Hospital or Home Birth? Why I Chose a Hospital Birth

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Disclaimer
This is a series of posts that we have dedicated to new moms who desire a natural birth experience! These posts are not written to sway you one way or another but to simply give our experiences, share information we found useful, and to encourage the safest, best birth for you and your baby!

-Tori and Anna

There are so many things that go into choosing the right birth experience for you and your baby. Here, we are going to go through some reasons why I chose to do a hospital birth over a home birth.

1. I had good options for a hospital birth.

In the area where I live, I am within thirty to forty- five minutes of several highly rated hospitals. I researched them all extensively and made the choice that fit my desires best. Some things I looked for were:

• Low Cesarean birth rate
• Offered a birthing tub
• Had policies that encouraged natural deliveries
• Offered midwife providers
• “Rooming In” was standard policy (most hospitals do this, but it’s still better to check just so there are no surprises)
• Access to wireless monitoring so I could move around
• NICU (so no transfer in an emergency)

Obviously, you may not be able to have all of your desires met, so pick which things are most important to you. The success of your birth has a lot to do with where you choose, so take time when making this decision and do your research.

Read about Anna’s amazing hospital birth here!

2. Hospitals do not make me nervous.

Some women find a hospital setting very intimidating and unsettling. This will add stress and tension to your delivery, not something we want when trying to birth our little one. I spent a lot of time in hospitals throughout my teenage and young adult life due to chronic health issues. Because of this, I am used to them and honestly find them quite comfortable (weird, I know), so being in one for my delivery was a relief instead of a stress. If you find hospitals scary but aren’t sure about a home birth either, there are a few things I would suggest.

Look into a birth center.

This is the middle ground between home and hospital. Just know you most likely won’t have access to an epidural at a birth center, so no changing your mind.

Bring items that would make your hospital experience more cozy.

You can bring fairy lights, your favorite blanket, battery-operated candles, a diffuser for essential oils, and any other item that could help you feel more at ease during your delivery. Remember, tension is not your friend when trying to give birth. You need your body relaxed.

3. I was hesitant about a home birth.

As I previously stated, you need to be relaxed during labor. If it brings you more stress, then it’s probably not the right decision for you. I am a huge supporter of home births. However, every time I considered one for myself, I just felt very uneasy about it. There is no specific reason why, I just couldn’t get peace about it for me.

4. Birth is messy.

This one is more for fun but was definitely a thought I had while making my decision. I know being a “scrunchy” mama I shouldn’t say this so don’t come for me but, I wasn’t sure I wanted to be scrubbing “the miracle of birth” out of the carpet. And to be totally honest, I thoroughly enjoyed pushing a call button and ordering lunch, having help, and being cleaned up after on those first few days postpartum. Yes, I know midwives, birthing doulas, and postpartum doulas can do all of those things. I’m just sharing what worked well for us.

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5. I prayed about it.

I didn’t just make a decision based on my own desires. I took all the information I had gathered and bathed it in prayer before The Lord. I asked Him what was best for us, and He answered. In the end, this is the real reason I chose a hospital birth.

Let me remind you that The Lord knows exactly what He is doing. I ended up with sudden preeclampsia and P.R.O.M. It wasn’t known if my baby would need time in the NICU or not. God led us to the right birth at the right hospital, with a NICU team readily available and THE BEST nurses on staff. So before you make your decision, pray about it. There’s a lot of information out there. He can be the calm in the storm of voices and opinions.

I truly feel like the hospital we chose made all the difference in my birth experience. They honored my request to be left alone as much as possible. They were respectful of all my wishes, kind, and truly honored that parents know best. Because of this, I had an amazing hospital birth! Make sure and do your research. Be informed on your choices. A successful natural hospital birth is still possible even if you don’t have access to facilities that encourage it. The choice is yours to make- not theirs.

Written by Anna Bourdess