It didn’t take long after the unexpected, traumatic crash cesarean section of my first born to decide that next time around, I wanted to do things differently. As I recovered from surgery and started researching all things birth, I came to the conclusion that a home birth was the way to go. After successfully completing our home birth just 3 weeks ago (baby girl is beautiful, and we are SO in love!), I’ve compiled 7 tips that I know will set you and your family up for a successful home birth as well.
A quick look at what’s in this blog:
- Tip One: Your Midwife Team
- Tip Two: Books
- Tip Three: Podcasts
- Tip Four: Doulas
- Tip Five: Envision
- Tip Six: Nest!
- Tip Seven: Protect your Plan
1. Tip One: Your Midwife Team
There is such a thing as “free birth” and I want to mention that briefly. It’s the process of having a baby at home without any medical or midwifery assistance. I know people who have done this and it was absolutely the right decision for them. I personally don’t have the guts to do a free birth- which I think is what most people uneducated in the home birth realm picture when you say you’re having your baby at home. So I can’t comment on a free birth experience.
However, I CAN speak for the incredible experience of having a qualified, trusted midwife team attend your birth. It can be difficult to find the right midwife, or to even find one in your area, but don’t give up on your search if you aren’t having any luck. We ended up finding ours purely through word of mouth- not through internet searches (though that’s a great place to start).
All midwives are different, and some have more training and capabilities than others. When we first met with the midwife we ended up hiring, my husband and I came loaded with questions. Things like, “What special care do you give VBAC patients?” and “What is your hospital transfer rate?” I quickly gained a trust as she described her practice and we talked about my hopes for this next birth.
My midwife team had the calmest demeanor- they didn’t flinch at anything, even when I hemorrhaged after birth. They used their expertise and discernment to make quick decisions about when and how much medical intervention was necessary. A good midwife team will have this same calm energy and swift action at your birth as well.
Midwives offer a bridge between the hospital and home birth world. They can’t perform c-sections or offer epidurals, but a well trained midwife will know some of the warnings signs and recommend a hospital transfer long before you are in the thick on an “emergency.” It allows you the headspace to “check out” while you are focused on laboring. You don’t have to think about every detail of what’s happening in your body or monitoring yourself because the midwives are doing that for you.
Many midwives have the training and tools to do things such as administer Pitocin, suture 1st and 2nd degree tears, offer IVs for fluid and antibiotics, deliver breech babies, offer some types of pain relievers (check out this other blog if you’re looking for natural ways to curb the pain of contractions!), monitor baby’s heartrate, and borrow you equipment such as birthing tubs just to name a few. You’ll want to find out if the midwives you’re considering can do some of these things if you want access to those services outside of the hospital. Our midwife team was able to offer all of the things mentioned here.
2. Tip Two: Books
Take this as you will, this tip comes rom a person who does not read. Like, ever. I actually wish I did because it seems like an appealing, leisurely thing to do- I just don’t. So when I recommend that you read these two books, I mean you really need to buy these and commit time in your life to read them.
Book One:
The first one is Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth by Ina May Gaskin. The first part of the book is flooded with incredible stories of women who have gone before us and successfully had their babies. The stories will inspire you, equip you, and nourish your imagination to help you prepare for your own baby to come into this world. In the second half of the book, Ina May breaks down the actual process of birth and educates you on technical things like the Sphincter Law, the Gaskin Maneuver (and the beautiful story of where she learned the technique from), and statistics on midwifery care vs. hospital care.
I actually think everyone who is even birthing at a hospital should read this book. Better yet, if you’ve even considered getting pregnant… or have just been someone who’s been born yourself, you should read this book (that includes everybody, in case you missed that). That’s how life changing it is.
Book Two:
The next book is called Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way by Susan McCutcheon, revised edition. This one doesn’t have the heart warming stories the Ina May book has, but it’s packed with incredible information on laboring strategies, the birth process, education on the female anatomy (even as a woman myself, I had no idea about some of these things), and even “signposts” to determine how far along you are in labor (and spoiler alert, it’s not dilation!).
3. Tip Three: Podcasts
I highly recommend surrounding yourself with as much birth information and inspiration as you can find. Listening to podcasts is an excellent way to accomplish this. Listen to them in the car, while you’re meal prepping, when your kids are down for a nap, etc. There are a TON of great podcasts about all things birth and homebirth out there. To name just a few, there’s…
The VBAC Link by Meagan Heaton
Happy Homebirth by Katelyn Fusco
Built to Birth by Bridget Teyler, and, my personal favorite…
Birthing Instincts by Dr. Stuart Fischbein and Midwife Blyss Young
Find one that sounds appealing to you and have a listen! I owe a big chunk of the success of my home birth to guidance and wisdom I stashed away in my mind from listening to these podcasts.
4. Tip Four: Doulas!
I’ll keep this short and to the point: get yourself a doula. Find a doula who you vibe with and hire them. The cost can seem like a lot (hundreds of dollars, upward to a thousand dollars), but I consider this an investment into one of the most important and sacred occasions of your life. If you’re going to spare a buck, your birth is not the place to make that compromise.
I see you over there reading this with squinty, skeptical eyes. Invite a stranger to your birth and spend THAT amount of money on someone who doesn’t provide any medical care like the midwives can? Let me just casually leave this list of things doulas offer you during labor right here..
- Emotional support
- Physical support (think counter pressure)
- Help guide your partner to assist you with strategies for the supports mentioned above
- Coach you through contractions with breathing and mindset techniques
- Feed you positive affirmations
- Comforting massage
- Rebozo techniques
That is by no means an exhaustive list. Not to mention the statistics that improve when a doula is present… (Taken from the infographic on this site. Sources are listed at the bottom.)
- 28% decreased risk for cesarean
- Shorter labors
- Higher APGAR scores for baby
- 60% less likely to ask for an epidural
- Fewer births where vacuums or forceps are used
- 40% less likely to need drugs to get labor started or sped up
- A reduction in pain meds of any kind being used
5. Tip Five: Envision your Birth
One of the things I practiced a lot to prepare for a successful home birth was to visualize it happening. I pictured myself going into labor. I thought about having contractions while playing with my toddler in his room. I envisioned contractions picking up speed as I got out my yoga ball to bounce on in the living room. I anticipated the moment I would slowly make my way into the dining room and slide into the warm water of the birth tub. I smiled contemplating the joy we would all feel once baby arrived and we’d finally find out if this long awaited gift was a girl or boy.
The beauty of a home birth is you’re not headed to an unfamiliar, numbered door in a sea of sterile hospital rooms. You are birthing in the sanctuary of your own home. Picturing the birth taking place in our home is one of the factors that I believe helped me get into the role so well once labor started. I was prepared and excited.. I had been “practicing” in my mind for this moment and I was ready.
6. Tip Six: Get Your House in Order and Nest!
This one may come naturally to my pregnant mamas out there. I cannot tell you how much more wonderful it made our homebirth experience to have our house clean, organized, and prepped for the birth ahead of time.
If there is clutter in your house that is bothering you, organize it and clear it out. An organized house allows for an organized mind, and you’re definitely going to want that while you labor. In my experience, less clutter = more peace.
Have a plan for where you want things like a birth tub if you plan to use one. Gather supplies for yourself and baby for immediately after birth (pads, comfy clothes, diapers, blankets, extra towels, and so forth). Have your pantry stocked with your favorite snacks for laboring and post partum.
After decluttering and planning the layout, I dug into my creative side and decorated the birth space. I printed off these floral coloring affirmation cards from Birth Uprising and hung them up where I knew we would be placing the tub. I hung a string of white Christmas lights in the room and put together a “welcome baby” basket filled with their first diaper, onesie, and a receiving blanket.
7. Tip Seven: Protect Your Plan
This tip is so important to having a successful home birth. Birth is 50% power, 50% focus. Your mindset- what you choose to believe is true about the aspects of birth and your capacity to birth a baby safely at home– is going to heavily influence your experience. My suggestion is to only share your birth plan with people in your life that you know will support your decision. Birth is a very vulnerable and personal thing to go through and the decisions you make for your family doesn’t have to be anyone else’s business.
Some people in your life, whether they be friends or family, will inevitably have strong feelings about how and where your birth should happen (even though your birth decisions don’t affect them at all). No matter how many statistics you share about the safety of home birth or the rates of devastating outcomes at the hospital, these people will always say you are putting yourself and your baby in danger by birthing at home. Don’t listen to them. And, if possible, don’t share your plans with them in the first place.
We ourselves didn’t share our home birth plan with certain close family members. How did we avoid that topic for 9 months? Actually, it was easier than I thought it would be. They knew we were pregnant of course, and asked us a few questions that we were able to answer without disclosing our birth location. When they mentioned the hospital a few times (not as a question), we just disregarded it and moved on.
If we were to have been directly asked by someone about our plans and didn’t feel comfortable informing them, we would have kindly responded with, “We are choosing not to share the details of our birth plan with everyone. We will definitely keep you in the loop as labor starts and baby is born!” Direct questions would have been things like, “Which hospital are you birthing at?” or “Who are you having deliver your baby?”
In Conclusion…
I pray peace and joy over the beautiful birth of your baby if you’re here reading this as you prepare for their arrival. You absolutely have it in you to birth this baby- and to have them in the comfort of your home. Remember to tell yourself that every day. Babies are such a blessing and I’m so grateful you’ve allowed me to share the things that helped us make our home birth so successful with you. If you already had your home birth, drop a quick comment below on which number baby you had at home and if any of these tips helped you out!
Sincerely,
Jeannie