[sara~b]

I'm starting to seriously consider having an unassisted home birth. I have been pricing birth tubs, birth kits, etc and reading every home birth story I can get my hands on. I know I could probably still switch over to a MW at this point but I'm kind of 'bleh' about it. I like my OB practice well enough for routine visits but I'm kind of feeling like a homebody. I have this little voice telling me I'm going to want to stay at home and labor and probably deliver. Every time I go in our bathroom now I keep thinking I could deliver in THAT tub. Anyway, I've gone from feeling pretty secure with trying to do NCB in hospital to kind of feeling like I NEED to just have this baby here at home (DH might not necessarily agree). I'm beginning to wonder if I've lost my mind. I had the induction/meds/vaxes/etc with Gem and I FF and disposable diapered and now this time I feel 180* different about everything. Maybe I'm older and more educated or maybe I'm just crazy! Help!

And Angela, if you read this, I was wondering about your birth again. What did you use to cut the cord? How long did you leave the clamp on London's umbilical stump? How did you sanitize everything? What would you have done with the placenta if you didn't encapsulate it? Did you have a contingency plan in case of emergency (call 911, etc)? What did you have in your birth kit and what was useful/necessary/unnecessary/etc? How did you talk Troy into it?

Thanks ladies!

[~*sierra*~]

can you get a MW to deliver you at home? midwives here i think almost prefer home births and its pretty common from what i can tell so i would figure a midwife would just come to your house if you decided to deliver there...no? unassisted sounds scary to me! i'm sorry hun, i'm just being honest......but you have btdt so it might not have that same feeling for you. i say do what feels right for you though!

i am pretty sure angela delivered london with a MW present...
i'm not sure u really need to sanitize too much either since you are immune to most germs in your home....so in that way home birth is great! its not like a hopital where everythign needs to be sterile cuz umpteen ppl have bled/delivered/whatevered there..kwim?

[~*Bethy*~]

Angela did have a midwife present. No you dont need to sanitize the entire house, just mop and vacuum around the tub. Make sure the tub is accessible on all sides of it (if EMT's were to come in and grab you ICOE) I would cut the cord with surgical scissors, and you can get cord clamps on line. Of course thoes would be boiled to sanitized. With the tub, I would get a kiddo pool honestly. Most of the stuff you need you can get in a birth kit online, or you can just put together yourself (might be cheaper) I think seeing an OB is great for prenatal check ups. Come on over to the homebirth board, we have a few unassisted ladies Ive also read up quite a bit on it, just in case my midwife gets caught in a freak snow storm in the middle of may in oregon YOU NEVER KNOW!!! I would probably either throw the placenta out in the trash or I would bury it and plant a tree over it, kinda like a ceremony of life I think the biggest thing youll need in a birth kit are towels, towels and more towels. youll be in and out of the tub so much youll need something to constantly dry off with. Cord clamps obviously. Something to weight baby with. Id also grab some Crampbark (for after labor pains) and Shepards purse (if you hemorrhage) Bendy straws are a must as well (so your coach can offer you drinks and you dont have to spill any on you. Youll also want a drinking quality hose so you can fill the tub (from your washer hot water spout) You can have the water however you like it during labor but once you deliver her, it has to be above a certain temp (forgot what number) pretty much, just labor and catch the baby. Its not too hard...LOL If you need more info go check out the homebirth board like I said Sorry Im not angela

[soImarriedAnerd]

Originally Posted by sara~b

And Angela, if you read this, I was wondering about your birth again. What did you use to cut the cord? How long did you leave the clamp on London's umbilical stump? How did you sanitize everything? What would you have done with the placenta if you didn't encapsulate it? Did you have a contingency plan in case of emergency (call 911, etc)? What did you have in your birth kit and what was useful/necessary/unnecessary/etc? How did you talk Troy into it?

Thanks ladies!

We use a cord cutter kit (m/w had this)
We didn't cut the cord till it was done pulsating plus a couple minutes.
The clamp was on till the stump fell off (I think like three days)---we used golden seal on it to help it dry up quickly.
Sanitize?! LOL Nothing really, the normal weekly housekeeping was 4 days prior. I had a new liner for the birthing tub and thats really it.
If I didn't encapsulate the placenta I would have tossed it (because you can't donate a homebirth placenta and because we didn't have a house). If I had a house that I owned or heck even a family member who was close and owned their house I would have liked to bury it and planet a tree over it.
Back up plan.... yes. We had the closest hospital mapped out and had driven it a couple times to feel comfortable there (and directions printed for all present), and even had done a tour. I had the option to pre-register at that hospital in case we needed it. I had a m/w homebirth friendly Dr that worked there that I had to have a one time appointment with when I was 32 weeks that would take over my care if I needed to be transferred. Depending on the emergency either we would drive with the m/w or the ambulance (911) would be called and the m/w would follow.
Birthkit- Gentle Birth Care.com (this is my actual list!)
I never used the oil because I was in the tub. But everything else was used....we could have gotten away with not using some of it but mainly thats because I gave birth in the tub...that could have been out of tub (you don't know till THAT moment) and then I would have used more.
The troy part was actually very easy, I just asked for one.---but then I'm a doula and so the man has heard a ton of homebirths and natural labor and I think he just knew thats where I wanted to be.....he knows more than most women! LOL That wasn't even close to an issue. The biggest thing was I had him list everything that he was scared of happening at home then I had those and MANY more questions he came up with answered by the m/w and me. Once his 3 page list got answered he was perfect (full 3 pages front and back! LOL) But there is no way that he would have gone for unassisted, he needed the midwife.

[LisanAndy]

I totally get the home birth, I would LOVE one but I just can't bring myself to do it. I'm RH- and I also bleed a lot (need a shot to slow the bleeding) after delivery so I would be worried. If I were to have a home birth, I couldn't go unassisted. I think it sounds like a very scary option, personally. In my own mind, I would know I'm not a trained midwife and if something were to go completely wrong, my baby's life would be in my hands and I don't want to ever have to be in that position. BUT! If you choose to do something like that, I really do hope it works out for you and I totally wish you the best of luck! I would look forward to reading your birth story

[bittersweet]

I know there are a lot of women on here that have had/want home births. So I really hope I do not offend, as I respect everyones choices.

I personally feel like a home birth, especially unassisted, is not your safest option. While the chances of anything going wrong are low, there is still a chance. Even if you are low risk for complications, there are plenty of uncomplicated pregnancies (mine included and I know of many other women) where things have taken a turn during labor, requiring a quick delivery. And lets be realistic, if something is happening and your baby needs out quickly, calling 911 and going into the hospital isn't going to be very quick. They can't do anything for you until you hit the OR. It takes minutes for permanant damage from lack of oxygen. You cannot buy back those prescious minutes if your baby needs out. There isn't any comfort of a home delivery that would be worth it to me to risk having a child with an anoxic injury.

I look at it this way: If you are meant to have an uncomplicated, textbook perfect delivery, you will get it whether in the hospital or at home. Even if things gets slightly complicated, you can still make choices for yourself in the hospital. You don't have to let them do anything. While, it will not be nearly as enjoyable for you in the hospital...at least you have the comfort of knowing you are providing your baby with the best possible chance of having a good outcome if something goes wrong.

With that said, I know it is a very personally choice and I don't think parents that choose homebirths are irresponsible. Just giving you another point of view to help with your decision.

[Resi]

It's not something I would do but I admire women who have homebirths. I personaly think it might be better to have a midwife there for support but that is just me.

[sara~b]

Okay, maybe I should explain a little better. I don't know if a MW would do a homebirth with me because of my medical history. There is nothing in it to prevent a safe pregnancy,labor, and delivery but they still wouldn't take me until I was cleared by my OB (remember the first OB tried to classify me as high risk?).

And with Gemma, I didn't even know I was in labor. I didn't have a single pain but my induction happened to be scheduled for that day. I went in to the hospital and they did an NST before my induction that showed strong, close contractions but I didn't feel a thing. The nurse decided to check me and I was already 5 CM and 100% effaced. Since I'm avoiding cervical checks and inductions this time I am worried that we may not have a choice in making it to the hospital by the time I realize I'm in labor. I would at least like to be prepared for that with scissors, cord clamps, heating pad, towels, etc.

Lastly, there is no birthing center nearby so I have to deliver either in the hospital or at home. I tested GBS+ with Gem so if I test positive again I know that they are going to try to force me to have an IV and antibiotics which I do NOT want. Once they have the IV in it is just too easy for them to say we're just going to add pit or stadol or whatever. Plus, my labor with Gemma wasn't 'fast enough' for them (this after me staying at 5CM for one hour) so they started pit and then broke my water. I don't want an artificial rupture of membranes this time and I don't want to rush my labor and make it more painful for the sake of someone's schedule. The rushing of my delivery also resulted in an episiotomy which the OB didn't even ask if he could do, he just did it, and that was horrible to recover from and still sometimes gets irritated during sex or if a tampon is a little crooked. Finally, I did some reading up on the drugs I was given to manage the pain they caused. The epidural is an opiate and stronger than heroine or morphine. If any of it leaks into your system it can cause the baby to exhibit withdrawal and addiction symptoms for up to 3 weeks. Are doctors really trying to do the right thing by giving women these drugs or are they just avoiding possible lawsuits and trying to keep things on their schedule?

Also, Gemma was 8lbs. 10oz. so they are going to do some very careful weight checks during the third tri with this pregnancy. Unless this baby is WAY over 9-ish lbs. then I feel very confident in my ability to birth her.

I haven't made up my mind for sure on anything but I am just feeling like the risk of infection, forced interventions and the inability to move/walk/shower/eat as I feel the need in the hospital are rediculous. ACOG and a few other groups have actually voiced that homebirth may very well be safer than hospital birth for both mother and baby. Both large, long-term studies that I have read have found a lower incidence of problems during homebirths and there were no incidences of death in either study. I feel pretty certain that delivering my second child at home is a very safe and viable option when compared with the birth stats in hospitals.

I guess I should just bring this up to Shane already because if he's not on board then none of this matters. I just feel like the more I learn the more afraid I am of the hospital and the less afraid I am of doing it the way it's been done for the last million years.

[*krista*]

I think homebirth is an awesome thing, but I'm scared to do it for my first child -- I want to know what to expect before I cut off all options for pain relief! If this birth goes well, I will probably consider a homebirth for the next baby.

That being said, I don't think I would ever plan on an unassisted homebirth. MW have expertise and experience that I don't, no matter how much reading on the subject I do. Something may come up that, because of my lack of experience and knowledge, could be a huge risk to me or the baby if we didn't have a MW present, whereas if a MW was present it wouldn't be a huge deal. A MW's experience would also make him/her stay calm and think clearly in an emergency situation, whereas you and Shane may not since it is your life and your baby, you know?

That is just my take on things. I feel the same anxiety about giving birth at a hospital, though. I fear the wants and needs of both me and my baby might not be met. But I plan on having DH as my advocate. I will have him keep a close eye on what all the personnel is doing and "police" them on my behalf if he needs to. You have rights as a patient, you just have to enforce them. Will Shane help you do that? Would that make you feel better about a hospital birth?

I also know I have read up a lot on the subject, and a lot of what I have read is very biased against hospital births. I may not necessarily encounter the worst case scenarios for infringement on patient rights in hospital births that I have read about. If you are giving birth in the same hospital as you did with Gemma, you have a better idea of what to expect from that hospital. If you haven't, you might be pleasantly surprised.

[Mars]

Originally Posted by Resi

It's not something I would do but I admire women who have homebirths. I personaly think it might be better to have a midwife there for support but that is just me.

[**jessie**]

Only you know what is best for you.

I have to agree with Erin though. If you want no interventions, then you can get that at the hospital or birthing center. Even though I was having a high risk birth, I was able to decline an IV catheter, walk around the whole hospital as much as I wanted, be in the shower or tub, ect. But I had some serious complications and I thank God everyday I was there for those interventions. Also, a lot of things have changed in recent years. I know that where I took my birth class, they said that episiotomies are only performed in about 5% births now.

The thing about l&d is that it is so unpredictable. I know I felt comfort in having the best medical technology around me... but only if needed. I would have had a dead baby had I been at home (he was born not breathing, agpar of 3. He showed no signs of distress whatsoever until right before the actual birth).

[~*Bethy*~]

My midwife took me on having 2 prior csections? how much more high risk are you than that LOL Thats what Im tring to get at. I would call around to some midwifes and say hey this is something I feel VERY strongly about, what are my options, and go from there

[szczepanski]

Originally Posted by sara~b

Okay, maybe I should explain a little better. I don't know if a MW would do a homebirth with me because of my medical history. There is nothing in it to prevent a safe pregnancy,labor, and delivery but they still wouldn't take me until I was cleared by my OB (remember the first OB tried to classify me as high risk?).

And with Gemma, I didn't even know I was in labor. I didn't have a single pain but my induction happened to be scheduled for that day. I went in to the hospital and they did an NST before my induction that showed strong, close contractions but I didn't feel a thing. The nurse decided to check me and I was already 5 CM and 100% effaced. Since I'm avoiding cervical checks and inductions this time I am worried that we may not have a choice in making it to the hospital by the time I realize I'm in labor. I would at least like to be prepared for that with scissors, cord clamps, heating pad, towels, etc.

Lastly, there is no birthing center nearby so I have to deliver either in the hospital or at home. I tested GBS+ with Gem so if I test positive again I know that they are going to try to force me to have an IV and antibiotics which I do NOT want. Once they have the IV in it is just too easy for them to say we're just going to add pit or stadol or whatever. Plus, my labor with Gemma wasn't 'fast enough' for them (this after me staying at 5CM for one hour) so they started pit and then broke my water. I don't want an artificial rupture of membranes this time and I don't want to rush my labor and make it more painful for the sake of someone's schedule. The rushing of my delivery also resulted in an episiotomy which the OB didn't even ask if he could do, he just did it, and that was horrible to recover from and still sometimes gets irritated during sex or if a tampon is a little crooked. Finally, I did some reading up on the drugs I was given to manage the pain they caused. The epidural is an opiate and stronger than heroine or morphine. If any of it leaks into your system it can cause the baby to exhibit withdrawal and addiction symptoms for up to 3 weeks. Are doctors really trying to do the right thing by giving women these drugs or are they just avoiding possible lawsuits and trying to keep things on their schedule?

Also, Gemma was 8lbs. 10oz. so they are going to do some very careful weight checks during the third tri with this pregnancy. Unless this baby is WAY over 9-ish lbs. then I feel very confident in my ability to birth her.

I haven't made up my mind for sure on anything but I am just feeling like the risk of infection, forced interventions and the inability to move/walk/shower/eat as I feel the need in the hospital are rediculous. ACOG and a few other groups have actually voiced that homebirth may very well be safer than hospital birth for both mother and baby. Both large, long-term studies that I have read have found a lower incidence of problems during homebirths and there were no incidences of death in either study. I feel pretty certain that delivering my second child at home is a very safe and viable option when compared with the birth stats in hospitals.

I guess I should just bring this up to Shane already because if he's not on board then none of this matters. I just feel like the more I learn the more afraid I am of the hospital and the less afraid I am of doing it the way it's been done for the last million years.

You could do all those things in a hospital too. I did for my birth...in fact I almost had a sandwich while I was in labor - when I hit transition all of a sudden I was STARVING! hahaha - and I wasn't even hooked up to monitors or anything. They just checked Nolan's HR every 15 minutes for me. If my BP wasn't a little high when I got there I wouldn't have even needed a heplock. I had a whirlpool tub, a birthing ball, I was able to stand and labor as I pleased. I delivered on my hands and knees...in fact the only time I laid in a bed is when I was waiting for my room in triage and looking back..I probably could have kept walking while I waited for my room to be ready.

Maybe you should look into getting a midwife. I am ALL for having the kind of birth you want...but an unnassisted birth worries me. I feel like there are lots of other options you could look into before settling on that one. Just my 2 cents.

I would start working on your birth plan and all the things you DO want and DON'T want you can discuss now and if your OB isn't supportive you can start looking now instead of finding out when you are in labor. It's never too late to switch to another provider!

[Mod-LadyCoconut]

I think you would be better off speaking up and saying you don't want the interventions and laboring at home as long as possible than trying to do this completely on your own. I'm all for homebirths but I don't think going unassisted is a good idea. Just research what you want and don't want and be willing to speak up for yourself and you'll do fine. Lots of hospitals say you can't eat or drink anything in labor... but if you do eat or drink something, what are they going to do? kick you out?

I get it though, I really do. I did not like my OB group and was nervous about being in the hospital. I longed for a homebirth. With me going high risk at the end it never would have worked out. I had all sorts of issues post-birth too. But I don't think jumping from one extreme to the other is a great idea.

I second that talking with a midwife in your area and drawing up your birth plan to discuss with your OB now are both really good ideas.