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Natural childbirth at home


Home Birth: Pros and Cons

Planned home birth can be a safe and rewarding experience for many people. But if you’re considering this option, it’s important that you consider the benefits and drawbacks, understand the risks, and plan accordingly.

Read on to learn more about the pros and cons of having a planned home birth. You’ll need to work closely with a healthcare professional so you can make the best and most informed decision for you and your family.

Planned home birth means you’ll give birth at home instead of at a hospital or birthing center. You’ll still need the assistance of someone experienced and qualified during labor and delivery.

This may include:

  • a certified nurse-midwife (CNM)
  • a certified professional midwife (CPM) or other direct-entry midwife
  • a midwife whose education and licensure meet international standards
  • a naturopathic or medical doctor who practices obstetrics

The majority of home births are attended by midwives or other birthing professionals.

If you’re considering a home birth, discuss it with a healthcare professional. They should be able to explain what you can expect during labor and birth. They should also talk with you about potential complications and how they would be managed in a home setting.

The healthcare professional should be honest with you about possible risks and whether you’re a good candidate to have a safe home birth. They should also clearly explain the situations when they would recommend transferring to a hospital.

Some research has found that planned home births are associated with a higher risk of infant death or severe injury than births planned at hospitals. For this reason, neither the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) nor the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) currently recommends home birth.

However, other large studies on planned home birth have found that the rates of neonatal death are extremely low.

A 2014 study including nearly 17,000 women who had a planned home birth with the assistance of a midwife found that there was no significant increase in neonatal death compared with planned hospital births.

However, some of these outcomes also have to do with whether the pregnant person was perceived as having a low risk or high risk pregnancy. Among low risk people going through planned home births, there was an extremely high rate of healthy childbirth. For people who are considered high risk, it was less conclusive.

There is still a lot of debate around the safety of planned home births. However, there are numerous factors to consider before you make the decision.

For low risk pregnancies, the risk of neonatal mortality in home births is not significantly higher than in a hospital, as long as a trained medical professional is present to assist.

If you’re a good candidate for a home birth, the best thing to do is start researching and planning.

It is not safe for all people to give birth at home. For example, certain medical conditions, such as preeclampsia or type 1 diabetes, require more advanced care than can be offered at home.

Also, for people who have had a prior cesarean delivery, commonly referred to as a C-section, or who are pregnant with multiples like twins or triplets, home birth can be riskier than giving birth in a hospital. Check with your healthcare professional to see if home birth is an option for you.

Be aware that even with a planned home birth, your midwife or doctor may recommend that you move to a hospital after labor begins. Home birth is safest if done somewhere that is close to a hospital.

This recommendation might be made for the following reasons:

  • You have high blood pressure.
  • You desire pain medications, such as an epidural.
  • Your baby is not positioned correctly.
  • You have vaginal bleeding that isn’t related to bloody show.
  • Your baby is showing signs of distress before delivery (abnormal heart rate) or after birth (signs of a medical condition or difficulty breathing).
  • Labor isn’t progressing.
  • Meconium is found in your amniotic fluid.
  • You experience complications like placental abruption (when the placenta detaches from the wall of the uterus before delivery) or umbilical cord prolapse (when the umbilical cord drops into your vagina before your baby).
  • The placenta isn’t delivered soon enough or isn’t delivered completely.

Pros

  • You have more control over the experience.
  • You’ll give birth in a familiar setting.
  • You’ll have a very high chance of a vaginal birth.
  • You can avoid possibly unnecessary medical interventions.

For many people, the pros of a planned home birth might include:

  • a familiar, comfortable setting
  • more control
  • no pressure to use medications or interventions
  • high chance of having a vaginal birth
  • more support and individualized care than in a hospital
  • opportunity for unlimited skin-to-skin time with baby after birth
  • high rates of exclusive breastfeeding or chestfeeding
  • reduced cost
  • religious or cultural considerations
  • convenience when previous births have happened very quickly

With a home birth, you also have the freedom to choose your own labor positions and other elements of the birthing process. These include whether you:

  • eat or drink
  • take warm showers or baths
  • use candles or aromatherapy

Some of the routine interventions done in many hospitals have been found to lead to worse health outcomes for birthing parents and babies, but they are still practiced nonetheless. Many families choose home birth to avoid unnecessary medical interventions.

Cons

  • It is not a safe option for everyone, depending on your individual risk factors.
  • Insurance may not cover any associated costs.
  • You could still be transferred to the hospital in the event of an emergency.
  • Birth can be messy, so it’s best to be prepared with plastic sheets and clean towels.

With a home birth, your insurance policy may not cover any associated costs. Check with your midwife or doctor to find out more information.

If a home birth is something you’d like to pursue, be sure to choose a trained healthcare professional. Find a certified nurse-midwife, midwife, or a doctor formally associated with an accredited healthcare system.

Birth can be messy, and you’ll need to be prepared with clean towels and plastic sheets. The good news is that the majority of home birth professionals will clean up for you after the baby is born, so you and your family won’t need to worry about it.

In the event of an emergency, you’ll need to get to a hospital. Time could be of the essence. Home births have been found to be safest when they take place near a hospital. It’s important that you’re prepared and have planned for the possibility of a hospital transfer.

Home birth is not a safe option for everyone. Be sure to find a healthcare professional who will assess any risk factors for your particular pregnancy and personal medical history.

It’s also important to find a healthcare professional who can clearly outline when home birth is a safe option for you and when they would recommend a hospital transfer. For many people, it’s safer to give birth in a hospital.

Create a birth plan with your healthcare professional’s approval. Choose a pediatrician and arrange to have your baby seen within the first days following birth.

Just as in the hospital, your temperature, pulse, and blood pressure will be monitored only periodically during a home birth. At home, the baby’s heart rate will also be monitored periodically.

This can be different than a hospital, where it is more common to receive continuous fetal monitoring.

For people who are low risk, it’s been shown that continuous fetal monitoring does not improve outcomes. In fact, it has sometimes been found to lead to worse health outlook, according to the advocacy group Evidence Based Birth.

For someone who’s planning a hospital birth and has a low risk pregnancy, it’s usually recommended to only intermittently check baby’s heart rate (as opposed to continuously). So, when it comes to fetal monitoring in a home birth versus a hospital birth, it can be a similar experience.

There are some more high risk situations where continuous fetal monitoring in a hospital is warranted, but for someone who’s low risk, the risks frequently outweigh the benefits.

With a home birth, your insurance policy may not cover any associated costs. Check with your insurance provider for more information.

You’ll still need to work with a midwife or trained medical professional, and the cost can vary widely, depending on where you live.

Giving birth at home will require a little preparation. A private, peaceful space is important, and if you have older children, you’ll have to decide if you want them home or not.

A birth kit is also useful. You can discuss this with your midwife or doctor to make sure you’ll have everything you need. Most home birth providers will bring a large kit of medical supplies with them for your labor and birth. The supplies they ask you to get on your own will vary depending on your provider.

Basic supplies include:

  • absorbent pads with a waterproof bottom (aka “chux” pads)
  • a peri bottle
  • high absorbency menstrual pads for postpartum use
  • a bulb syringe
  • an antiseptic or antimicrobial soap
  • a cord clamp
  • nonsterile and sterile gloves
  • lubricant
  • a variety of gauze pads
  • alcohol prep pads

Additional items may include:

  • a basin for the placenta
  • a waterproof mattress cover
  • washcloths and towels
  • fresh sheets
  • clean receiving blankets
  • trash bags

One of the advantages of a home birth is the freedom to labor as you please, so you should also consider labor aids such as a birthing pool, a birth ball, and music. Many home birth midwives have birth tubs available to loan or rent to their clients.

A few facts about home births, according to 2019 research, include:

  • In 2017, 62,228 of births took place outside of a hospital.
  • There were 38,343 home births — a 77 percent increase from 2004 to 2017.
  • There were 19,878 birth center births — more than doubled from 2004 to 2017.
  • Montana and Vermont were the states with the highest percentage of home births.

Also in 2017, 98.4 percent of births in the United States were in hospitals

If you’re considering giving birth at home, start by learning more about the ins and outs of this experience.

You can read home birth stories online and look for local organizations that can provide more information. You should also speak with your midwife or doctor about the unique circumstances of your pregnancy.

Once you’ve got the all-clear to proceed, plan and prepare to make sure you have everything you’ll need to give birth to your baby safely at home.

13 Reasons to Consider a Home Birth

When I first got involved in the mom and baby business and started learning more about the birth industry years ago, I assumed everyone had their babies in the hospital, got an epidural, pushed on their back, and had a vaginal birth. Of course, I also knew about C-sections, but I thought a vaginal, medicated birth in the hospital was the way to have a baby. (Mind you, I was in my early 20s, and most of my labor and birth education came from TLC’s A Baby Story or anything in the movies. Ha!) When I heard that some people still chose and continue to choose to have their babies at home or a birth center, I assumed they were “hippy” women. Also, that it was dangerous to have a home birth, and these women were not taking advantage of modern technology and medicine.

I wondered: Is giving birth at home still safe to do today? What if something goes wrong? What if there are complications? Why would anyone want to do that? I also thought that since the epidural existed, why not use it? Well, knowing what I know now and having seen the things I have seen during hundreds of labors and births, it’s crazy and almost humorous for me to think back to what I thought then to what I know now. So if you want to learn a little more about home birth and are asking the same questions that I did, then this post is for you.

Disclaimer: A home birth is not for everyone. I support whatever you feel is best for you and your baby and whatever you want your birth experience to be like. About 98% of my clients give birth at the hospital, and I wholeheartedly support their decisions because this is their baby, their body, and their choice. Also, your health care provider will caution against a home birth if you have diabetes, chronic hypertension, a seizure disorder, or any chronic medical condition. If you previously had a C-section or have developed a pregnancy complication, such as preeclampsia, or if you are pregnant with multiples or your baby is in a breech position, a home birth might not be right for you. For healthy women, who are having a healthy pregnancy (low risk), and their baby is doing well and healthy, this is a great option for you and is actually encouraged.

1. Home Sweet Home

Where do you usually want to be when you’re not feeling well or having major PMS symptoms? For me, I want to be at home. There is nothing like cuddling up in your bed or on your couch in your home when you’re not feeling well. And guess what, when you’re in labor, you feel so much better at home, and your body responds better to it too. You know where the bathroom is (and who has used it), where the kitchen is and what food and drinks you have, and you aren’t confined to a small space. You have your whole home all to yourself, and you don’t have to share it with anyone else but your support team at your most vulnerable time. Here are some great benefits of being at home:

You don’t have to drive anywhere.

You can relax and get through each contraction comfortably anywhere you please in your home.

You won’t have strangers at your birth.

There won’t be random nurses, scrub techs, residents, or doctors walking in and out of your home as there would be at the hospital. When people are coming in and out constantly interrupting you in labor, it prolongs your labor. At a home birth, the people that are there are the people you have met before, you have developed a relationship with them, and you feel comfortable with them supporting you during your labor and birth. (More about this on point 3.)

You can wear what you want.

And won’t have to worry about monitors getting in the way since midwives use handheld dopplers to get fetal heart tones. You also don’t have to wear one of the hospital gowns. Who knows who wore that gown before you…

You can control the environment in your home.

If you want to have dim lights or have the lights off, you can do that. You can have candles lit, go in and out of your tub and/or shower, or open a window for fresh air. You can have a birth playlist and play music or use essential oils during your labor and delivery. You can use heating pads, hot packs, and cold packs without worrying about being told that they could burn you or hurt you. (Yes, I have had nurses tell me that I couldn’t warm up rice socks/packs to help with my client’s lower back pain since it could burn my client…yeah, right. Like I would heat it that much and put it on her.)

You can try any labor position that makes you feel most comfortable and are not restricted to staying in bed or a certain area.

Lying on your back or being in bed during labor is one of the most uncomfortable and painful positions. Movement helps! Sometimes the hospital staff wants you to stay in bed so they can get a continuous reading of your baby’s heart rate during your labor. This makes their job easier when you stay put since they have to move it usually every time you move, but it makes labor way more difficult for you. This is how you can even potentially break your coccyx (tailbone)! Being at home won’t limit you to one or two positions. You can move as you please!

You don’t need an ID bracelet for you or your baby when you give birth at home.

You know this is your baby, and no one is taking them from you.

No paperwork is necessary at your home birth.

All of your paperwork is done ahead of time.

Easy parking for guests.

Your family doesn’t have to pay valet, pay for parking, or navigate a giant parking lot and endless hallways to visit you. But you may want your visitors to wait a few days anyway…

You can keep your placenta.

Once your baby is born, most hospitals toss your placenta and label it as bio-hazardous material. Some won’t let you take it as if it wasn’t yours, to begin with… I mean, it just came out of your body! At a home birth, you can do whatever you want with your placenta. This is helpful if you are interested in encapsulating your placenta or need it for religious purposes.

You and your partner have your bed at home.

Sleeping on a foldout cot or a recliner beside your hospital bed isn’t the most comfortable. And you also get to sleep in your bed, which is much more comfortable than the hospital beds.

Your home is always more comfortable and quieter than any hospital room.

Duh. You won’t have someone walking in, waking you up, and checking your vitals every half hour at your house.

It’s so much more relaxing when you are at home. Imagine doing all these things during labor: resting in your own bed, curling up on your couch and watching a movie, rolling on your exercise ball/birth ball, cooking in your kitchen to pass the time or having a small snack, soaking in your tub, or pacing in your own space. Seriously, I have a hard enough time pooping somewhere new. This is why I’m having a hard time imagining trying to relax, go through labor, and give birth somewhere new. That makes the process so much more difficult.

2. Less Risk of Intervention

According to a large study, a home birth substantially reduces the risk of obstetric interventions. These include forceps, vacuum extraction, episiotomy, epidural, and cesarean section. In my opinion, more often than not, these medical interventions are what cause “emergency” situations that require a hospital in the first place.

In my experience, many interventions are done mainly because of time and the need to speed up the process. Rather than letting your labor and birth progress naturally, the hospital will force the process to speed up, so it goes along with the doctor’s schedule. And so they can then turn over the room and get another laboring woman in the bed to increase their numbers. The more women in and out, the more they get to bill for the day. It’s all about money and controlling the process so they can limit their chances of litigation but increase their bottom dollar. (Watch the documentary The Business of Being Born for more information.)

Home births have been associated with less maternal infection (because of fewer vaginal checks, not being around sick people, etc.), fewer maternal interventions, and fewer third or fourth-degree tears. Even an IV is considered an intervention, and your midwife won’t place one in your arm “just in case.” She will only start an IV if you and/or your baby need it. And not only that, your chances of getting a C-section are dramatically reduced when you decide to give birth at home.

3. Continuity of Care

If you choose a home birth, you’ll work with the same midwife throughout your pregnancy. Instead of 7- to 10-minute appointments, you’ll have 60-minute appointments. How nice! You’ll get to know your care provider and learn what to expect during your pregnancy and birth. A good midwife takes the time to know you and your baby; this relationship establishes trust and a bond essential to a healthy birth and delivery. You’re no longer strangers by the time your baby is born, which is great! Because what’s more personal than a stranger checking your cervix? I’m just sayin’.

4. No Restrictions

A home birth gives you the freedom to choose the number of people you want to be a part of your special moment. You can choose for it to be just you, your partner, and your midwife, or you can choose to have your partner, your older children, your mom, your doula, your birth photographer, your friends, your siblings, and/or even your dog or cat. (There’s nothing like snuggling up with your pet when you want some extra comfort. 🙂 ) At the hospital, you may be restricted to two or three people maximum. And, there will be 5-8 other people in your room while you’re pushing who you’ve never seen before. At least you’ll have two or three people there you know and trust…

Photo credit: Lentille PhotographyPhoto credit: Lentille Photography

You also have the choice of what room and where you want to give birth when you’re at home. You can even change rooms throughout your labor and even when you’re pushing to more comfortable and beneficial places. When you’re at the hospital, you have to labor, usually near your bed, because your monitor power cords only allow you to go a few feet. And with pushing, you have to give birth on the hospital bed, usually while lying on your back. This makes it easier for your doctor to catch your baby so they can then stand or sit comfortably on a stool as you push your baby out. (Have you ever taken a poop while laying on your back? Well, imagine pushing a melon out while laying on your back…)

Once your little one is born, you also have no restrictions on when you need to clamp and cut the umbilical cord. You don’t have to immediately give your baby a vitamin-K shot or Hepatitis-B shot either, and you don’t have to use the eye ointment (erythromycin) if you choose not to.

5. FOOD!

Okay, I know that women who give birth at a hospital can’t eat because of the extremely low risk of aspiration should a C-section be necessary. But seriously… have you ever labored for 35 hours and tried to push a watermelon through a keyhole on an empty stomach? Yeah, it’s as fun as it sounds… That’s like trying to run a marathon on nothing but ice chips. 🙁 When you’re at home, you are free to eat whatever, whenever you’d like, during your labor because you need that fuel for energy to finish the race feeling strong.

Also, if you have dietary restrictions (for example, you only eat kosher food, or you have a gluten intolerance), you will have all the types of food you like to eat and can eat for your labor and for after your baby is born.

  • Pack these snacks for labor and delivery
  • What to eat (and not eat) in early labor

6.

Less Expensive

A home birth is relatively low-cost compared to a hospital birth. A planned home birth might cost about one-third of the hospital birth’s cost. Call some of your local midwives for pricing and ask about insurance coverage. You can save a lot of money by choosing a home birth, and you could then use that extra money for diapers, wipes, a stroller, clothing, and all the other baby necessities.

7. YOU are in Control

Many women choose to give birth at home because they are afraid their birth plan will not be taken seriously at the hospital… and rightly so. I’ve heard people say that their doctor was entirely on board with everything on their birth plan, but then in the labor and delivery room, the doctor changed and ended up doing what they preferred and went against their plan. Yes, these things do happen. Even if you do have the best doctor, you aren’t guaranteed that your doctor will be on-call the day you go into labor. Who knows which doctor will be working that night or day and what nurses you’ll have. The last thing a laboring mother wants to do is argue over her birth plan and defend herself. She’s already going through enough. But unfortunately, this happens more often than you might think.

Unlike a hospital birth, you are in control. If you want to move, you can move. If you want to eat, you can eat. If you want to go on a walk outside, go to your garden, watch a movie, have a dance party, you can! Your partner is also allowed to be more involved — he may be able to catch the baby (if you and he feel comfortable with that), and he can cut the cord. You also can bring your baby immediately to your chest once they are born. There is no time constraint, and you can hold and bond with your baby as long as you’d like.

In some hospitals, the baby is cleaned and evaluated immediately after delivery in a warming unit, preventing mothers from spending time with the baby right after birth. For a home birth, cleaning and evaluation are done in your arms. The first hour after birth is the golden hour, and it’s the perfect time to bond by holding your baby skin-to-skin and start breastfeeding.

Photo credit: Lentille Photography

If you decide on a hospital birth, be specific when writing your birth plan and continually discuss your preferences and your birth plan with your care provider.

Also, because you are in control, there is no pressure to circumcise, vaccinate, or apply for a Social Security number for your baby right after a home birth. You can do these things once you and your baby have settled after the big event. You both have been through a lot, so taking your time, recovering after birth, and resting is important. At home, you won’t be rushed to do things. You get to go at your own pace.

8. It’s All About You

Photo credit: Lentille Photography

You have your health care provider all to yourself during a home birth. They aren’t leaving you and coming back once more until your baby’s crowning. Your midwife is 100% focused on you and your baby. The midwife will be with you to provide support, monitor the health and wellbeing of you and your baby, and help you through labor and birth. They carry the same equipment and medication you would find at a birth center, so if you need something, she will be able to care of it. Your midwife will also stay with you for several hours after your birth to help with cleaning up, making sure that you and baby are doing well and are healthy, and she will follow up with you several times to visit and give you lactation advice after the birth.

9. You Can Push in Any Position

Photo credit: Lentille Photography

Whether you want to push on a birth ball, bed, tub, birthing stool, shower, or bedroom floor, it doesn’t matter. If you want to squat against a wall, birth in the tub, push on your side, on all fours, or knees to face, go for it. You don’t have any restrictions when it comes time to push because as long as you and your baby are doing well, a midwife doesn’t mind bending down or reaching a bit to help catch your baby.

10. Having a Natural Labor & Birth

Photo credit: Lentille Photography

If you desire to go through labor naturally, with no epidural and pain medications, a home birth is an excellent option. If you want to remain in control of your body as much as possible, be an active participant throughout your labor, not have many limitations, and have minimal routine interventions (such as continuous electronic monitoring, an IV, vaginal checks every few hours, etc.), a natural, unmedicated labor and birth is the birth you want.

With the proper preparation and support (consider taking a good childbirth class and hiring a doula), mothers often feel empowered and deeply satisfied by natural childbirth. Only when women do not receive the proper education and continuous hands-on emotional, physical, and informational support can they experience unhappiness and dissatisfaction with a natural birth. But unlike pain meds, natural childbirth techniques are not invasive, so there’s no or minimal potential for harm or side effects for you or your baby.

11. It’s Just As Safe (If Not Safer) Than a Hospital Birth

A planned home birth attended by a certified midwife has very low perinatal death compared to hospital birth, significantly lower maternal mortality rates, and a 97% birth experience satisfaction rate, which is much greater than hospital birth experiences. These reasons alone should make women reconsider and give birth at home. The largest study of U.S. home births confirmed these findings. Also, it included women who would typically have been considered high-risk (for example, breech, VBAC, multiple gestations, preeclampsia, gestational diabetes).

12. Quicker Birth, Faster and Easier Recoveries

From my experience, women who give birth at home seem to bounce back quicker. This could be due to many reasons:

  • the lack of interventions during labor and birth
  • you can rest in your own bed without an interruption every 30 minutes
  • home-cooked meals that are to your liking and in line with your diet
  • long herbal baths to help soothe your parts and help with recovery
  • and you have the intimate care of your midwife, family, and friends

13. You Can Have Both

If you decide to give birth at home, it doesn’t mean you can’t have the benefits of a hospital, should you need one. During your prenatal visits with your midwife, she will share with you all the potential “what if’s” and discuss a backup plan with you should an emergency arise. Midwives have good systems in place for transfer to a hospital when it is necessary. And a good midwife always comes equipped with good emergency plans and the ability to recognize if and when you need to use them.

Just remember that hospitals are open 24/7, and your midwife will not want to wait until it is too late to make a call or a transfer. So if you need a hospital, it will be there.

I hope these points have answered many of your questions and cleared up misunderstandings about giving birth at home. I know that home birth isn’t for everyone, but if you feel drawn to it, I say, go for it! It’s not as crazy as it sounds.

If you’re unsure whether you have medical or obstetrical problems that would keep you from having a home birth, contact a home birth provider and share your concerns with her. If there are no obvious reasons to rule out a home birth, you can make an appointment for a prenatal visit. At that visit, the caregiver will do a detailed history and physical exam, as well as the usual set of lab tests. She’ll continue to assess your situation throughout your pregnancy and during your labor, birth, and the postpartum period. If you’re a healthy expectant mother having a normal pregnancy and have no medical or obstetrical risk factors, giving birth at home is a great option and should be considered.

Thank you, Lentille Photography, for the photos, and a huge thanks to the S family for allowing me to share your pictures of your beautiful home birth! ❤️

We give birth like at home - articles from the specialists of the clinic "Mother and Child"

Zimina Natalya Nikolaevna

Obstetrician-gynecologist

MD GROUP Clinical Hospital

Presentation of home birth

The most typical arguments of supporters of home births:

  • A woman's body is designed specifically to give birth to children. By nature, it has all the necessary strengths and capabilities to give birth to a healthy child on its own, which means that the help of a doctor in this process is completely unnecessary.
  • The maternity hospital is not needed, because the atmosphere in it is official, hospital, and this does not contribute to relaxation in contractions and the opening of the cervix.
  • When giving birth at home, you can take any position that is comfortable for the woman.
  • And at home, you can give birth in the water (in the bath), or at least just relieve contractions by immersion in water.
  • During home birth, not strangers (doctors, midwives) will be nearby, but the husband, relatives or friends.
  • From the first minutes of birth, the child will be constantly next to his mother, he will not be supplemented, he will not be subjected to unnecessary manipulations and examinations.

Well, ideally, supporters of home births present them like this: effective contractions begin at 40 weeks, the first stage of labor lasts no longer than 10-12 hours. At this time, the woman in labor behaves in a way that is convenient for her, takes comfortable postures, uses techniques to anesthetize contractions (massage, breathing, water). Then comes the complete opening of the cervix, water spontaneously pours out, there are attempts, during which a healthy baby is born without much effort. The child is immediately applied to the mother's breast - he sucks it as much as he wants, the umbilical cord is cut only after the end of the pulsation. Mom has no breaks, the child is absolutely healthy. In general, everyone is satisfied and happy.

Actually

The picture of home birth is presented, of course, idyllically. And how happy ordinary women would be, and doctors too, if every birth went that way. But it’s not always possible to give birth the way you breathe. In childbirth or immediately after them, various unpleasant situations can arise with a woman or a child. We will not list them so as not to upset anyone. Let's just say that often the life and health of a mother and baby depend precisely on how quickly they received medical assistance . But what can be done at home in such a situation? The only thing is to call an ambulance, because it is impossible to help a child with asphyxia or a woman with bleeding or high blood pressure without certain drugs, equipment, and simply medical skills. But after all, one of the specialists will be present at the birth with the expectant mother? Good obstetricians and gynecologists are well aware of the high risk of home births, so they do not accept births at home, and a midwife, even with experience, will only cope with the simplest situation. In addition, many so-called spiritual obstetricians, as a rule, do not even have a higher, often secondary medical education, and, of course, they do not bear any legal responsibility for the outcome of childbirth. And it happens that sometimes in home births there is no midwife at all (did not come or the woman was convinced that she was not needed). Therefore, of course, we can agree that the home environment helps a lot, but will it be possible to give birth in it in the event of some non-standard or difficult situation?

Natural childbirth is possible

But how then to ensure naturalness in childbirth and are there such childbirth at all? In fact, today, natural childbirth is widely carried out in most maternity hospitals, and is not only carried out, but also actively promoted . If everything goes well, if the birth proceeds correctly, if the baby’s heart beats evenly, and the mother feels good, the doctors of the maternity hospital do not interfere with the birth, but simply observe their course. A woman gives birth on her own, as nature dictates. But what about the notorious home comfort in childbirth? Turns out today many maternity hospitals provide natural childbirth "at home" :

  • Almost everywhere now free behavior during childbirth is actively practiced : a woman in labor does not have to lie on the bed all the contractions, but can choose any position.
  • In many maternity hospitals there are various devices to facilitate contractions : transforming beds, balls, ropes (with their help you can take different positions in contractions), and in some, in addition to the shower, there is even a jacuzzi in which you can spend the first stage of childbirth.
  • Of course, not all, but already many Russian maternity hospitals have either been renovated or built in accordance with modern ideas about beauty and comfort . Even in free maternity hospitals there are cozy double rooms with a private bathroom, fresh renovation and beautiful linens. What can we say about childbirth under a contract or in a commercial clinic - the conditions there are more than excellent.
  • According to the order of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, in any maternity hospital where there are separate maternity boxes, a husband, girlfriend, personal midwife or even a psychologist can be present at the birth, and absolutely free of charge . So, the expectant mother will not be left without support.
  • Today, in all maternity hospitals, babies are immediately applied to the mother's breast; it is also possible for mother and baby to stay together in the postpartum department.
  • Now you can easily find a maternity hospital where you can live together with your husband after childbirth in a comfortable family room . All this, of course, is not free - but if you really want it, then it is quite feasible.

So do not be afraid of the maternity hospital: it has all the conditions for natural and safe childbirth. And home birth is an unjustified risk and an unknown result.

Have you read at least one story about childbirth at home that ended unsuccessfully? Hardly. And if they read it, it is not enough. And the reason for this, as a rule, is the same: with an unfavorable development of childbirth and problems with the child, a woman is aware of her carelessness and simply keeps silent about it.

“They used to give birth in the field” is one of the popular arguments of supporters of home births. They gave birth, but only the mortality rate in childbirth (both children and mothers) was extremely high.

An individual approach to the future mother and her baby, living together, free behavior during childbirth, the opportunity to choose a doctor and midwife, take a husband to give birth - all this is now available in many Russian maternity hospitals

5 signs that you are having a natural birth in the hospital

  1. Freedom of movement: in the maternity box there is a multifunctional bed-transformer, balls, ropes.
  2. Presence of a partner: a future father, girlfriend or psychologist is welcome at the birth.
  3. Natural Pain Relief: The delivery room has hydromassage baths or showers to ease contractions during the first stage of labour.
  4. Living together with the child: in the maternity hospital, the constant presence of the baby with the mother and breastfeeding are practiced.

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    03/15/2018

    God loves trinity
    Zimina Natalya Nikolaevna Normantovich Tatyana Olegovna

    pluses, risks and advice from doctors

    Childbirth at home is becoming more and more popular every year, including in the Belgorod region. However, the desire for maximum naturalness is associated with health risks for mother and child. Who conducts home births, why women do not want to go to the hospital and what doctors think - in this material.

    Expectant mothers dream that their child will be born in an atmosphere of calm and comfort. In their opinion, this is impossible in the hospital, unlike at home.

    Home birth occurs with minimal intervention in the process. Only a midwife, family doctor, OB/GYN or doula can participate. The latter are considered trained companions and are not health professionals.

    Usually a doula provides psychological support during childbirth. She sets up the expectant mother for the process and helps the woman with advice in the first days after the birth of the child.

    Svetlana Kulakova , head of the delivery room at the perinatal center of the Belgorod Regional Hospital , agrees that some women want additional psychological support. However, doctors follow the clinical protocols that are adopted in the Russian Federation. They help to carry out procedures and minimize risks for mother and child.

    Comfortable home delivery is not the same as being safe. So, in 2020, in the Belgorod region, a woman died from bleeding during a home birth.

    What the medical community thinks about home births and how women are guided when making such a decision - in the material "Bel. Ru".

    Statistics

    Over five years, 20 home births have been registered in the Belgorod Region. As Bel.Ru was told in the regional government, the women did not report their intention to give birth at home. It is also not known which of the health workers was present at the time of the birth of the children.

    From 2017 to 2021, one woman and one child died as a result of home births. He was born dead. A total of 19 were bornchildren.

    Patients who gave birth spontaneously at home refused further medical supervision.

    Photo: Bel.Ru

    Why do women decide to give birth at home?

    In search of doulas and women who refused to give birth in the hospital, we went to Instagram. There are enough adherents of this direction in the popular social network. Naturally, among them there are both people who treat home births quite calmly and do not oppose medical intervention, as well as quite radical users who consider doctors almost enemies.

    For example, doula Tatyana Mejidova teaches women to give birth. Judging by the description, the mentor has eight children, and she helped 395 boys and girls to be born.

    In one of the posts, the doula said that she gave birth to four of her children in the maternity hospital. The woman noted that the place where the birth itself takes place is not so important. The first thing is to follow the rules.

    According to Mejidova, a woman can give birth in the comfort of her own home in a clinic, but this will result in a large sum of money. And hiring a midwife or doula at home is quite problematic, because there are few “worthy” ones.

    The woman gave birth alone. Only her husband helped her. At the same time, she urges her subscribers not to make a panacea out of home birth. In her opinion, such a place for the birth of a child is “cool, beautiful, safe and free,” but giving birth at home is not at all necessary.

    You can come and push in the hospital. And an hour after the birth to return home. This will require a lawyer. I think it's better to pay a lawyer and give birth in a maternity hospital than to an incomprehensible home midwife, turning childbirth into a lottery. By paying for a home birth, most women want to get rid of the responsibility: “I paid, so take birth with me.” And the whole point is not in the process of childbirth. You pay for preparation. Tatyana Mejidova, doula

    We have found another active woman who advocates home birth. This is Lucy Maratkanova from Brazil. At the end of January 2017, her son was born in a home birth. According to the blogger, it was planned. After a successful experience, she decided to create a network of international maternity eco-villages in Brazil.

    In a post about her work as a home midwife, a woman stated that she chose to give birth at home for safety reasons. She called the maternity hospital a state institution of a regime type and compared it with a prison. According to Lucy Maratkanova, childbirth is a purely family event. The woman wants the work of home midwives legalized. By the way, home births are not prohibited in Russia.

    When asked by subscribers whether it is worth calling an ambulance after a home birth, the home midwife said that this is the most senseless and harmful decision if everything is fine with the woman and the child. She explained her position by the uselessness of attracting strangers and often aggressive people into the space.

    To give birth to a child in a healthy microbiome in order to establish immunity for life, in order to immediately destroy it with a hospital microbiome dangerous for the baby? It is necessary to carefully prepare for childbirth so that such thoughts do not arise. Lusya Maratkanova

    The woman is also convinced that any mother's question about the child's condition can be answered in the Google search engine.

    Photo: screenshot

    Doctors: for or against home birth

    The Bel. Ru editors contacted Svetlana Kulakova, head of the maternity ward of the perinatal center of the Belgorod Regional Hospital . The medic called home births a strange trend in recent years. According to the expert, every year the number of women who decide to give birth at home is growing exponentially.

    Many women who gave birth at home simply do not admit that it was a conscious step: they say that they did not have time to call an ambulance and there was a rapid delivery. Svetlana Kulakova

    When choosing a home birth, women strive for a natural process. They themselves choose the position in which they will give birth. In a conventional clinic, children are often born in the obstetric chair. Also, women are against medicines.

    Doctor Svetlana Kulakova explained to Bel.Ru that any intervention in the maternity hospital is carried out only to facilitate the course of childbirth, as well as to protect the woman in labor and the child. Without evidence, doctors do not interfere in the process.

    I really hope that they are led by at least midwives with medical education. But, as a rule, they are carried out by people with a secondary medical education or those who have completed three to four-month courses. They are not licensed to perform these home births. These midwives, as a rule, violate the legislation of the Russian Federation. Well, they do not give any Hippocratic oath, one of the main principles of which is do no harm. Svetlana Kulakova

    Photo: Bel.Ru

    As for complications in home birth, as a result of this process, there is a risk of mother and child becoming infected. According to Kulakova, it is difficult to follow all the precautions at home. There is also a risk of intrauterine fetal death. The medical community is doubtful that a home midwife will come with a cardiotocography machine to monitor the baby's heartbeat.

    A woman may experience life-threatening bleeding as a result of placental abruption, uterine rupture, or trauma to the cervix. In such situations, the mother can lose her entire circulating blood volume within 50 minutes. According to Kulakova, at home, where it is impossible to stop bleeding in a timely manner and provide blood transfusions, this leads to death.

    A team of five specialists works with a woman in the delivery room. This is a midwife, obstetrician-gynecologist, anesthesiologist, neonatologist. At home, all these functions are performed by only one midwife.

    The opinion of American obstetrician-gynecologists, which was published in July 2021, states that the birth of a child in home birth is a triple risk of neonatal convulsions, various disorders, including cerebral palsy, a double number of children who suffered hypoxia during childbirth. But it's up to you to prioritize. Svetlana Kulakova

    As for other countries, according to Kulakova, up to 30% of births in the Netherlands take place at home. The country legalized and paid for this procedure. The people who participate in it are responsible for the life and health of the woman and child.

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