5 questions to ask yourself when considering home birth.
Do you feel the tug in your soul to have a beautiful, intimate home birth but you aren’t sure if it’s the right path for you? Ask yourself the following questions to help guide you toward the best choice for your family.
Disclaimer: This is intended for educational purposes only, not medical advice. Be sure to meet with a midwife to assess your eligibility for a home birth. This blog may also contain affiliate links, meaning we may make a small commission at no extra cost to you.
1. Do you have a midwife you trust?
Take your time researching midwives in your area. A simple internet search can get you started. If you know of any women in your community who have had a home birth, reach out to them and get a personal recommendation for a midwife. If you don’t personally know anyone who has had a home birth, join a related Facebook group and make a post asking for local recommendations.
Schedule a meeting or consultation with a midwife and they will first determine if your pregnancy is eligible for a home birth. Some health conditions or complications may rule out the option of home birth. Use the first consultation with the midwife to ask questions and gauge whether or not they are a good fit for you. It’s okay to meet with multiple midwives before deciding who you are most comfortable with!
2. Is your partner supportive of home birth?
Dads can be hesitant when home birth is brought up. Their hesitancy is usually due to a lack of information. Most men have only heard of or experienced birth in a hospital setting so hearing about your desire to have a home birth may sound crazy to them. When I decided I wanted to have a home birth, it took a couple of weeks, many conversations, and a consultation with our midwife to get my husband on board. My husband, a firefighter and paramedic, was mainly concerned about the safety of home birth. The majority of his experience with birth was responding to new moms and babies who had accidental, unassisted, out-of-hospital births, meaning these women were not intending to birth their babies outside of a hospital setting. Once my husband heard the facts about home birth and the credentials of our midwife, he felt much more comfortable with the idea of giving birth to our child at home.
If your husband is someone who needs to read the statistics for himself rather than just being told it’s safe, ask your midwife for resources that discuss the safety of midwife-led home births.
Once your partner is educated on the logistics and safety of birthing at home, it’s a good idea to look into natural birth courses to take together. There are many in-person and online birth courses to choose from. Your midwife might offer a course at their practice or they can recommend an online birth course.
3. Are you willing and prepared to have an unmedicated, natural birth?
Epidurals and IV pain medications are not available during a home birth. There are many other natural coping mechanisms to help you manage through labor. As mentioned before, taking a birth course with your partner will give you all the tools and confidence you need to cope with labor. Your midwife will also be a wealth of knowledge and can coach you through labor.
Aside from taking a natural birth course, there are a few other things that can help you prepare for an unmedicated birth. Read positive home birth stories and books about childbirth. The excitement and anticipation of getting to experience the overwhelming feeling of triumph from trusting your body to deliver your baby will bubble up as you invest time into learning about natural birth.
4. Do you want to be in control of your birth?
If you would like to be in control of every aspect of your pregnancy and birth, then working with a midwife and having a home birth may be a good option for you. Unfortunately, modern medicine often views pregnancy as a medical condition needed to be treated rather than a natural body process. Our bodies were designed to give birth and when given the chance, our bodies can do incredible things without medical intervention. Midwives make sure you are heard and seen throughout your entire pregnancy, birth, and postpartum journey. With their guidance, you have the freedom to make informed decisions and have the birth experience you desire.
Birthing at home also gives you control over your environment. Ina May Gaskin, the famous American midwife and author, discusses at length the need for safe surroundings during birth in her book, Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth. In the comfort of your own home, you can be in control of the environment: lighting, temperature, people present, food and drink available, etc.
5. Are you willing to make your home suitable for a home birth?
Generally speaking, most homes are suitable for a home birth but there is some prep work that will need to be done. Factors like having reliable power and running water, proximity to your local hospital, an area to set up your birth space, and the ability to gather the necessary supplies are all things to consider when deciding to give birth in your home. Your midwife will provide a list of supplies you will need to collect and it will be your responsibility to prepare your birthing space as you approach the end of your pregnancy.
If after processing these 5 questions you feel confident in choosing home birth, take the first step by getting in touch with a local midwife. They will be able to answer any additional questions you may have and assess your eligibility for home birth. If you are local to the Kansas City area, book a free consultation with the midwives of Glory Birth to see if you are a good fit for each other! Choosing to give birth at home puts you in the driver’s seat of your pregnancy and gives you the freedom to create the birthing experience you desire.