A friend wants a home birth, have you had one [planned or not] and would you choose to do it again?

Answer 1

I have had 5 babies, my first was 6 weeks early and so had to be born in hospital, the experience was not one I was wanting to repeat, so had a homebirth with 2, 3 and 4.
We had moved by time number 5 came, and a homebirth wasn't an option in this new area, so she had to be born in hospital, another experience I would not ever want to repeat!
I think a lot of it has to do with the trust you have in your midwife, I had the same midwife for all 3 homebirths and she almost became part of the family we saw so much of her! She was very experienced and I knew if there was any sign of anything not going to plan she would organise a transfer.
Things do go wrong at home, but by the same token, things do go wrong in hospitals. Statistics will tell you that homebirth is as safe, if not more safe than hospital.
So long as the pregnancy is straightforward and you are well and your midwife is supportive I would say go for it.

Answer 2

As a mother of 3 children i didn't have any home births as my 1ST child was born by cesarean. my other 2 were born at 37 weeks. I personally would have liked a water birth in a hospital rather than home birth. Now i am a student midwife and having witnessed home births i would say go for it. You are far less likely to need intervention.You can hire a pool if you are really worried about pain relief and good old entonox (gas and air) is also available. Whilst i haven't seen the benefits of it,there's also the TENs machine.

Midwives who do home births are very experienced and should you need to be transferred in to hospital i am led to believe this is organised very quickly. And you know people who deliver at home recover more quickly as the body is more relaxed. All the best but whatever you decide,make sure you (and your partner)are 100 percent happy with your decision.

GOOD LUCK

Answer 3

My wife and I never had a home birth, and never would. There are so many unexpected things that could go wrong. I have three children in which all three pregnancies went perfect. However, when my third child was born it was induced. When the water broke it tore the placenta and the doctor had to do emergency Cesarean. It only took about two minutes from the water breaking to having him out, and he almost did not make it. I am certain that if it had been a home birth, not only would he have not made it, but we wouldn't have even known there was a problem when the water broke. I would definitely put a lot of thought into what is not available to the mother and the child in a home birth.

Answer 4

I had seriously thought of having one; a close friend of mine had one and all went well.
However, I decided to -and am glad I did - to have a hospital birth. I went in to be induced, was in labour all day, then my baby's heartrate went down dangerously low. I had to have an emergency c-section; the cord was wrapped around his neck twice, but all turned out okay. They got me in that operating room and the baby out well within a half hour. If I had been at home, there would have been no way my baby could have lived. There had been no signs ahead of time that anything was wrong, so I was SO happy to have been in the hospital. How could one forgive oneself if something had gone wrong with a home birth when being in the hospital wasn't a big deal? I couldn't have...

Answer 5

I am planning a home birth. They are no less risky than hospital births and no chance of catching MRSA!
Obviously sometimes things don't go as planned, but if you need an emergency c-section, then they take you to hospital. They can phone ahead and make sure the team are ready when you arrive, which probably only takes as long as getting the team ready when you are in the hospital.
Everyone I know who has had a homebirth loved it.

Answer 6

First - unmed hospital birth with OB.
Second - waterbirth in freestanding birth center with MW
Third - home waterbirth with MW

If I could go back and do it all over again, I would have had them all at home. My homebirth was a wonderful experience. I had freedom of movement, my own comfortable home environment, roaring fire in the fireplace, plenty of food and drinks available, music, etc. It was relaxed and actually kind of romantic. She was born in a birth tub in the kitchen and hubby caught her. We snuggled on the sofabed in front of the fireplace afterwards.

If mom is having a healthy, low risk pregnancy, I say go for it!

Answer 7

i dont think i would be ok with a home birth,when i had my first baby he came out face down,he swollowed all the mucus and stuff and started to choke,the stuff they needed to stop him dieing was there stright away all the help and machinery was there,its not that i think home births r wrong,its just that if anything goes wrong when u r at home sometimes the help that needed is not there and waiting for an ambulance to arrive can take time,if u was in hospital the help is there straight away,either way,goodluck

Answer 8

i am pregnant now, and although I wouldnt choose a home birth, everything ive read tells me that it is a very safe and comfortable way to give birth. your friend will have 2 midwives at hand in case of any problems, so if thats what she wants i would support her choice

Answer 9

with my first i had a hospital birth. now pregnant with my second am planning a home birth but it's looking like the baby may be abnormal so who knows.

Answer 10

me personally wouldn't have a home birth cause i am a wimp and need strong pain relief plus i am a worrier and would panic to much but i think the idea of a home birth is beautiful and very natural just not for me
its a risk