Buy the Books!
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And I’ve got the statistics to prove it.
Homebirth Safety the definitive article…
note the factoid about Norway…
and then read this: Princess speaks out
I could post a ton more, but I’m off to pick up my new t-shirts!
Love,
Heather
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juliepie said,
May 25, 2007 @ 10:25 am
Perfect!! I’ve been looking for something like this. I’ve always wanted a totally natural, unassited birth. I would have liked that the first time, planned on it in the hospital, but I was bullied into a Pitocin drip (you’ll never make it through labor-it’ll take too long…you’ll end up needing a C-section, blah, blah, blah), then bullied into an epidural (no, you can’t get on all fours to lessen the pain of back labor-you MUST lie flat on your back so you don’t mess up our precious monitors!! I’m calling the anesthesiologist in here and you ARE getting an epidural as soon as your next contraction is over.)
My husband is nervous and refuses a homebirth because our boys’ heartrates dropped during labor. Well, GEEZ, it’s no wonder with all that MEDDLING by the doctors!!! I don’t want that for this baby!
My grandmother had 8 of her 9 children in her own bedroom!! Her sickly child was the one who was born in the hospital.
THANK YOU THANK YOU for this magnificent fact sheet. I am showing it to my husband as soon as he gets home.
weehasu said,
May 26, 2007 @ 9:21 am
Honey, if you want to show your husband some facts, go pick up “The Thinking Woman’s Guide to a Better Birth” by Henci Goer.
This was a great article, but go pick up that book if you want a SOLID argument.
juliepie said,
May 26, 2007 @ 6:56 pm
He’s budging! I told him I would want a midwife present at the birth anyway, so we are looking into CNM’s and also the possibility of a freestanding birth center (NOT a hospital one!). I just want everything to be on my terms. No monitors, no drugs, no bed. I think the article helped him a lot, and I will pick up that book too. Thank you. 6 months to go!
janaki said,
May 27, 2007 @ 8:53 am
I told my husband I wanted to try homebirth next time around and he said no. He thinks hospital births are safer. I guess I should send him that article. Geez, if it’s not my mom disapproving of co-sleeping, it’s him disapproving of homebirth!
jackie31337 said,
May 28, 2007 @ 2:29 am
“In Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Finland, which have lower perinatal mortality rates than any other country in Europe or North America, over 70% of births have a midwife as the only attendant.”
One thing I would like to clarify is that in Finland, even hospital births are attended by midwives by default. Unless there is a problem with the pregnancy or an emergency during the birth, midwives are almost always the only attendant. So when they say that over 70% of births have a midwife as the only attendant, they’re not specifically talking about midwife-attended home births.
I gave birth to my daughter in a hospital with midwives attending. At the time, I was disappointed that I ended up with more interventions than I wanted - internal monitoring (no choice) and oxytocin (my choice, but I was encouraged to do it) - because my water broke, but labor didn’t start. The birth ended up going fine, and the midwives even remarked how steady my daughter’s heartbeat had remained the whole time (I used nitrous oxide for pain relief, but no epidural).
A year or two later, I realized that if I had given birth in a US hospital, I probably would have been sent straight to surgery for a C-section because it was my first birth, my daughter was a relatively large baby (4120g - about 9 pounds), and my labor was not progressing on its own. So even though I ended up with more interventions than I planned to have, I’m glad I was even given the choice of how to give birth. My next birth (if I ever have one) will hopefully be a home birth.
wiffersnapper said,
May 28, 2007 @ 5:25 pm
Anyone who wonders whether homebirth is safer than hospital birth needs to hear the story of my daughter’s utterly botched birth. Six days in the NICU later… let’s just say that my pregnant self (when I become it) will not be going anywhere NEAR a hospital for #2. And midwives in hospitals don’t necessarily do things the way you want- they follow “protocol” like everyone else.
alisaterry said,
May 29, 2007 @ 10:23 am
My husband doesn’t have a say in the matter of where I give birth.
Luckily, he has decided to support me no matter where I give birth, because he realises I am the one who needs to feel comfortable and safe, not him.
annie77 said,
June 5, 2007 @ 6:12 pm
yeah alisaterry!
maybe i’m just inordinately blessed to have a partner that truely respects and honors the full spectrum of my reproductive rights, there was never a question that those decisions are ultimately mine and mine alone.
i honor you mamas who are willing to stand up for your rights in these difficult situations.
trust your heart and your bady and your baby and know that when your time comes you will have the power and wisdom of ALL mothers to guide you.
namaste’
CarrieRusso said,
July 4, 2007 @ 9:16 pm
I definitely agree that homebirth is safe…I’ve had two of my own and I highly recommend it to any healthy women with a normal pregnancy, I can’t imagine birth any other way accept in the comfort and privacy of my own home and birthing with those who I choose to be with me. Check out this article with facts about homebirth and midwifery care http://www.thewishingwellness.com/midwifery-care-homebirths#more-20 , there are even questions to ask when interviewing a midwife