emergency c section.

TittyGolightly · 21/05/2017 17:49

True. But i suspect that those considering home birth do a bit more research than those that decide straight off to use more medical routes. Being informed is empowering. Understanding what your body needs and will do means you'll be better prepared. Being in control is vitally important for positive birth and a medical birth really takes that control away.

Empowered women with low risk pregnancy and strong relaxation techniques are less likely to need medical intervention. They just aren't.

ScoobyDoosTinklyLaugh · 21/05/2017 17:54

I planned a homebirth for my first. I had a stupidly long back to back labour and had to transfer to hospital and have a c section in the end.

There's pros and cons to whatever you go for. As a first time Mum in my area you've got a 60% chance of needing to transfer to hospital (normally for pain relief or failure to progress) if you plan a homebirth, so I don't think I would've gone for it if I lived too far from the hospital. For me the biggest pro was - I was in latent labour for ages I just got to stay at home and have the midwife come and assess me there instead of toing and froing to the hospital.

The downside for me was the hands off approach which is so great for many - I was told at my debrief (by a surprisingly pro homebirth consultant) that had I started off in hospital it would have taken at least 24 hours off my labour which I would have appreciated in heinsight as it was an exhausting and unpleasent experience.

Taylorandnicolesmummy · 21/05/2017 18:11

I had an unplanned home birth with my 1st, I had planned to go to a midwife led unit and so the criteria was the same for a home birth. In the end I found I could cope with the pain and so didn't realise I was as far along. DS was born at home with 2 midwives present.
Planned a home birth for my 2nd, which I had but she arrived very quickly with only myself and DH present. Midwives arrived about 20 mins after. It's so lovely to be in your own home afterwards.
I was told that if at any point things weren't going to plan I would be taken straight to hospital in an ambulance

ragz134 · 21/05/2017 18:13

I planned home births with all 3, first time labour took days so we were transferred to hospital after a night of little sleep for me of the midwife! I did insist on discharge at midnight to come home after having DS at 6pm, I refused to go on the ward. My argument was I'd planned a home birth so I was going home!
DS2 was at home birth, lovely apart from DH forgot to put the hot water on for my bath afterwards!
DD would have been home birth but I spotted meconium in the waters when they broke so called it off before midwife arrived and went to hospital.

RhinestoneCowgirl · 21/05/2017 18:19

My DS is nearly 11 now, so this is a while ago, but he was born at home. As was DD 2 yrs later.

My reasoning was to do with having more attention from midwife at home birth than in busy hospital.

HopeAndJoy16 · 21/05/2017 19:23

I had planned a home birth (pool all set up, candles out, play list on) but had to change my plans due to thick mecopium. I still had an unmedicaed vaginal.tightness birth in hospital that was an overwhelmingly positive experience. Be flexible in your plan, and try to look for the positives even if it doesn't feel like it's going how you had imagined! I would plan for a home birth next time too x

HopeAndJoy16 · 21/05/2017 19:25

Don't know where tightness came from!! Vaginal.birth* !

Jenniferturkington · 21/05/2017 19:26

Yes I did with all three of mine. Everything fine apart from needing to go in to hospital after the birth for a bit of,ahem, repair work.

BertieBotts · 21/05/2017 19:30

True, correlation/causation is not clear but it's something which was said to me.

I think there is some of both really. Some correlation because high risk ladies wouldn't be recommended to have a home birth in the first place, but some causation, because by planning a home birth you're much more likely to have more of a hands off approach, you've probably put a lot of thought into non-medical forms of pain management, you're more relaxed being in your own environment and not being monitored every five minutes. All tend to lead to lower levels of intervention and lower levels of stress which can lead to higher chances of vaginal birth.

PerpetualStudent · 21/05/2017 19:33

TittyGoLightly I was very well researched with my first birth. I did yoga, hypnobirthing, NCT, the full works.
Despite being low risk throughout pregnancy I developed severe pre-eclampsia at 35 weeks and needed a highly-managed induction ASAP.

Was I just not empowered enough?

(OP don't let that put you off, I'm dreaming of a home birth in the future!)