One mother explains why she prefers to forgo the hospital during childbirth
Well, why not?! Joking aside, of course, I’d go to the hospital in case of emergencies (chas v’shalom)… childbirth doesn’t fall under those categories! If there’s a medical issue in the process of my prenatal care or birth, I’d go to the hospital too. I’m not crazy. I’d never put mine or my baby’s life in danger. Most births, though, are just that, the birth of a baby, in its most beautiful way that Hashem intended it to be.
I choose to hire a home-birth midwife who is with me during all my prenatal appointments and through labor and delivery. I call her to come as soon as I feel I need her during labor, and she leaves a couple of hours after the birth when the baby and I are settled. She is a trained professional, just like a midwife in the hospital. Instead, though, I get to stay in the comfort of my own home.
How many times have women said that their doctors made it just in time for the delivery (or just missed it)? Many doctors are barely present during the birth process.
So why do I give birth at home? Well, why not?
What happens post-delivery after a home birth? The midwife stays with mom and baby for a while, letting them bond and settle. She leaves after the baby is checked, cleaned, dressed, and nursed. She checks mom and makes sure she has showered, eaten, and is feeling well. She comes back 24 hours later to check mom and baby, and then 5 days later to do a baby screening and check on everyone again. Then she schedules a 6-week postpartum appointment.
She is also always just a phone call away if mom has any questions or concerns at any time of day and night (and will come by if needed)!
How does a mom get rest when she’s at home? Mom takes care of herself and baby. It’s important to have an adult with you for the first 24 to 48 hours. For some people, it’s the spouse. Others hire a nurse or postpartum doula; others have family members. And everyone does what works best for them. Some people will go away after those two days to one of the convalescent homes. Others will rather stay home and send the kids away; others stay at home with the kids home. One decides what’s best for their family dynamics, like anyone else coming home from the hospital.
For me, laboring at home is easier and less painful. It’s comfortable. There’s no stress of when to leave and travel to the hospital. My midwife is there. It’s quiet and serene.
I labor and birth in any position I feel like, whatever feels good for my body at that moment. It all just falls into place with no intervention, noise, or distractions.
My husband takes off from work for the first 24 hours, and my children stay home with their new sibling. I hire more cleaning help and someone to cook for us so that we can all recover and adjust to our new beautiful reality.
So that’s why I give birth at home.
Disclaimer: The opinions stated here are that of the author and is not an endorsement of Between Carpools.com. Readers are encouraged to discuss any medical-related decisions with the proper professional.
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Great article! The author adresses many practical aspects to take unknown out of homebirth.
There IS nothing like labeling and recovering in the comfort of your own home.
Thank you!
*laboring
love that you posted about article like this! keep up the awesome blog 🙂
No matter how skilled your midwife is, she can’t perform an emergency c-section. Do you really want to waste precious time getting to the hospital?
Mothers and babies used to die all the time before modern medicine in child birth and articles like these are click baits. Between carpools has gone down in my esteem tremendously even though I have read every article, followed every post on instagram till now.
Why is it necessary to pander to extreme people? You risk the ire of the mainstream and there aren’t enough extremists to keep your blog running.
Thanks for ur response. Only the first part pertains to me so I will respond to that.
‘Health’ is always a controversial topic and it’s ok for people to have different views. At the same time, today’s midwives ARE part of modern medicine. They perform births with extremely close care and actually prevent a HUGE percentage of c-sections.
If you are interested in the research or want to educate yourself more on the topic, here are some helpful links.
http://www.cfmidwifery.org/pdf/safety.pdf
http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/63167/1/WHO_FRH_MSM_96.24.pdf
I have of course read a lot of research on this, had many discussions, but in the end, preventing a c-section will never equal to saving a life (or two) in that lost time ,travelling from home to the nearest hospital. I know this discussion can go in circles for hours and my grief is not with you but with between carpools for publishing content like this. Specially in the beginning stages of an endeavour, it boggles the mind.
Thank you for your comments, we value all opinions. Yes, while most of us, like you, wouldn’t consider this option (as noted at the end), it’s interesting to hear about other people’s experiences.
I always considered myself a low risk pregnancy patient and had no complications with my first 3 pregnancies and births. With my fourth, I almost lost my life and am here today BH after an emergency surgery that took place in the middle of my last birth with a very quick reaction from all the drs in the hospital at the time. This includes non obgyns. I’m posting this so that if someone reads this article and gets inspired by the comfort and beauty of delivering at home, she should think twice as she may be saving the life of the mother of her children.
most complications occur only after medical intervention like an epidural or potocin . I had a home birth and would never go back to a hospital unless it’s an emergency!
Key word in your response is most. There’s always the one off. And many more people died in childbirth too in the days before hospitals.
I find it empowering that between carpools published an article on a topic most women are conditioned to fear. We know that our matriarchs birthed easily by themselves in the desert! And may I add they had sextuplets? The problem with the birth industry is that it has robbed women of their inherent ability to birth gently, and media doesn’t help that image either. In the 1800s what was called childbirth fever turned out the doctors weren’t washing their hands yet the midwives were! So who is killing whom??? If you know someone who is considering a homebirth be open-minded and positive. Just like I would respond when I hear you begged for your epidural. Peace, love, and easy births to all my sisters.