When I was pregnant with my first daughter I knew I wanted a natural birth, I trusted my body, and I believed my doctor. I did not know about homebirth until I began taking my Bradley childbirth education classes. By the time I was around 8 months pregnant it became clear that I would have to start preparing for a fight with the hospital. My doctor, although a nice man, had a business to run and my birth is not about business. His non chalant comments about induction, continuous monitoring, seperation from my baby weighed heavy on my mind. On this one day that I had been waiting for, to meet my daughter, I would be stressed. I did not want this and easily made the decision to switch to midwifery care and have my baby at home. I had been taking Bradley classes with a midwife for 12 weeks and felt very comfortable with her Wow what a weight that was lifted once I made this choice. I was EXCITED about giving birth. Yep, I said excited. If you are reading this right now can you honestly say you have that emotion when looking foward to your birth experience? If you don't, then keep searching because birth is supposed to be something you can't wait to do, it should be something you have educated ourself about and should go into it with support, love, compassion, trust, and excitement.

I have spent many years as a doula and have witnessed birth in different ways. Beautiful and supported births can happen in the hospital but options are very few. I have come to realize that even though homebirth is what I needed and wanted it is not for everyone. As long as a woman feels supported, claims her birth and makes her choices then it can be a satisfying birth experience. Here are some questions to decide if homebirth might be the right choice for you.

• Do I feel comfortable birthing at home?
• Why am I birthing at home? (Your choice should not be based on pressure from others but should be based on what you feel is best)
• Am I healthy?
• Do I eat well?
• Am I willing to take responsibility for my birth and take on an active role?
• Am I able to birth without pain medication? (There are no epidurals at home, however there are plenty of comfort measures that can help you cope with labor)
• Who do I want at my birth?

Your first task is choosing a care provider. Just because you are here reading my website does not mean I'm the perfect midwife for you, it is important to shop around. Set up a consult with at least 3 midwives, and/or doctors and you will get a good feeling about which one is right for you. As a society we spend more time shopping for new cars, homes, planning a wedding, and possibly even our weekend plans than we spend on making this choice about birthing our babies. It's worth the research , you will at least go into your birth with no regrets, or what if's. The worst thing would be do hear about these options after it is too late.

Safety and Studies
If you are low-risk and healthy then homebirth is a great option for you. There is evidence based studies to prove this so you don't even have to take my word for it. Instead of rewriting what is all over the internet I will just list a few links to some great research and articles worth reading.

The British Medical Journal a 2005  large prospective study about the Outcomes of Planned Homebirth with Certified Professional Midwives in North America.

Medical Literature on the safety of homebirth.

Spontaneous Creation 101 reasons not to have your baby in a hospital

Homebirth Safety and Benefits

"Birth is not only about making babies. Birth is about making mothers ~ strong, competent, capable mothers who trust themselves and know their inner strength." Barbara Katz Rothman