Should I give birth at home?
- River of Life Midwifery
- Feb 18
- 4 min read
Choosing the provider and location of your birth is a huge part of your labor journey. Here are some tips on how to make the best choice for your family.
Birth is one of the most sacred, transformational, and vulnerable moments in a woman's life. As such, making the decision about who you want caring for you during this tender time as well as where you want to give birth can be daunting.
I think its important to understand that location of birth and type of care seem to go hand-in-hand. For example, if you desire a hospital birth, you will be choosing a team of birth professionals that consist of OB-GYNs and certified nurse midwives. If you want an out-of-hospital birth, then you will need to look for a private midwife who specializes in home-births or works inside a birth center.
Both of these choices are great and valuable depending on your preferences and needs, but they are important to consider since their foundational orientation toward birth and birth philosophies differ so vastly.
Here are some questions to ask yourself as you consider where you want to give birth, and what kind of care you'd like to receive during pregnancy, labor, and delivery.
Is Birth a Medical or Natural Event?
When you choose to give birth in a hospital setting, the philosophy and orientation toward birth comes from a medical standpoint. This means hospital birth professionals view birth as a medical event in which they are trained to tackle emergency situations quickly. They are staffed with highly trained surgeons, doctors, nurses, anesthesiologists, and other specialized medical professionals should an emergency situation arise that needed their care. So this may be the best option for you if you:
Also view birth as a medical event -- something that requires the nuanced and specialized training that hospital professionals provide
Have pregnancy complications or a history of birth complications that require additional monitoring and tests
Desire pain medication or the kind of support available in a hospital setting should an emergency situation arise
When you choose an out-of-hospital setting, the philosophy and orientation toward birth comes from a natural standpoint. This means that out-of-hospital birth professionals view birth as a normal physiological process of life and are trained to assist and support that process to unfold in its most organic form. This may be the best option for you if you:
Also view birth as a natural event -- something that the body is designed to do
Have a low-risk pregnancy
Desire an unmedicated or low-intervention birth
What kind of relationship do I want with my provider?
When you choose to go with a more medical birth or a birth in a hospital setting, something to consider it that these care providers are typically on a shift-based schedule. This means that there is no guarantee of which doctor or nurse team will actually be present at your birth. It is dependent on who is on the schedule during the date and time that you go into labor and are ready to deliver your baby.
When you choose an out-of-hospital setting, more often than not your midwife is operating on an on-call kind of schedule. This means that unless your midwife happens to be presently attending another birth, she will most likely be who is present with you as you deliver your baby. Many mothers choose the midwifery care model due to its continuous-care and the deep relationship of trust and respect that is formed between her and her care provider.
However, some moms would prefer a less intimate relationship would be formed with the person who will assist them through birth! It just depends on what you find will be most supportive for you in this special moment of your life!
Will I feel safest giving birth at home or in a hospital?
Hormones play a huge role in how birth transpires. From the moment you go into labor to the progression through its various phases, hormones are responsible for each stage and phase of your baby's birth story. And studies have shown that these hormones work most efficiently when the mother feels most safe, held, and supported in her labor journey.
If you are someone who finds great comfort in the safety net that a hospital setting can provide due to its ability to tackle medical emergencies with efficiency and ease, then a hospital setting may be best for you!
However, if you are someone who feels safety in familiar places or at home, with your family or loved-ones by your side, then you may want to consider a home birth or a home-style birth center as a better option for your birth experience.
What kinds of tools do I want available for pain?
Lastly, I want to invite you to consider how you personally would like to move through any pain or discomfort that labor and delivery will bring. There are so many different ways to manage the hard parts of birth.
If you would prefer medical intervention for pain in birth available to you, then a hospital setting is probably a better fit for you than at home. This is because hospitals can provide epidurals, IV pain medications, nitros oxide, and other pain management medications.
These pharmaceutical interventions are not available in home birth or free-standing birth centers, but there are many other ways to manage pain throughout your labor and delivery! If you desire to give birth naturally, without medical interference, you can still do so at home using techniques like hydrotherapy, movement and positioning, breathing techniques, and partner-supported massage.
This is often one of the biggest factors that helps women choose where they desire to give birth and what kind of professionals they want as part of their team!
No location or care team is a one-size-fits-all solution and you truly need to discern what is the most correct option for you and your growing family. It is my hope and prayer that these few questions would help you to get clarity on the desires of your own heart as you sit down to create a plan for your new baby's birth story!
If you want even more support in making the best decision for you and your family, you can check out the documents below!
Comments