Homebirth?

[Leonora94]

I had a check up with my midwife yesterday (18 weeks) and she suggested I think about having a homebirth. I'm currently midwife led but their birth centre is closed for refurbishment, apparently (according to my midwife) lots of women have been choosing it recently and it's been working really well. It's my second baby and my first was luckily very straight forward. It's not something I've thought about before but with everything going on and the new rules around partners I am considering it. The main thing I'm worried about is safety, what if something goes wrong? I just wanted to see if anyone else has had one or is going to have one? What's it like, did you need anything for it? Thanks :)

How far are you from the hospital?:) I havent had a homebirth but they often cross my mind, for me there are just too many people in the house for me to still be looking after to concentrate or relax into giving birth. A nice calm pool homebirth with a midwife, gas and air? and a hospital nearish by sound quite doable :)

How far do you live from the nearest hospital with an obstetric unit, and how long is the ambulance transfer time during rush hour?
If you suffer complications such as massive intrapartum haemorrhage or severe fetal distress, the delay could be fatal for you, baby or both.
My own second baby would have died if born at home, despite a normal delivery at full term and an 8lb birth weight.
She survived thanks to the paediatric crash team, intracardiac adrenalin, intubation, a cocktail of three anticonvulsant drugs, a ventilator, and a week in intensive care. None of which was predictable from my two normal pregnancies.
Unless you have a crystal ball, I wouldn’t play Russian roulette with your and your baby’s health.
If you don’t like the hospital atmosphere, you can take a six hour discharge, and be home as soon as it’s all over and safe.

I’m a retired doctor (anaesthetist), who spent many night shifts rushing mothers into operating theatres for unexpected complications in their labours.
Modern mothers are older and more obese than previous generations, and at higher risk of complications as a result. At least discuss it with your obstetrician.

Thank you both for your reply. This is what worries me the most there is no crystal ball and just because my first baby was easy doesn't mean this one will be. We live about 20 minutes from two major hospitals and in rush hour this could be much longer. I didn't realise you could take a six hour discharge that's comforting to know.

I just know they're going to be over run with birthing ladies in December (midwife said she's never seen it so busy for births) and the last time I went in they were so understaffed I was just left in the hallway puking on myself with no offer of pain relief for hours - she was very nearly born there. So I'm dreading what it will be like this time round. It's not their fault they are all lovely just overrun.

I think if I was to do it I'd kick everyone out the house including the dog...knowing her she'd do a dirty protest on the kitchen floor because people would be ignoring her. I also live in a terraced house so that would fun...

Thanks for your replies food for thought!

I had one in January with dc8. My favourite labour ever. Was so relaxed being at home instead of a hospital ward. Really found the contractions so much more manageable in my own environment and never reached the point where I felt I couldn't cope like I did with the others.

That's lovely, congratulations! Did you need anything for it/was it a mess, or did you hire a pool? Did the midwife bring everything you needed? Sorry for the 100s of questions.

The thing is If they're understaffed or no beds or whatever, then just because you're in hospital doesn't mean there is anyone with you. At home you always have a midwife with you, if things go wrong they can prep theatre while you are on your way.

There will be babies/mums who only survive because the birth happened in hospital. But there are also hospital babies who sadly die because things weren't picked up on our because no-one could know.

Personally I had a homebirth because it offered the best odds of being attended in my circumstances, yours may be different. There is nothing available at the birth centre that isn't available at home except maybe easier hospital/ambulance access.

Cheap shower curtain, plenty of towels, hot water - pretty much all you need

some births are messier than others, but waters breaking over your carpet before going to hospital would also be messy, at least with homebirth you're prepared

I was given a home birth pack a few weeks before my due date which had plastic sheets, rubbish bags, paperwork etc the midwife needed and she bought the gas and air with her. I needed to supply towels. I had a bag packed with snacks, baby's first outfit, a nappy and maternity towels just so it was all at hand. I also had a hospital bag packed just in case we needed to transfer

This is what's making me lean more towards homebirth as I was pretty much ignored in hospital last time. I also didn't think of it being the same as a midwife unit but I suppose it is really. Especially as the midwife brings gas and air/monitors to you.

That's a good idea re packing a hospital bag.

Had a homebirth for DC2 and it was far far better than my hospital birth with DC1. Didn't have to worry about when to travel to the hospital (will I be turned away if I leave too early, or give birth in the car if I leave too late?). I had two midwives who were 100% focussed on me so could pick up any issues as soon as they arose (which they never did). I did hypnobirthing and had a pool in my living room. I'd highly recommend the Positive Birth Company digital pack. Very factual and focussed on making informed decisions.

Also, it wasn't that messy at all. We had a big tarpaulin under the pool and dust sheets over the couch so DH literally just gathered everything and binned it! Midwives left an hour after giving birth and that was us, home alone with our new baby. Absolute bliss.

I had one hospital birth and two homebirths and the homebirths were by far the better experiences and more straightforward. I felt much more cared for, relaxed and in control.
I bought a cheap duvet to birth on which soaked up any mess and was comfortable.
You can still have gas and air.
I was only living 5 mins drive from the hospital, which it takes longer than that to prepare theatre if necessary or anything goes wrong, and the fact that youre never left on your own in a homebirth but are in a hospital, meant that I felt quite safe that if anything was going wrong it would be noticed quicker.

When I had DC2 the umbilical cord ruptured when I was delivering the placenta. You've never seen anything like it! There was blood all over the midwife and all over the walls, and anything else to the front of me in the room I was in. It was like a scene from Hammer House of Horror.
I think that's quite rare though.

I wanted a home birth with my second baby a few months ago. As it turned out the labour was progressing quickly (not unexpected, my first was 4 hours) and the home birth team were not able to get there for an hour because they were with someone else, and there were staff shortages due to covid. So I ended up going to the birth centre and she was born a few minutes after we arrived and the midwives didnt need to do anything so it would have been fine at home anyway but I didnt want to risk it without a midwife.

So my advice is prepare for a home birth but also be prepared that it might not go to plan!

I had a great homebirth experience with my first. I didnt end up actually delivering at home and had to transfer but absolutely no regrets.

for me it was about staffing. I really didnt want to be in a hospital with one over-stretched midwife coming in and out. at home I had one midwife with me as soon as my labour was established, another came to join her when I was starting to push. one for me, one for the baby. i loved being in my private space and I hired a birth pool. I was so relaxed and it was just great. i felt completely safe.

I had a really long labour (3 nearly 4 days!), my DS was in an awkward position. I got stuck at 8cm, his head was at an angle on my cervix and I wasnt dilating evenly. the transfer was very smooth. I am around 10 minutes from the hospital, with blue lights that is under 6 minutes. the midwives obviously take a much more proactive approach in terms of whether things look like they are going south. the advantage of having one midwife focussed on just me is that they will spot things they might miss if they are going in and out like on a busy labour ward.

I am absolutely having another one for no2. it was such a positive and calm experience. being in my own space, I was completely in control.

I've had 3 home births. The level of care was outstanding.

After my first, the midwife made us tea and bacon sandwiches, tidied up and put the hoover round!

I was only ten minutes away from the nearest hospital though.

I'm currently pregnant with my 5th baby but I'm thinking of a hospital birth this time, due to my age 😬

I went for a homebirth with my first 15 years ago. I actually had to transfer in the end but it was no huge emergency (it was precautionary) and very calm. The midwife was amazing and with me the whole time.
I ended up with a very long, traumatic birth at the hospital. I can't be sure of absolute sureties of course but I felt that things really went downhill once I got there and lots of mistakes were made (long story).

My second I opted for hospital. It ended up being a super quick, super easy birth (45 minutes from first contraction to holding the baby). My DH wasn't in the hospital at the time and barely made it to the birth. In hindsight, it would have been a good candidate for homebirth.

I know plenty of people (about 5) who have had successful and happy homebirths. Only 1 of those had to transfer. All babies healthy and fine.

I also know a few people (my best friend one of them) who were totally left at hospital. My friend delivered on her own in the hospital with only her DH and no gas and air even because no-one had given her any or checked on them. Luckily mum and baby were all fine and healthy.

It's a bit of a lottery I feel, but in general I'm very supportive of homebirths. I would also never encourage anyone to have a HB who wasn't happy with the idea and vice versa. It's very personal.

Thank you all so much for your replies it's given me lots to think about and I am leaning more into the idea of a homebirth...just need to convince my partner now he's still very much unsure about it but I'll show him the thread :D

@JaJaDingDong That sounds like a horror movie! I hope it all went okay after. It's a messy business...

Thank you all for the tips, tarpaulin and hiring a pool sounds like a plan!

See if there is a local homebirth group in your area. Ours did meet ups and had a facebook page - it was great to meet people who had done it in our area so could advise in the policies at our local hospital.
Also see if your NHS trust do a homebirth antenatal class. We went to one and it was basically just a chance to talk about it and ask questions which arent really covered in a basic antenatal class. Made my husband feel much better about the whole thing.

I attempted a home birth with number 1 after what I thought was a very straight forward pregnancy. My waters went and the damn midwife didn't come to check on me for 28 hours 😑 I was offered reassurance over the phone and being a FTM thought that was fine. When she finally turned up there was suspected merconium that she said we could monitor however I took myself off to the hospital at this point as I had completely lost confidence. Turned out he was breech... I would still not be against a home birth and wouldn't advise anyone against it however I'd say you need confidence in yourself and your midwife. The midwife who didn't attend had left by the time a raised a complaint, and it was with One to One Midwives who have since dissolved.

@babdoc just because you had a terrible experience, that's not reflective of the likely outcomes, which should be good as long as all are happy and pregnancy is low risk. Bad things happen in hospital too, sometimes because of the interventions you have because you're at hospital.

@babdoc don’t stats show that a second birth at home (after a straightforward first birth as is the OPs situation) is actually just as safe as going to hospital? And may even be safer? I get the point but looking logically and factually at the statistics it seems to be a perfectly safe option.

You are very closely monitored during a home birth. You definitely get a greater level of support. Also if you did need transferring to hospital it would be in a blue light ambulance. So 20ish minutes would still be achievable.
In your circumstances I’d be very tempted by a HB xx

I’m due my 3rd end of November and opted for a home birth as previous labours uncomplicated. Husband is pretty nervous about the mess and also if something g goes wrong but the midwife said it is very rare something just goes “Wrong” there are normally warning signs and that any concern and they call an ambulance and it’s done as a life threatening emergency so you’re top of the list/ blue lighted. She didn’t think 25 minutes to the hospital was too long or risky for me.

I must admit those I know who’ve had home births have said how lovely it is and I’m looking forward to being able to get in my own shower, bed etc after birth.

Good luck in whatever you choose

Home birth sounds great but I've always been worried about
1- the mess
2- the kids waking up!
I have pretty fast labour's and at last birth, midwife didn't believe I was about to have the baby and refused to give me any gas and air! I've asked them about water birth as this seems like the next best thing after home birth!
Good luck