Why homebirth?

[Castanet]

I have been reading different threads on MN and the number of people who insist on having a homebirth is astounding. What is so great about it and why are so many people willing to take a chance with the wellbeing of their baby, because if things go wrong, and they do, sometimes, wouldn't you want to have all the medical help and expertise of the best consultants at hand? Just wondering.

I'm sorry if you think that people have made personal insults. You must surely appreciate though that in saying that people who do choose homebirths are:
"willing to take a chance with the wellbeing of their baby"
"a tad selfish"
sacrificing the health of their baby for personal comfort
and so on, you are being rather harshly judgemental, and, dare I say it, confrontational.
I chose a homebirth with ds, having had an OK but not ideal labour with dd. And I must say that much of what persuaded me was the desire to be in my own surroundings, rather than in a hospital. Also I was reassured from doing research, that having had a straightforward labour, there was no greater risk to my health or that of my son's as a result of that decision.
I also specifically chose to be under midwife care, because I felt that that was best for me and my baby.

flack, they do put you under in the event of an emergency c/s as an epidural would take too long to take effect.

But the anaethetist could be at the other end of the hospital seeing to another patient, they have to page him to get to you and also the surgeons. The theatre needs to be freed and cleaned. So even working very quickly, you could be waiting 30mins before you got into theatre.

For an epidural I waited for 30mins for the guy to come, and then 10mins of him faffing around, and a further 15mins for it to take effect.

And you could be right about private care, as I don't have private care I don't know.

Well, I can see the OP's point through some of this - basically that if something goes wrong, and your baby needs immediate help, or you do - being next door to an operating room, even if it does have to be prepped, mightbe safer than being say, 15 miles away. During the 45 minutes it would have taken us to reach hospital from here, I might have died from blood loss had my haemmorhage been less amenable to the synto injection I was quickly given - I bled heavily for a few minutes, the midwives (my doula and friend told me this, I was in shock) were panicking, because the bleed was unexpected and severe...if the synto hadn't worked, it would have been blue lights etc. and they didn't know if I would have made it.
Saying that, despite it all, I firmly believe that being at home means something is less likely to go wrong because of the practical (one to one midwife care) and psychological (being confident and secure in your own environment) aspects of it.
I'd rather we lived near a hospital as basically I had a 90 minute established labour, but even so, give me a home birth any time. Hospitals IME are ruthless and frightening places around birth.

I had a homebirth with my DS. My first (and only) baby and I was 35 at the time. I thought long and hard about the best possible birth I could have for my DS. The local hospital was very close but full and there were no beds in the labour ward at all the week before I was due to have my DS and I would have had to be transferred to another hospital about 40 miles away. Also my local hospital had a very bad history of MRSA.

I wanted the one-to-one with the MW. You actually have two MWs when you are in second stage labour. I could have had pethidine if I wanted to, which I certainly did not. In fact I had no drugs whatsoever.

My DS son arrived safely and well and I was relaxed and at home.

It was wonderful and certainly the best option for my DS and for me.

And FWIW UI really believed in the nHS before I had DS1. What a disillusioning experience that was...

"I see no clear reasoning apart from the comfort of the mother. "

You need to look at the effect that that 'comfort' has - and it is statistically proven that in low-risl pregnancies, women who feel confident and relaxed about giving birth and who have constant one-to-one mw care are not at grater risk than if they were in hospital. What you are failing to accept is that women who choose homebirth are doing it because for them it seems SAFER than a hospital birth - in certain circumstances.

Oh boy, I can't wait for her to give birth in her "safe" hospital! I'll bet she never comes back to let us know how it went.

I have had 2 great hospital births - both times needed no intervention and had 1-1 midwife support and at no time was left on my own. The food is crap though and you get no sleep post birth due to other people's crying babies. I have also 2 friends who have caught MRSA in the hosiptal.

However, this time, now owing my own house, I have decided to have a home birth because I want a water birth and in hospital there is only 1 pool and so you may not get it.

I am sure if things are going to wrong it doesn't matter where you are - however I am sure they are more cautious at homebirths and will advice you to transfer if anything is looking like it is not looking at all good.

How risky is it to put a women under a General if she has anything in her stomach from eating in previous hours (possible, is it not?). How can they know? Do they force her to vomit first to be sure?

My hospital birth experience was "okay". But there was a cascade of interventions (and associated risks and small problems arising from the interventions) that would have been avoided at home.

Not sure what I'd do if I were carrying twins, probably hospital birth (latest arrival I dared, if spontaneous labour) with a Doula. Like so many things in pregnancy, just have to take it as it comes.

You'd need to ask someone who's had an emergency c/s flack. I honestly don't know.

Personally, I would not have attmpted a homebirth had I not lived very close to a good hospital.

Once in hospital, amongst lots of expert help for a congenital condition that DS was born with, I was vigorously urged to do all sorts of things that would not have been in his best long term intersts healthwise - like bottle feed! Being of strong decision-making stuff I resisted, and knew that bf on demand and keeping him in the sunlight as much as possible would be adequate care fro v mild jaundice. We braved cockroaches, silverfish, foul food and a bathroom in which the same blood soaked towel remained on the floor for 4 days for nearly a week in the end.

Thank you for your comments. Yes, as I mentioned, this thread was NOT about me or my birth but the actual reasoning behingd the whole homebirth. Appreciate the replies and apologise if some of you took my responses personally.
Regards.

casanet could you answer these questions please
i would be interested to hear your views

you seem to be assuming that if your in hospital you will have someone with you that will spot when things go wrong
YOU ARE SO WRONG
if you decide to have your baby in hospital be aware that there are not enough midwifes to go around and you will prob be left on your own
unless you are very lucky and happen to go into labour when there are not lots of other women in labour [ v v unlikely]

if you have a hb you WILL have a mw with you one to one
so the question you should really ask yourself if how safe is a hospital birth really ?
and what good is all the medical equipment in the world if theres no one with you to either 1. see if you need it
2. to use it

they wouldnt have a clue if anything was going wrong in hospital because no one will be with you

and for that reason i believe that a hb is far safer than hospital

sorry if that sounds a tad harsh but sadly that is the reality of the state of maternity hospitals in the country at the moment

the vast majority of women are left alone at one of the most scariest vunerable times of there lives
and when your left on your own anything can and does happen

I doubt the average woman ever put under a general for emergency CS would know, either! Just struck me, another example of how even the best of so-called "medical help" carries its own set of risks. But if a woman can avoid getting to that point, by having a labour that progresses well partly because she's comfortable in the environment wherever that may be this is surely the best strategy of all.

This site will give you more info on the safety of home births.

But I would suggest that you if you ask again, you keep an open mind. You seemed to be asking about homebirth in such a way that implied you had already made your mind up about it and the type of mothers who opt for it. Accusing us of putting comfort before our baby's wellbeing is not a very nice thing to say. You asked a question, we tried to answer.

are you aware of the fact that most women in labour are usually left on there own ?
if so hwo could this poss be th safest thing for the baby ? or indeeed the mother?

Castanet,

If you read the homebirth website there is a section called 'what could go wrong' or something like that which will talk about the problems that can arise. If you are really interested then it would be worth a look.

Statistically home births have been shown to be as safe if not safer for low risk pregnancies. That's not just anecdotal evidence but as a result of randomised control trials and I think this is what women look into when they make the decision of the safety of a homebirth. Women are safe, they feel safe and with the 1-2-1 midwifery care, they increase their chances of coping with the labour and of feeling satisfied with the labour. I don't think the mental after effects of a birth should be downplayed. And as icing on the cake they feel more comfortable in their own homes with their own things around them. They also reduce the chance of feeling out of control and traumatised by the event, reduce the chances of needing pain relief, reduce the chances of intervention (and all the added long term physical and psychological effects that can come with that). I don't think it is just being selfish or wishy-washy, it is about trying to get the best outcome for both the baby and the mother.

I always keep my ears open for when labours have turned into emergencies and think 'what would have happened in that situation if it had been at home?' and the truth is that in all of them I have encountered so far, the midwife would have transferred into hospital long, long before the situation became an emergency where every minute & second counted.

I have had 3 hospital births and one home birth(my last ds). The hospital births were all very positive experiances and all the mw's were fantastic. My home birth was fantastic and again was very very quick and the mw didnt need to intervene at all. She just watched as I got on with it with words of encouragement every now and then. Helped me into my shower as soon as I was ready and tucked me up in my own bed with a HOT cup of tea.
Im expecting again in January and will be having a water birth in hospital ( I had a water birth with ds3) Basicaly for the fact we have been told as we live in a flat the floor would not take the weight of the pool but if the mw is right and this is a quick labour too the baby will probably be a home birth too

Hi Castanet,
I'm having a home birth for my first baby in just under 6 weeks time.

Far from being a selfish decission I have made an informed choice based on a vast amount of research. I believe that (as I've had a very straight forward pregnancy) that it is the safest way to give my baby the best start in life. Being at home with the 2 midwives that I have built a trusting relationship throughout my pregnancy is the right choice for me. Also, my DH will not be forced to leave me and our new baby following the birth.

You obviously have strong opinions on the subject. However, you should do a bit of research on the actual statistics before judging mothers to be who just want the best for their babies.

All the best with your new arrival.

i was also going to point out that I had two m/wives, two to one [?] so had better medical attendance than in hospital,where I was told to wait for someone else to come in.lol.
was I selfish in not wanting lo3 and 4 to risk being stressed and shocked by the trauma of getting to the hospital? Maybe.
I have tried to be 'on the fence' as much as possible as I ahve been lucky with both ends of the stick, but I am not selfish in wanting another homebirth.

You also have to clean the bath/shower yourself in the hospital, reasonable enough I suppose, but not when it is only done by some patients and not by staff.

twitmonster my point exactley
with home birth you do get at least one mw with you
why cant castanet get this ?

she seem very very niaeve to me
think someones gonna be in for a shock at what a hospital birth is actually like

Castanet, I do think this is about you to some extent, because you seem to be saying that it is safest not only to have a hospital birth but to have 'specialist surgeon / consultant' involvement at the birth.
Even if we accepted this argument, it is simply not an option for single births on the NHS. The rest of us will be having a midwife deliver our babies wherever we are. So you can have a midwife (or is it two)? giving you sole attention at home, or a midwife running in and out and not always there when you need her in a hospital. It's really not just about comfort.
And I don't want a homebirth.

PRPargy, no problem, your replays have been ever so substantial and informative of course, so sad to see you go.
Again, all I was looking for was reasoning behind homebirth and I'm very greatful for all who replied. This thread was not started to help me make a decision as to what type of birth would I have as that has been decided long ago.
Interesting read and thanks for the links.
And Rhubarb, to quote you: "Silly girl! Is it the hormones getting to your brain?" - aren't most of us on this board slightly hormonal?

Castanet - my local hospital was held responsible for 10, count them 10 maternal deaths. Still safer to give birth there than at home you think?

And why do you think midwives are so supportive of home births if they are so risky?

I had my 1st baby at a midwife led unit. she was born with Down's syndrome so had to be transferred to the main hospital. She was never at risk and I had a wonderful birth experience.

2nd child born at home. She slipped into this world very easily, a lot of that was down to being relaxed and happy and having a supportive midwife.

If anything had gone wrong then the 2 midwives would have done what they would have done for her in the birthing room in a hospital and an ambulance would be there in minutes and she would have been blue lighted to hospital and dealt with in the same time it would have been dealt with had I been at a hospital.

Statistics prove that home births are safer and less goes wrong, so I don't get why you seem to have such a problem with home births to be honest.

How about babies born in 3rd world countries, or in countries where giving birth at home is just the norm? How about this very country just 2 generations ago? All my aunts and uncles were born at home, it was the norm, where our grandparents all selfish, or is it just us 'modern mums'?

Er no Castanet, I've had my babies now.

Good luck with your hospital birth, shame you can't be bothered to reply to the many informative replies you've had since your post. I recommend you visit the link I gave, they answer the question of safety during homebirths with many medical essays from all over the world giving both points of view. It is very unbiased and informative.

If this thread is not about you then what was the point? You have clearly made up your mind and have not responded to very good replies giving you what you have asked for.