Opinions on home birth

[LayingLow]

It's my 4th baby. I live 10min from hospital. Don't want to be away from my children for long and don't want to go to hospital with covid about. No complications in other 3 labour's all natural. No pain relief. But scared INCASE somthing goes wrong.. dont know what to do.

You’ll probably be ok, but as someone whose home birth did go wrong (and yes completely unexpectedly in a matter of seconds), the guilt is very hard to deal with.

When are you due? I think the issue with the ambulance shortage is relevant now but hopefully might not be in some months time. If you’re due soon I would worry about ambulance delays and wouldn’t do it. That said I don’t like the general shaming of women who need an ambulance for home births. There are lots of cases where people wouldn’t need an ambulance if they’d done things differently - especially where alcohol is involved.

I think if it’s going to continue to niggle you and you think you’ll be anxious then maybe it’s not the best idea. That said the studies show you’re just as safe at home so that definitely counts for something.

I had a homebirth with my second. Really great experience. I had a straightforward delivery with my first so it made statistical sense for me to have a homebirth. Midwives were with me for 3 hours in total (before and after birth). My son was asleep upstairs and woke up to find his new brother has arrived in the night. Just magic!

I work in the medical profession and I know many colleagues who have had homebirths, including an obstetric registrar. If you know your statistics and you know your own history with pregnancies and labours then you can make a very well informed decision about risk. Sad things happen all the time in hospital labour wards - haemorrhages, septic babies, shoulder dystocia, brain injury due to hypoxia in labour etc. You’re more likely to hear about the sad outcomes with a homebirth because society likes to lay blame on irresponsible and ‘selfish’ mothers, but sadly those same outcomes happen in the hospital setting all the time.

Have a good read of the Birthplace study, have a think about your concerns and hesitations and make your own informed choice.

I had two home births (DC 3& 4) after horrible experience in hospital with DT's.

It was wonderful. Laboured happily on my own in a pool until midwives turned up. Other DC were upstairs and came down to meet baby straight away.

I was relaxed and comfortable in familiar surroundings and it felt like the midwives were friends coming for a chat as I delivered the babies myself in the pool.

I would recommend it to anyone with a straightforward pregnancy and who feels confident that birth is primarily a biological not a medical process. If you are at all worried don't do it as this may affect the progress of your labour.

Home births can be wonderful but I think you have to really consider if something does go wrong, if there will be support available for you. A lot of the posters on this thread who had a wonderful home birth likely didn’t do it during a pandemic and likely had support from a medical team that weren’t stretched to capacity.

My midwife/consultant is advising against home births as they said they cannot guarantee that they will have enough staff to be able to attend a home birth, let alone ensure that you get blue lighted to hospital in the event of an emergency. Obviously they can’t stop you but they are trying to make women aware that there is an increased risk of not getting the care you might need as the NHS is on its knees. 😞

loved, loved, loved my home birth. It was in August last year and the most amazing experience, and it was our first!

The midwife at my booking appointment said I was low risk and go for it if wanted. The home birth team were amazing with all the appointments leading up to the birth. The actual night I went into labour I was so relaxed and just so happy to be at home to lean on my sofas and breathe and just felt really comfortable.

The team arrived at 1am and baby born at 4:36am. I got to 7cm before gas and air/birthing pool and I do think that is cause I was relaxed at home.

However, my placenta didn't come away and even though the midwives tried their hardest, I was rushed to hospital. First response came within ten mins and ambulance came within 30 mins and blue lighted to hospital. I had an awful experience at hospital - as once on postnatal ward my partner wasn't allowed in so I didn't sleep for 52 hours. I can honestly say having been at the hospital anyway, I would always choose a home birth. My emergency was dealt with so well. The midwives were amazing.

Unfortunately, if we decide to have another baby I can't have a home birth due to placenta. Absolutely gutted but completely understand.

Doctor here. As a student I saw a birth go wrong, and the baby would have died if the mum wasn’t in hospital. It’s very low risk. But I think a healthy baby at the end of it is priority, could not live with it if a home birth harmed me or my child.

Also have friends who are obstetricians, who tell me plenty of stories about women and babies who would have died if they weren’t in hospital.

Majority are fine. I wouldn’t want to risk it.

You'd be in a good situation to try I think, if in area that is still offering them and isn't overstretched (which are few and far between, I imagine). Like with any birth, it's a bit of a roll of the dice with the possible risks and balancing those with the possible benefits. I had one good home birth with my second child, and one terrible home birth with my third child.

For me, it all came down to who showed up - the ones with my DD were lovely even though they'd been woken at 2:30 in the morning for it (and they sent paramedics ahead because I ended up never having consistent contractions before going into the pushing phase, they were lovely too), the ones with my 3rd DC were not supportive in the slightest, nasty, and one ended up causing a medical emergency that got me blue lighted into hospital (yanked on the umbilical cord, while I begged her to stop because it hurt so fucking much - well worse than the labour I'd just been in - until a chunk of placenta tore off. Asshole had the fucking gaul to blame it on my history of anemia).

I chose hospital for my 4th because of how terrible the third one went, I felt it would be easier if I got an asshole to request a change in hospital than at home (and I wouldn't be risking them around my children, that hadn't been good either). I really recommend if you want to try a home birth and its available to you to ask what to do if you have a problem with who shows up because even in better times in some areas it's a 'you take you get' situation which can be a problem.

I can see the appeal of being in your own environment but I do consider it risky. Personally, I feel safer in a hospital in the event of an emergency.

My first birth was long but uneventful but I heamorraged after having my second. Shortly after he was born, I was holding him when I just heard blood hitting the floor. The midwives sprung in to action, pulled the emergency cord and the room filled with people. It was really traumatic and people were pushing on my tummy and injecting me with medicine to try and make it stop. I'm so glad I was in hospital when it happened.

I'm pregnant again and will definitely be in the hospital. It's where I feel safest although I really do understand why people feel more comfortable at home.

Hi there, I am considering home birth for my first child due in October. I think continuity of care is something to consider, eg who is going to be there and how well do you know and trust them as the whole point of home birth is keeping in 'rest and digest' which comes from trusting your team. If it's random midwifes it's hit and miss, as posters have described.

That's why if I am going to do it it will be with private midwifes who I have got to know over many months, and on the day will take it step by step eg plan to have a home birth but also accept that at some point we may have to head to the hospital and be pre-registered there. The mid wife agency I am working with have 76% success rate, eg no hospital transfer, for home birth for first vaginal birth.

Obv will only be having home birth if the pregnancy is low risk and have a long way to go. If it's not poss then the same midwife will come with me to hospital and advocate for my birthing preferences based on the different scenarios, and have a plan in place for each.

OP, you are close to the hospital so I think that's a big bonus.

X

I had a home birth with my second last year - I went for that option in the end as my first birth had been so fast and the worst bit was definitely getting to the birthing centre. It was excruciating, uncomfortable, stressful and I was aware that the second would probably arrive within an even shorter timeframe (he did!) Basically, I didn't want to give birth to my baby in the car/side of the road.

I had my son in New Zealand so it might be different, but I had two midwives with me and couldn't have been happier with the experience. No drugs but I didn't have drugs with the first either (too fast!) I was surprised by the lack of mess. The midwives were like magicians and just magicked it away! I got to have a lovely shower after baby arrived and crawl into my own bed.

If you like the idea of having a shower and getting into bed in your own house, and think it'll be more relaxing to have baby at home, it's worth considering. My midwives only recommended it for second babies, as you have some idea of how the birth is going to go. I would also not have opted for a home birth if I was a really long way from a hospital (we weren't - an ambulance would have been with us very quickly if needed).

Both my children were home births. I knew straight away I wanted one, never even considered the hospital. First baby I had got to 10cm by the time the first midwife turned up and both active labours were short.
I had two midwives there and an ambulance on stand by each time. My mum popped in at one point and I sent her home as she tried to tell me to go to hospital 😂
Within half hour of babies arriving the midwives had cleared up and gone, and I was back in my own bed. First birth hubby went to McDonald's at 6am to get me a breakfast 😂
BUT ... you have to do what feels right for you. There are lots of extra considerations especially right now so weigh everything up and do what feels right for you.

You couldn't pay me to have a homebirth. Absolutely nothing about it appeals to me.

DC1 was fast and midwife asked me to consider a homebirth for DC2 because of that. I dismissed the idea in a second and never reconsidered.

When are you due??
I'm a community nurse and the other week I waited 2 hours for an emergency ambulance for a lady with low oxygen levels and was going in and out of consciousness. The only way I could upgrade the ambulance was if she stopped breathing and required CPR.
For this reason only I would give birth at a hospital!
I would have loved a home birth but births are unpredictable and so are ambulance resources! They could be quiet one day and busy the next!

Why risk it? If anything went wrong you’d kick yourself for not having been in a hospital with doctors right there (a midwife can only do so much). The hospital may be ten minutes away but every minute could matter if things went wrong. x

OP, in my experience home birth was something that was best discussed with my midwife and people that I trusted, based on my own research. I learned quickly that in discussing it widely, people share their fear with you and that is contaminating. In the last weeks before my labours we fudged the truth about the plan with my MIL because any discussion of it was all about her, and I couldn’t handle it. If discussion like this helps you weigh it up, crack on, but like an early PP suggested, every situation is different and you’d best be advised by your own midwife and the evidence base available. I’d recommend reading what Michel Odent has to say as well.

I had a home birth with my second. My first was induced late and I was stuck in the bed due to being plugged in by both wrists. Epidural but good one as could press it if needed so it wore off quickly unless pressed and could feel everything to push etc. Fine and thought it was a relatively good experience but we’d lived up North for our second, lived about 10 mins and one road from the hospital but I really fancied a home birth. We rented a pool and had an amazing experience. 1 midwives through the night and another arrived just before the birth. Pool was amazing and maybe had 2 paracetamols but nothing else as the gas and air made me feel awful. The relief when I got in was amazing and after a while I had a crazy pain (tmi I know) but reached down and felt the head so understood why. One last push and then scooped her out of the water. So lovely. My mum arrived minutes later with bacon sandwiches and I’ll never forget how special it was. The midwives were AMAZING too and I’d go as far as saying it was fun!

I had a homebirth in august with my second and it was amazing! I’d throughly recommend it! My toddler went down for his nap and when he woke up he had a little sister.

Had a Homebirth with our 2nd and loved it! No more babies for us, but 100% would have had Homebirth's all the way for more.

First was MLU.

I had two beautiful home births. If its a low risk pregnancy I'd completly recommend. Second one ended up being DIY as the miswife didn't make it in time!