Disclaimer: I am in no way insinuating that home birth is the best choice for everyone or that you personally need to have a home birth. Everyone has a different situation and must do what is right for them and their baby. I at also not at all bashing hospital birth! I had one with my first and it truly was a great experience. (You can read all about it here!)
My friend and co-writer also wrote the blog post on why she chose hospital birth. You can read the two posts to compare as you are making your decision!
1. Confidence.
Confidence in my body. My first home birth was with my second child. The first was a natural, unmedicated hospital birth which gave me so much confidence that I could do this without help of meds! (Some states allow midwives with certain degrees to administer meds so if you are wanting a home birth and meds you can look into your options.)
I was not worried about whether or not I could make it through the discomfort of childbirth without medication. I KNEW I could do this!!
Confidence in my midwife. I will spare all details about my journey of finding a midwife but it was a PROCESS! Due to some medical (and possibly legal) reasons the midwife we began with ended her practice when I was just coming into my third trimester. We basically had to start over with the entire interview process and it was stressful to say the least!
However, we did end up finding the perfect midwife for our family! After going through the nightmare with the first, I was afraid I would find it difficult to build trust with a midwife so quickly. Erin made me feel so comfortable.
I had complete trust in her boundaries for a healthy home birth and that she would accurately assess any risky situations. I also had confidence that she would ere on the side of caution when it came to my health and my baby’s safety.
2. I had no risk factors and was well monitored for any possible complications.
My previous pregnancy had been a very healthy one. The birth had gone well with no complications for me or baby. My postpartum was great in every aspect- no hemorrhaging, excessive blood loss, or other concerns.
That being said, every birth/pregnancy is different so I was still well monitored, just from the comfort of my own home!
At every visit my blood pressure, heart rate, baby’s heart rate, baby’s position, and diet were all assessed. If at any point in the pregnancy things looked off or I felt off I could call my midwife and she would be able see me within hours. That gave me so much peace of mind!
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3. Distrust of the Medical System.
A bad experience with a vaccine as a teen and the entire Covid crisis have really damaged my faith in the medical system. I think doctors and nurses are amazing people! I just think the system is broken.
Having to submit myself to the care of a hospital was very hard with my firstborn. The hospital was great, the doctors and nurses outstanding! But the mental part of trusting these people/this system was extremely hard.
I am sure the majority of people have NO CLUE what I am even talking about and I do not expect anyone to. It was just a very real part of the decision to home birth for me. I knew that stress is not good for myself or the baby and could cause interventions (which honestly stressed me more!).
I also knew myself. I knew how uncomfortable I was in the hospital mentally and physically with all the constant monitoring/interruptions to my labor by staff. My fear was that I would wait too long to go to the hospital and deliver unassisted at home or on the side of the road.
This probably sounds CRAZY to a lot of people but it was very real to me! I would rather go ahead and make the planned decision to home birth than to put myself in an unassisted situation.
4. Belief that pregnancy/birth is not an illness.
In the last 100 years or so society has begun to normalize treating pregnancy and birth as a condition rather than a natural part of life. I truly believe that pregnancy is NOT some illness that needs to be treated by a facility. In a healthy pregnancy of a healthy baby no medical “treatment” is necessary to bring a baby into the world.
5. Cost
This might seem like a silly reason to have a home birth, however it did play a role in our decision making process.
After we had our first those hospital bills just kept coming! I think what hurt the worst about it was that I had a natural, unmedicated labor with her. I wanted minimal interruptions, and honestly I did not want to be there. I did all the work. And I still had to pay for it.
I’m not saying that doctors and nurses should not be paid, or that they should make less. I just feel like this is another way the system gets what they want- our money.
6. Comfort
Let’s be honest, there’s just no place like home!
If I had to rate comfort of birthing environment on a scale of 1-10 (ten being best) the hospital would maybe get a 2. I’m told by many people that I gave birth in a very nice hospital! It was nice, the people were great, they made it as cozy as they could- but it was not comfortable!!
I will not go in to all the details about what made it so uncomfortable because if you are having a hospital birth I don’t want to breed discouraging thoughts.
I will say, home birth comfort exceeds a ten!! I went to a few lengths to make sure it would be an extra cozy environment but it was most just home. Nothing special, just my bed, my people, my home.
The midwife/assistant vs doctors/nurses brings another comfort comparison. In the hospital my doctors and nurses were SO GREAT!! They treated me like a princess. But they still had to follow the schedules. They HAD to do the scheduled well checks. They are just doing their jobs but can anytime be truly comfortable when there is a constant flow of people coming in? Not to mention the shift changes- about the time you get used to a familiar face they swap out!
Having one person is such a peaceful gift. One person for all my prenatal appointments. One person to help guide me through all my questions.
My midwife and her assistant made labor and delivery so comfortable. They both speak in the softest voices during labor. Always so thoughtful about my needs. Never interrupting the work of a contraction. Then after you have the baby they don’t just send you on your merry way! You have a professional consultant you can call for months postpartum!!
I could probably go on and on about the comforts of home birth. I’ll close with this: I do not believe it is right to compromise your baby’s health for a more comfortable birth experience. I am VERY glad I was able to experience a comfort during labor and beyond that most probably never will receive. However, at any point in the pregnancy or even labor I do not think it would be right to place my comfort over my baby’s needs.
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7. God Leading.
You can call it what you want…a gut feeling, mother’s intuition. God definitely led us in this choice to have a home birth. He changed my husband’s heart and gave him a peace. He planted this desire so deeply in my heart that I withstood criticism and negativity with a calm, peacefulness.
He led in finding the right midwife, and even have us an assistant we love in the process! And He led in every step of the birthing process. I’ll spare all the details and just give you the necessary information but you can read my full birth story here to get all the details.
We had a surprise footling breech birth. This mean baby came completely backwards, feet first. She had been in optimal birth position for over a month and the morning I went in to labor I felt a really weird, big movement. I thought it was odd but didn’t think much of it until after labor was over. I am 100% sure that she flipped that morning.
In a hospital situation we likely would have ended up having an emergency c-section, people would have been freaking out, and any sense of a calm, peaceful birth would have gone out the window.
Yet we labored quietly at home, we birthed peacefully in a tub of warm water in the middle of my bedroom, we got to hold a completely healthy baby who got to nurse right away.
Because God knew!
If you are considering home birth I would strongly recommend you pray about it! Or any birth- hospital, home, or center for that matter. God made our babies, He knows our bodies. If you are struggling to decide, take it to Him, trust Him, and He will give you perfect peace.
