Monday, 14 September 2009
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Home Births Are Just As Safe!
"Childbirth at home with a registered midwife is just as safe as a conventional hospital birth, a study shows. In fact, planned home births of this kind may have a lower rate of complications, according to the study in the Sept. 15 issue of the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
"Among 13,000 planned births studied, researchers found that the mortality rate was similarly low — less than one in 1,000 — among women who gave birth at home with a midwife, women who gave birth in a hospital with a midwife, and women who gave birth in a hospital with a physician. Women who had home births were less likely to need interventions or to have problems such as vaginal tearing or hemorrhaging. Their babies were also less likely to need oxygen therapy or resuscitation. Study authors note that women who prefer home births tend to be healthier and otherwise more fit to have a home birth."
USA Today recently posted that article about the safety of a home birth:
My son will be three months old next week. He was born in a hospital and although the hospital was a nice one, the staff was very hesitant to respect our wishes for little intervention and a natural birth. Several other things happened and when it was all said and done, my husband told me "We should have had the baby at home like you wanted....it would have been much more peaceful." Needless to say, the rest of my children will be born at home. I'm very much looking forward to that time.
Obviously, the article is speaking of women who have had uncomplicated pregnancies. If anything might be "wrong" with my child, I would give birth in a hospital (or a birthing center) but, hopefully my next pregnancies will be as picture perfect as the first!
What do you think of this article? Does it change your opinion about home birth? Would you like to have your children be born at home?
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- From: XxFireXboltxX@xanga
- About Me: I just happen to be the luckiest girl in the world, married to the most amazing man and *crunchy* momma to the cutest little boy ever! God has blessed me with so much, all the glory goes to Him!
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Comments (67)
@P1AutismMom@autisable - Actually, midwives are prepared for those kinds of things. Most of them carry oxygen tanks, drugs to stop hemorrhaging, IVs for dehydration. Lots and lots of things. And they are trained how to use them. About the only thing a certified midwife can't do at home is perform a c-section.
I just had a homebirth 5 weeks ago and wouldn't have it any other way if I can help it. I felt so much more safer at home than a hospital, given the rate of c-sections and interventions these days. I would venture for some women, maybe like myself, homebirth is even safer than hospital births. I had blood pressure issues (I have white coat syndrome in that going to a doctor's office/hospital/etc. causes my BP to go up rather high). and I am sure I would've been in much worse condition in a hospital. If I'd seen a regular OB for my pregnancy, we are sure he/she would've insisted I be induced realllly early and I would've been visiting my little one in the NICU. Instead, I have a beautiful, perfectly health boy born at 42 weeks and 1 day. Being born peacefully at home with your own hands is the best way to go in my opinion. As for risk, there is a risk for birth no matter where it takes place. HB is great for those who are considered low risk from the start. So glad to see so many supporters on this site.
@Mom2Be - You say "most of them" so I would say that it's all about information and preparation for anything and everything that may come your way. I have no strong opinions either way, especially about other peoples choices and lives so there really should not be much of a battle raging here. It's about what you feel is best for you, your situation and your babies well being. There are no Award presenters standing at your bedisde ready to place around your neck a gold medal for doing it "the right way" The reward you would hope for in any birth, hospital or home delivery is a healthy baby placed upon your chest.
@P1AutismMom@autisable - No, no, no. I'm sorry, I didn't mean that you should have had your babies at home, or even that anybody else should. I just meant to point out that situations such as with your sons could have been dealt with successfully at home with a midwife. Those are the kinds of situations when people say, "Thank GOD I wasn't at home!" simply because they are uninformed about how little a difference it would have made. The care and treatment would have been the same.
But you're right- everyone makes their own birthing choices. It's not my business to tell anyone what to do. But I can encourage people to thoroughly educate themselves on the process, their bodies, and their options.Also, I said "most" midwives simply because I can't speak for every single midwife out there.@Mom2Be - No, I hope I did not sound defensive. I'm so glad that there is information and that there are options. It's Awesome!! My only issue is when there is a subtle or not so subtle proclamation of my way is better than your way. It happens in the autism community as well. It's crazy and counterproductive. Your posts are cordial and informative and that is refreshing. :0) Congratulations on your baby!!!
I would maybe consider a homebirth but we have upstairs neighbors and thin walls, and there is only like a four foot alley between our house and the neighbor's next door. so I think it would feel weird. I would almost feel like I had less privacy, because I would be doing all my loud moaning and such within ear shot of people who will see me at neighborhood cookouts and walking out to get my mail every day. At least in the hospital, it feels a bit more anonymous and everybody there is very used to dealing with births and pregnancy. Plus, my doctor is very into natural births and letting the body do what it needs to do, only intervening when absolutely necessary. She has already recommended a doula and hospital that are willing to create a more home like environment. She has already told me she is fine with walking around/eating during labor and with not using an IV or epidural. So hopefully I will get the best of both worlds
I think that, like most things, there are pros and cons to all of the possible places you could plan to give birth.
I think that it just depends upon the person and the individual pregnancy and baby itself.
Everybody should just do what is right for them. :)
@Mom2Be - Thank you for sharing information that midwives actually come to births prepared. I am a living example of that - it took me two hours to birth the placenta because my bladder was swollen from being full so long (it took almost 4 hours of pushing to get the baby out). She had to go in and manually detach my placenta from my uterus, and I lost about 3 cups of blood at least. My uterus wouldn't clamp down afterward, so she administered a shot of Pitocin to help the process and cut further blood loss. 5 weeks later and I'm great - no anemia or anything. I hate that people assume midwives show up with some towels and incense and do witchcraft : )
I have a question for all you at-home birthing moms.
If you use a midwife instead of a traditional doctor, can she prescribe the same types of medications? I have hyperemesis with my pregnancies (severe morning sickness the whole 9 months) and I was on zofran the entire time. The doctor even had to sign a special form so the insurance company would cover the extra meds (usually they only allow 12 pills per month). Can midwives do this?? Because I would REALLY like to try giving birth at a birthing center (husband is grossed out by the thought of doing it at home) with a midwife. If not, I'm thinking about hiring a doula to help me have a natural birth...I had an epidural both times before, but I made it almost to the end with this last one (7 cm). Do insurance companies (we have United) pay for doulas??
@DirtyAndShaken@xanga - @Mom2Be - and whoever else.
@averyswife@xanga - No, midwives cannot prescribe medications. But if you are looking at giving birth at a birthing center, you will likely see a midwife that's associated with an OB, and the OB can still prescribe the medication. I was on medication for high blood pressure, but I had to see a hypertension specialist outside of my midwife. Also, especially in states where homebirth is fully legal, some women choose to do 'shadow care', where they see an OB in conjunction with their midwife. Here in Georgia, it's not technically legal for midwives to deliver at home, so that really wasn't an option for me since OBs won't have anything to do with homebirthing moms here. Either way you decide to go, I would HIGHLY suggest hiring a doula if you are wanting a fully natural birth. It will make all the difference in the world, especially when dealing with the chaos of hospital staff!!
@averyswife@xanga - Hmmm, you'll have to check with your birthing center or local midwives about that. I know my former midwife (we moved- the only reason I say "former") could prescribe birth control, so I'm not sure why she wouldn't be able to prescribe other things. But I have no concrete facts about this, so I can only speculate. But I don't see why, if a midwife can't prescribe something for you or sign your insurance form, her backup doctor couldn't do the same thing. Especially in a birthing center- I'm pretty sure they have to have a backup hospital/physician.
As far as insurance paying for doulas, again, I really don't know. We payed our entire midwife bill (including all prenatal visits, tests, ultrasounds, etc.) out of pocket because our insurance didn't cover maternity period. But since it was less than $3000 it wasn't toooo bad.@averyswife@xanga - Thanks to the wonders of Facebook, I asked my mom's former midwife your question and this is what she replied:
"Most midwives have helpful or back-up doctors who will prescribe meds as needed. I also think that some Certified Nurse Midwives/CNMs can prescribe certain meds. I'm a Certified Professional Midwife/CPM and we don't have prescriptive privileges, but like I said, we have docs who help us out."I think a hospital is safer...In case anything happens, the ICU is right there.
Just less risk...
I myself would never consider a home birth, even for the most uncomplicated of pgcies. Uncomplicated pgcies can very much have the possibility of ending with very complicated births.
My son and I would have died without an emergency c/section, both of us were in distress. He was stuck in the birth canal, my contractions were literally squeezing him. My BP went down dangerously low, his heartrate dropped dangerously low. My next pgcy was a planned VBAC, but turned into another emergency c/section, the cord was wrapped around her leg. Her heartrate dropped to the 30's.
I'll stick with the hospital setting, knowing that my doctors would be able to immediately save my baby should the need arise. I couldn't handle losing a little life. Without the immediate medical intervention that I had, my children wouldn't be here today.
@averyswife@xanga - Hi there... I feel for you. I had severe hyperemesis during my pgcy with my daughter. I ended up needing a PICC line placed. I wish you all the best!
I don't know what I will choose to do. I like water births. It depends on the situation during the pregnancy. If I expect complications and such. Hopefully not!
I think this is true. I wanted a water homebirth, but Tricare wasn't having it. Also, since she was my first, I didn't want to risk it. The closest I could get was keeping the nurses from giving me an epidural. They were trying to force it on me, to be honest, and it was annoying. I had a complication-free pregnancy and delivery, though, so looking back I could've done it. You can never be too sure, though.
The ugly truth of the matter is home birth is the human litmus test. Birthing now is so convenient. Everything is done to make us feel comfortable or feel nothing at all. 100 years ago, if you couldn't give birth without medical intervention, you and/or your baby died. I'm not saying I agree with this, but it's definitely something to think about. No, I don't think we should let women die when we have all of this medical technology, but I'm personally offended at the idea of "Oh I'll induce on this date, because I want the baby to have this birthday" or "I'm scheduling a c-section on this date, because I don't want to feel any pain". Britney Spears did that...twice. No, it's not my place to judge women for their choices.
I understand people have different reasons, but I believe birth is something that should be allowed to happen - not controlled. It's not like going to the beach. After I had my daughter naturally, and shared how great it was to let my body to what it was supposed to do women I knew were like, "Oh wow. I'm definitely getting the epidural." This really annoyed me. No, it doesn't make sense to force a woman to writhe in pain when there are drugs available, but why rely on drugs? If you aren't at least willing to give birth naturally, why even bother? Anything can happen on the way to the hospital that could make the window for an epidural close and you're left to rely on your instincts anyway.
Sorry to go off on a tangent. I'm not throwing bricks at women who prefer drugs or who need life-saving procedures. I have several acquaintances who had babies last year and earlier this year, and wouldn't be alive today if it weren't for an emergency c-section. I still feel like every time a new technology is introduced in conception, pregnancy, or birth, a little bit of humanity dies. Flame me all you want, but it's my opinion. I'm not attacking anyone else for theirs.
My child had to be "turned" right before I pushed him out. Sometimes you cannot foresee certain complications. I think we are all blessed to have the technology, licensed doctors, and sanitary hospitals these days. And I think we should take advantage of them. How can you monitor the baby's heartbeat at home during labor? Sure..hundreds of years ago, they didn't have it. But also compare the number of women who died during labor in the 1800s vs. the ones who die today during labor. The numbers have decreased with the advanced technology. We are able to monitor the mother and baby's heart and BP during the entire thing and if complications arise, it's nice to know that there is a substantial number of drugs, doctors, medical equipment, etc to help you on the spot.
Disclaimer: My wife and I were members of Tenrikyo who believe that their Church can grant the divine gift of safe childbirth.
In this modern age it is a bit of lunacy to try to have a child. Children are often said to be a gift from God, because it seems so miraculous. The very act of sex that starts the chain of life can be very sacred to a lot of couples. Hopefully the act of birth and death can also be a spiritual experience.
No woman (and her partner) should have childbirth by themselves. A midwife or a very experienced woman can be a useful guide thru this kind of experience. Some doctors are too busy (or too clinical or too abrupt) but if there is a generous doctor that can help ease the birth of a child into this world that would be the ideal midwife. If you can't choose a doctor, why not choose a very experienced midwife to help with a birth? Even better is a midwife that is a relative or close friend (that has experience)
Having a midwife is still no substitute to save money. Shouldn't childbirthing expenses be budgeted for this very valuable service? Isn't having a baby something that is precious?
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Our first baby was born at Kaiser hospital. She(our first daughter) was born after five hours and my wife was even helpful in helping to translate for another pregnant lady before she was the last person to deliver on Christmas Eve. I know my wife really loved the drug that they gave her for the pain (yes addiction to drugs could occur), the delivery was normal and our daughter was only slightly jaundiced ( which could be from a lot of other factors). Was I a lousy lamaze coach? Who knows, such actions like birthing can proceed so fast at times....
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The birth of our second daughter was a bit different. We hired a midwife that came with recommendations from others at our Church. A midwife usually schedules several visits before the final day to screen out complications. Also we knew which hospitals would be available for back up emergencies.
Ultrasound usually can screen out breech births which is one of the harder types of births. Prenatal visits also screen for diabetes and hypertension. Nowadays pregnant women are prescribed prenatal vitamins. The folic acid in them prevents spinal bififita (sp?) and some genetic testing can screen out birth defects like down's syndrome. Prenatal visits help to contribute to the safety record of midwives.
On July2 my wife started to have labor pains. It was early morning and since the first birth took a while we figured that the midwife didn't really need to come soon. Being at home we had the option to ease her pain by her taking a bath. The bath and me hugging my wife helped and then our baby decided to come into the world before the midwife arrived. I think my wife hurried the delivery so she tore a bit (which was stiched up later). I received the head, then the rest of my daughter and handed our new baby to her waiting mother. Then the door bell rang whichquickly went to Iet in the midwife. We proceeded to wait for the placenta (I was given a choice what to do with the placenta, nowadays some people save it for post pregnancy medicine) and was honored to cut the umbilical cord.
@fallen_butterfly0217@xanga - I addressed this in a comment above. Midwives can turn babies (better than most doctors as doctors usually just opt for a c-section). They bring oxygen for mother and baby. They bring drugs to stop hemorrhaging. They bring IVs in case of dehydration (although they encourage drinking throughout labor to prevent this). They use the Doppler (the same thing your doctor uses to check your baby's heartbeat at an office visit) throughout your labor to keep an eye on the baby's heart beat. No, they don't do continuous fetal monitoring (thank goodness!) because if they felt you needed it, they would have already sent you to the hospital to give birth. They also check the mom's blood pressure periodically with normal instruments that the nurses in the hospital use. And while they rely on the mother's body to get the job done, they don't rely on methods out of the 1800s. The main reason mother/infant mortality rates have come down since then is because we now understand the importance of cleanliness. Sure, the invention of c-section and other interventions have helped with that. They are very wonderful, lifesaving things IN THEIR TIME AND PLACE. Today, the overuse of these interventions is actually making the mortality rates go UP again. The routine c-section is more risky than a natural vaginal birth.
But anyways, back to the subject. Midwives come prepared for complications. They are trained in how to deal with these complications. About the only things a midwife cannot do at home is a c-section. Oh, and they don't carry an extractor vacuum or forceps simply because they are not needed in a home birth situation. I hope this clears up some confusion on the subject. Please don't judge us home birth moms just because we choose to be in our homes for a natural event. We know what we're getting ourselves in for (generally even better than the average American mom going to the hospital to deliver her baby) and we are confident in our midwives and their ability to detect and deal with problems.my mom is a midwife i think its the way to go. hospitals are for sick people or complications. not normal healthy moms and babies...
If I was back home right now, I would prolly have a midwife at a center. But since I moved 4 hours away, and know practically no one froe right now and there are no centers. Hospital it is for me, but, I'm gonna do it naturally, like I want.
So I get it 1/2 way my way
My sister had a problem during birth, the umbilical cord was being pinched and her baby could have died or have been brain damaged. They could only know this was happening because of the equipment they had at the hospital, and if she had not had an emergency c-section her daughter could have died or been brain damaged. Had she been elsewhere, she would not have known of the problem until it was too late.
@makethemakersmile@xanga - Love it.
@Mom2Be - "Today, the overuse of these interventions is
actually making the mortality rates go UP again. The routine c-section
is more risky than a natural vaginal birth."
Thank you! I keep hearing stats about how mortality rates went down when births started happening in hospitals. According to what I learned in my American family history classes, this was due mostly to sterilization. People just weren't keeping things as clean at home. The likelihood of developing bacteria or infection is way higher in hospital, though. It's full of sick people for crying out loud. Pregnancy isn't an illness.
Anyway, I don't have anything against hospital births. Mine was awesome. They sent us home with a diaper bag, tons of diapers, and baby samples that lasted for months. Also, my husband and I were served a steak dinner with romantic decor in my room on our last night.
I was worried about her being switched or given a heparin overdose, or something. I understand the fear of uncertainty attached to birthing at home, but it seems to be a lot of negativity towards it. When Ricki Lake's movie came out, it made me angry. I felt like she was being judgmental and she sooo wasn't. She was giving us information and I was defensive, because I felt guilty about taking the "easy" birthing route. The day I found out I was pregnant, I immediately said I would get an epidural. I didn't even consider natural birth as an option. That was the fear talking. I researched the actually birthing process. What happens inside your body and why, and at about 30 weeks, I decided to do it "old school". When the contractions hit, I was excited. Happy. They hurt, but I knew that each one meant I was closer to meeting my baby. The breathing techniques I studied worked wonders. The nurse saw my contractions up on the monitor and was really impressed that I wasn't jumping out of my skin. I was terrified, because of all the movie birth scenes I saw with screaming and stuff. I thought, "This isn't so bad, but it'll get worse, I know it." I didn't. Knowing exactly what my body can do and letting it happen was a great feeling. Adrenaline is a natural pain reliever. I felt very accomplished afterward. Sorry go get all "birth story" on everyone, but I wish more women could feel as good as I felt that day. It was definitely a confidence booster.