Hi ladies,

Just wondering if anyone knows whether home birth is an option for your first baby?

Thanks

x

hey,

It should be an option as everyone should have the right to a homebirth. You do though have to have a low risk pregnancy and have a midwife visit your house to do a kind of health and safety check (you have to have access to running water lol and they have lots of equipment to bring)
I think it can vary in diff parts of the country though on how supportive midwifes are though from reading through other posts.
I was booked in for a homebirth for my 1st baby (she is now 6 1/2 weeks old) but unfortunatly went into hosp to be induced as lo was late (born 12 days late)
You can have a homebirth from 37-42 weeks of pregnacy, I could have put off being induced for longer in hope of having baby at home but by then I was feeling so fed up with waiting I was keen to have help to get it all started and finished!

Hi,
Thanks for your reply, its something I have always thought about and I really would love, despite hubby feeling quite the opposite!! It looks like I may well go on to develop SPD (my pelvis is already loose at 8+4 and Im off work with it) and I have heard that sometimes home births are better for that.

Thanks again

x

Just wanted to say that you should definitely investigate home births, I had my first baby 3 weeks ago and I planned a home birth. My mws were really supportive, they went through all the pros and cons, gave me loads of encouragement but made it clear that it would be completely my choice. In the end, my daughter was actually born in hospital, we started off at home but after a long labour things weren't really progressing. I think something like 3 out of 10 people who plan a first time home birth end up transferring in, but I was still really glad that I got to spend most of my labour at home, it was much more relaxing and intimate.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

Hi,

As has been said, as long as you have a low risk pregnancy and are between 37-42 weeks, your midwives should certainly be happy for you to have a home birth. I didn't need to have a home check though, and the midwives brought the equipment with them on the day. I asked for it to be kept out of the way in the kitchen though (I was in the lounge) as I didn't fancy seeing everything!

I spent most of my labour at home with my first, and although I had to transfer to hospital in the end as it was a long labour and he was stuck, I did get to fully dilated at home, so I managed to avoid a c-section, which was very important to me. I was really able to relax at home, and I feel this enabled me to become fully dilated- the midwives were surprised I was, as the contractions were staying at 5 mins apart.

Have you thought about hiring a doula? My doula was absolutely fantastic, and helped keep me calm and focused throughout. My hubby thought she was excellent too, as he was able to relax knowing I was in a familiar pair of hands- we ended up going through 3 shift changes of midwives, but I wasn't bothered by that as my doula was my constant. She was £350- considerably less than an independent midwife, which we couldn't have afforded- and worth every single penny. I booked her for this birth- I hope to have a home birth this time- when I was only 7 weeks gone, so no-one else snapped her up!

I hope you get to have the birth you want. Take care xxx
20+5

I had my first baby at home! I would recommend it to anyone with a normal pregnancy.

Check out www.homebirth.org.uk the website has a fantastic section on first time homebirths and birth stories. I'm still in the process of recording mine for the site.

If you want to ask any questions feel free to email me. x x

My husband wasn't too keen either but I talked him round, to begin with I just encouraged him to consider it as an option while we found out more, then the more he found out, the more he liked the idea!
I would advise you though to not get your heart set on it, have it as an ideal but be prepared to go into hospital too so you wont be so dissapointed if you have to.

Hiya

I am high risk and am having a homebirth, as I did not give my doctor an option. I told my doctor hell would freeze over before they got me in there, and then I hired an independent midwife, who backed me completely. I have consultant care as a backup and will go into hospital if necessary, but my consultant knows my midwife very well and both she and I have assured the consultant that if my midwife feels I need to be transfered, I will agree to be transfered.

In first pregnancies, the general reason for a transfer is if there is a problem which requires an emergency caesarean, or for additional pain relief. Problems tend to develop slowly rather than quickly, and a good midwife will spot it in the early stages.

The care and support I have had from my Independent Midwife (Meg Miskin-Garside in Oxford) has been second to none, and having experienced pregnancy with her as my midwife, I would never consider going with anybody who did not support me in a homebirth.

I would also say that at the moment, at 32 + 1 my baby is in the breech position. I am still having a homebirth, albeit with an extra midwife in attendance if the baby has not gone into the correct position by the time I go into labour. I will try ECV and acupuncture/moxibustion as they have high success rates, but I have every confidence in Meg's ability to look after me and deal with any problems which may arise should the baby still be breech at the point he is ready to be born.

Incidentally, just worth thinking about: you are the product of millions of years worth of women giving birth naturally at home. Your ancestors have all been very successful at it, without assistance (otherwise you would not be here). The NHS has been around for 60 years. Who would you trust more: the combined instinct and knowledge of generations of women, already inbuilt into your body (which instinctively knows how to give birth), or the views of a knife happy doctor who will only work within his/her comfort zone and tells you that you have to give birth within his/her time frame or else you will have to be "induced", labour speeded up, etc etc because what your body wants doesn't fit what he wants? Just a thought....

If you want a hombirth, go for it. A good source of info is www.homebirth.org.uk