It is estimated that of the 4.1 million babies born in the U.S. in 2004, 7,000 were born at home without a midwife or doctor. Planned unassisted home-births, similar to those advocated by Ricki Lake in her The Business of Being Born documentary, are on the rise across the country, with women wanting the ability to control the birth process and have loved ones surrounding them during the birth. Many mamas-to-be believe those aspects outweigh the risks.
Until the 20th century, childbirth was the leading cause of death for women, with approximately 1 in 100 mothers dying in the early 1900s. Today, that rate is closer to 13 in 100,000, due to better prenatal care, medications and the option of cesarean sections when necessary.
Labour Of Love
Charles Tyrwhitt
Mark Davis
no no no yeek no. It's not for me though my greatgranny, who recently passed away, had 19 children all at home in the early 20's and 30's without drugs or a midwife (she was the only midwife in town) and she lived to be 104 but she was way stronger than i'll ever me
1I will absolutely be looking into homebirth when I have kids. Though I would NEVER do it if I had complications or without a midwife, that's pretty dangerous.
Most homebirths are very safe though, I have friends who have done it and said it was about 100x better than being in the hospital.
But its a personal choice that no one should judged on, at the end of the day we all want whats best for our babies.
2I think its great that some women have there babies at home, but i don't think it's for me. I would just feel better at the hospital in case there was some sort of complication. I would however love to have a underwater birth, but i don't think that is an option where i live.
3While I think its great for certain woman who want that intimacy & control - I'd much rather have any future babies in the hospital that way if complications should arise help is literally there in seconds!
4It sounds nice in theory but if I were to have another child, it would be in a hospital again. I had to have an emergency c-section because my daughter could not to get through the birth canal. I wouldn't want to take a risky chance for me to have a home birth. It works for others, but I'll pass.
5I can see the benefits, especially for someone like me who HATES hospitals, but I think I'd be too worried about a major complication and not being right there at a hospital. Sure, they can get you there in an ambulance, but if, say, the baby isn't breathing, I'd think every second counts.
6To say that women want a home birth to control the birth process is misleading. In fact, most women who want a home birth are trying to avoid the controlling mentality of the hospital, where the attitude is usually that birth needs to be managed. Also, I would also like to clarify that home births are not riskier than hospital births for low-risk mothers. If you do a little research, you will find that statistically, outcomes have been shown to be the same or better for low-risk, healthy pregnancies at home than in the hospital. Midwives are trained professionals, completely prepared for any complications that may arise.
7We'll definitely plan a home birth for the next baby.
8I mentioned this before. My girlfriend had a home birth with a midwife for what was supposed to be her third child. She didn't take any ultrasounds or any of the other stuff. What no one realized was that she was actually pregnant with twins and when the contractions continued after the first baby was out, she ended up being rushed to the hospital anyway. It is supposedly not allowed for multiples to be home birthed. I am not sure how they missed the second baby b/c she had an absolutely huge stomach when I saw her. I would have thought that someone would have checked it out.
9I chose hospital...only because I have had 2 csections and will have another if I do conceive through this IVF(only about 10 days til egg retrieval!). I feel more comfortable with a complete medical staff at my fingertips!
10Hell no. I think hospitals are great for birthing and don't understand why anyone would want to risk a surprise complication. But to each her own.
11well said cabaker & good luck faerymagick... but i can't IMAGINE doing that at home... and i had an easy birth.... just the cleanup alone... and i totally respect anyone who COULD do it... i just dont think i'd be signing up for that if we do go at it again.
12I watch enough of the Discovery Health Channel to know that each pregnancy is different and anything could happen. With that said, when Im giving birth I will be in a hospital.
13I voted no - I had both of my kids in a hospital by c-section. My daughter (3 y.o.) was an emergency c-section - she never dropped, and with each contraction, she returned to the top of my uterus. Her heartbeat was irregular, and she was having a tough time, which is why I had to have the C. My son (1 y.o.) was a planned c-section, and even he did not want to come out - also hid at the top of my uterus, away from the doctor. I feel (and this is only my opinion - not in any way a judgment on people who opt for a home birth) that things could have gone seriously wrong if I had not been in a hospital when I was having my daughter. The issue (as I see it) is that things can go bad very, very quickly. While I would love to have had my kids in a nice quiet room, with a midwife holding my hand & gently encouraging me, and my delivery experiences were far from perfect, I cannot say anything bad about the team of doctors and nurses that helped bring each of my kids into the world.
14I am considering for my next child. I think its a wonderful way to bring a child into this world
15I would love to have my next one at home. I think it would be better to have more control over how I wanted to be comfortable.
16My mother had my younger brother at home about 27 years ago and she had a very positive experience. I'm expecting my first baby in December and I still did not consider it even though I know how much more she enjoyed it vs. her experience in a hospital with me and then with my sister. Thankfully, I haven't had any problems at all so far, but I just don't want to risk a complication. Maybe my answer would be different once I've had one child, but even then I'm not sure.
17Like most women who have complications, mine didn't arise until I was at the crucial stage of labor following a very normal and routine pregnancy. Luckily I was in the hospital already or my daughter may not be here.
18Too many women are being misled about their options and rights when in hospital. I gave birth drug-free, no episiotomy, I was at home 4 hours later. You can be in the safety of a hospital without having to compromise your ideals, you just need to find the right professionals, which is no more work than looking for one to do a home birth.
i would, but i really am interested in water birth, at a birthing center.
19I would honestly be less comfortable at home than I would in the hospital where I know there are lots of trained professionals and technology should something happen. I know the risks are minimal like some said, but just because they're minimal doesn't mean it can't happen. But I don't begrudge those who could do it. I just know I'm a super worrier and I couldn't be at home.
20I had my daughter in the hospital and am very happy about that decision. I would have never known that she was in trouble had I not been there. Her heart rate dropped with every contraction and then every push...luckily I pushed her out in three pushes so she was okay. But then she was huge (three weeks early they said she was on the small side, ha)8lbs 5 oz, I am a small girl, needless to say the doctor needed to stitch me up, a lot! Very thankful I was in the hospital, it could have been bad for both myself and my daughter.
21I had a great team with me at the hospital. And now that our new hospital is built with all the cool extras like baths and and water birthing, I would do the hospital thing again for my next.
22I understand women wanting to give birth at home- hospitals are uncomfortable and you have to play by their rules (no eating!?!?!?!). But I decided to give birth at a hospital for fear of complications and I am very glad I did because the cord got wrapped around my son's neck and I needed an emergency c-section.
23I had my second postpartum hemorrhage last week following the delivery of my third child. Homebirth would be suicide for me.
24No, no, niet, absolutely not, never, not in this lifetime would I entertain a homebirth. I'll gladly pop up some popcorn and watch one. But my vajayjay and womb are complex creatures like myself. I had two sons the hospital way. Granted my last OB/GYN had abominable bed side manners and I would love nothing more to see his male anatomy twisted into a pretzel.
faerymagick- sending some baby dust your way! Good luck w/ the IVF egg retrieval.
backfat- hope you are recovering nicely. How scary!
25Maybe for other women, but definitely not for me. I'd be too scared of any complications for the baby that just wouldn't get addressed in time.
26I have c-sections, so no.
However, I think the homebirth concept it and of itself is wonderful, assuming it's overseen by a doula/midwife. They know what to do in case of an emergency, and often have hospitals on alert so they can quickly transport a patient there if need be. And of course, prenatal care with whatever type of provider you choose.
27I would absolutely have a homebirth. I am going to avoid a hospital as much as possible and will either have my baby (when the time comes) at a birthing center or at home.
28I'm all for it
29no and i think it's foolish. my mom worked with a woman who did this with a midwife. she ripped all the way to her anus. life long issues from that. anything could happen at the last minute and i would want every medical advantage right there just in case for the baby and for me.
30A few thoughts...
A lot of people overestimate the safety of the hospital and underestimate the safety of home (with a well-qualified attendant).
Emergency assistance is not necessarily 'seconds away' as one commenter said. Your doctor is rarely in the hospital while you are in labor and your nurse is monitoring you (and other women) via electronic monitors. This compares to the one on one care women recieve at home. At home complications are picked up quickly and most are easily by managed by the midwife (including hemorrhage, cords around necks, stuck shoulders, stitches). If a c-section is needed, the midwife calls ahead to ready the hospital and then transports rapidly.
Generally hospitals can put together a surgical team quickly for emergencies, but even then it takes 15-30 minutes. Most women can make it to the hospital from their home in that amount of time. So you may not necessarily get into surgery any sooner just because you are in the hospital.
The real key here is that there is no guarantees no matter how you handle the birth. C-sections have health ramifications for babies future health, along with their mothers. Women and babies sometimes get infections from hospitals that they would not have gotten at home. Many women will plan hospital births and their babies will die before they ever arrive. Many of the worst obstetric emergencies can happen at any time, even when the woman is not in labor. And yes indeed some women will need all the hospitals resources, and most will receive wonderful care.
But the fact doesn't change that you can't control childbirth. Doctors may try but even they cannot guarantee a perfect outcome. You are almost certainly guaranteed to have procedures, tests, and interference into your birth that may not do you any good and have the potential to do harm.
Nobody knows what is best for a given woman and her child. I believe that most women have great instincts about these things and should be able to tailor the birth experience to suit her needs. Both hospital and home birth have good outcomes and women should get all the information and make a choice based on their own situation.
31"A lot of people overestimate the safety of the hospital and underestimate the safety of home (with a well-qualified attendant)"
I completely agree.
32i think you need to actually watch the business of being born before blogging about it.
33No way I would do homebirth. My sister is a neonatal nurse and I have heard way too many horror stories about births at home gone wrong. Babies that should never have been in her unit ended up there because of the complications at home.
34CanadianinVA,
1. Your sister only sees the rare home birth where a baby has a problem that requires transfer, not the many, many successful ones.
2. The majority of the babies in the NICU were born in the hospital... they also have problems, what caused those?
3. Has she told you about the excessive number of babies born by c-section that have breathing difficulties at birth?
4. Do you know if any of the home birth babies had problems that could have been avoided in the hospital?
5. Is it possible that nothing would have changed if the child were born in hospital?
The fact that the babies were transported to the hospital actually proves that the midwives are quite capable of spotting newborns with problems and getting them the additional medical care required. That is how the system is supposed to work. No matter where women give birth, some babies will have problems, that is an unfortunate reality.
35Hell yes!!! My mother delivered my daughter in a birth center, while my husband was coaching me and it was the best, most intimate experience I've ever had. I was out of the center 1.5 hours after birth and at home enjoying my daughter.
Dr's aren't trained to deliver babies...their thought of mind is to give people drugs to make them feel better. Hospitals lack the personal aspect, pump you up with drugs then charge you up the yin yang. Women don't understand that we've been giving birth for centuries without hospitals and drugs. We've become so dependent on doctors as midwives that we forget the personal element of a birth.
If you think homebirths are dangerous, you should hear the stories about hospitals, over-used c-sections and drugs administered when not needed.
Home births are the way to go!! All the way.
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