Intro and ? - home birth v. center

< Return to Natural Childbirth
Look Who's Talking…
  • neska
  • selena..
  • therad..
Post a Reply
neska
by neska
Posts 2247
Hi! Thought I'd introduce myself over here. I'm also looking for opinions/input on a home birth v. birth center.

I'm 34 years old and have been on BZ since I got pregnant with twins in 2008, born in November 2008. In addition to the twins, we have a 17-month-old singleton, born in December 2010. I'm now over 17 weeks pg with my fourth and final baby -- a BOY after having three girls! We're so excited.

Anyway, my other babies were all hospital births. The twins were vaginal, but with pretty much every intervention you can think of. The singleton was an unintended natural birth and was such an amazing experience. For this baby, I've switched to a midwife for another natural birth, this time out of hospital.

So now, I could really use some input/opinions. I'm torn on whether to birth at home or at the center. Some pros/cons I'm thinking:

Birth center pros
-Close to hospital in case of transfer
-Has all amenities on hand, already clean
-Don't have to worry about buying stuff for midwives' comfort
-No kids around
-Beautiful bed-and-breakfast setting
-Feeling of "going somewhere" to birth; maybe makes it feel more "official" or exciting somehow?

Birth center cons
-Have to pack up and go home soon after birth (usually within 8 hours) - might feel rushed

Home birth pros
-Have everything I like at hand - my own towels, shower/tub, food/drinks, furniture
-Don't have to leave afterward

Home birth cons
-I would be neurotic about keeping the house clean for the midwives. Silly, but it's "my thing"
-What about our three kids? During the day, they could go with ILs, but if I labor at night, I might be hesitant to make too much noise/vocalize so as not to wake them
-Have to have things on hand for midwives' comfort (food/drinks = shopping, $$)
-We're renting this house, so there's the fear of any clean-up/stains for deposit purposes. Also the feeling that the memories we make during the birth stay here when we move out.

What do you all think?
Image
Image
Image
Selena..
by SelenaJean
Posts 6935
Hello and welcome, congrats on your baby boy on the way! I had my fourth baby at home and loved it. I'm personally glad I chose a home birth over a birth center. Midwives carry all the equipment to your home that a birth center would have and I loved not having to go anywhere in labor. My son was born in the middle of the night and we lived in a house with thin walls but my older three slept right through it. I really liked that I crawled strait into my own bed with my baby snuggled up to me after he was born. There was no getting dressed, loading him into a car seat etc. Also it was really peaceful and seamless adding the new baby into the family. There was no big upheaval of me being gone and bringing a new baby home. My kids got up in the morning, ran into our room and their new brother was there. It just felt natural like he'd always been part of the family. As for a mess or stains there were none. We had a water birth and the tub was set up in our room. So the mess was in the tub and the midwives pumped it down the toilet and cleaned up everything. There was no evidence a birth had taken place within two hours of his birth. We rented too and I was a bit sad to leave when we moved but I have pictures :) Oh and my DH helped me keep the house clean and cleaned the entire house while I was in early labor while waiting for the midwives to arrive.
*********************
Image
Image
Image
therad..
by theradatz_BZCL
Posts 697
I had my 5th at home. I loved the seamless adaptation to the new baby. Their was minor staining on my bedding and mattress that came out with peroxide. She was delivered in the bed. The midwives cleaned everything and changed our sheets. They were all cleaned up and gone within 2 hours and quietly left us alone. It was my best birth as the other 4 were in the hospital. This baby is again coming here at home. Welcome and best of luck, whichever you choose should be better than the hospital.
Image

Co-leader August 2012 BDC

Joe,12, Cassie,10, Hannah,8, Thomas,5, Grace,3, Rebekah!
Real-mom dispatches from the Baby Zone

baby name finder

Find names by:
GENDER
STARTSwith the letter
ORIGIN