Home birth: for and against. Should I give birth at home?

The decision on homework should be a conscious and balanced step. You can compare all the pros and cons of the birth of the house by reading the article.

Content

Waiting for the birth of the baby is the most beautiful period in the life of a woman. But together with the miracle of the development of new life, many future mothers face problems related to pregnancy, possible complications and fear of childbirth.

A large amount of information urging women to give birth in natural conditions without the participation of doctors causes many questions and doubts, because for each woman the most important priority remains the health and safety of the child.

Why do women give birth at home?

Each birth is unique, and the desire of the parents is understandable to give the baby to be born in the best way. Women who prefer home births to the maternity hospital do this quite consciously, guided by certain principles:

Normal birth is not a medical procedure, but a natural process. Such a statement is based on the confidence of a woman in the forces of her own body. Until the birth of the future mother, there is enough time to evaluate the course of pregnancy, to calm her fears and psychologically tune in to the birth of a child at home with the help of a midwife or family members, without the participation of doctors
Bleeding and sudden malfunctions during healthy births are very rare. Even if something goes wrong, there is always enough time to get to the hospital. In this case, all responsibility lies with the person who at this moment should be near. The woman should be completely sure and ready for the fact that the midwife (mother, husband) will be able to evaluate the seriousness of the situation and make the right decision in time
During the birth in the hospital, there is also a risk of complications, as well as a high probability of remaining unattended and help at a critical moment. This statement follows from a large number of such stories about the horrors that are happening in medical institutions - about the negligence and indifference of doctors and staff to women in labor
Often a woman has her own negative experience of previous births, and due to her psychological state, she believes that the actions of doctors were incompetent, and home birth will be completely different. About the birth of the house you can find only positive reviews on the Web, which, of course, forms the corresponding thinking
The child should be born in a calm atmosphere, in kindness and care - this will allow him to capture the first glance at the world in his mind, and this look should be aimed at mom and dad. It is difficult to argue with how important contact with the mother is important for the baby, and this first experience of communicating with the child also allows you to feel the very magic and great happiness of motherhood

Pros of home birth. Why should I give birth at home?

During home birth, the expectant mother is in the usual atmosphere among the usual things, does not feel stress from being in a medical institution, can relax, take a bath, perform any hygienic procedures without disdain. It is believed that in the absence of fear and nervous tension, the process of childbirth passes as natural as possible

The presence of only the closest people, which will not be discomfort from the possibly not quite tactful behavior of medical staff. The freedom of one’s own state and behavior in the event of pain or other physiological manifestations, since childbirth is a long and painful process. The choice of a convenient posture during fights and directly at the time of birth
Lack of drugs to stimulate the uterus and painkillers during childbirth, as well as other medical intervention - dissection, use of forceps and other actions, sometimes able to harm the mother and child
Exclusion of the risk of infectious and other diseases. Still, hundreds of different patients visit a medical institution, and even the slightest violation of sanitary treatment rules can turn into an acquired infection
A joint long stay with the baby and the father of the child immediately after birth without any intervention and any kind of procedures

Cons of home birth. Why should I choose a maternity hospital?

In any case, the final decision belongs only to a woman, regardless of the advice and arguments of others. The future mother needs to fully understand the degree of her responsibility to the baby and really evaluate all possible consequences. Since we are talking about the life and health of the child, with a large number of advantages of home birth, do not forget about the serious disadvantages of such a choice:

The risk of complications that can lead to the need for emergency medical or surgical intervention. It is simply impossible to foresee all options for the development of the birth situation. When choosing home birth, you need to understand that the ambulance may not be such, and the consequences will be irreparable
An error in choosing a midwife. No matter how recommendations and reviews you like the midwife, you can never hope for one person and exclude the human factor. Firstly, no certification of private obstetric practices is provided by law. Agreeing in private with the personnel of the hospital, you must understand that you trust a person without any forms of obligations
In case of dangerous points, it may not be able to provide you with the necessary assistance and just leave. Secondly, the chosen obstetrician can become elementary, be late because of transport or be in other births. Then you run the risk of being left without help during childbirth

The necessary conditions. Childbirth is a more physiological process than romantic, therefore it is impossible to treat it frivolously. Home comfort and beloved husband will help only in the case of an absolutely normal course of childbirth, but no one can guarantee this
Natural birth is also welcome in the hospital, there will be no medical staff without the need to use drugs or other drugs, but everything necessary in the hospital is available
Postpartum period. Thinking about comfortable birth, many forget about the postpartum recovery period. A few days that mother and baby spend in a maternity hospital are allocated to control the general condition, processing umbilical wounds, necessary tests and vaccinations
If you are at home, you will have to agree on the daily visits of the gynecologist and a non-university pediatrician, or go to the hospital yourself. This can be very problematic, especially taking into account the cold season

What types of home births exist?

Home birth can be of two types, depending on preparation during pregnancy:

Ordinary birth, when a woman passes all the stages at home in a convenient position for herself. During the fights, she can lie, walk, squat down, stand on all fours to reduce pain. The final stage may look traditionally when a woman gives birth, lying on her back.

This option is considered not suitable from a physiological point of view, but very convenient to help the midwife. Vertical births are more preferable - directly at the time of the appearance of the head, the woman in labor can take any pose - sitting or standing. Usually a woman intuitively feels which pose will be most favorable for the birth of a child

Childbirth in water. Such childbirth differs from traditional in that the expectant mother during the fraud can periodically plunge into a bath or a pool with warm water. At the time of the complete opening of the cervix, the woman should be in the water - the child, born, does not fall into the air, but the usual water environment. Thanks to this, the baby does not experience discomfort and smoothly proceeds to new living conditions.

Childbirth with professional help: childbirth with a midwife

Childbirth in the presence of a midwife is the most common type of home birth. Typically, a woman during the second and third trimestrem is attended by special classes to prepare for homework.
There she receives all the necessary information about the physiology of the process, performs special exercises aimed at working out breathing skills and muscle training
An experienced obstetric should already identify all the features of the course of pregnancy, the general state of health of the future mother and provide for all risks in the course of preparation for childbirth.

During home birth, the midwife is present nearby to provide the necessary assistance and evaluate possible complications.

Childbirth with traditional help: with the family

Home birth in the family circle suggest the presence of a husband, mother or another loved one at the time of birth of a child. In this case, the woman receives the necessary psychological support, especially if she attended classes to prepare for childbirth with her partner. If loved ones do not have special training and knowledge of the process of birth, then in any case you can not refuse to help the midwife.

Are home birth legal?

This question is interested in future parents, who, trying to provide the mother and the child with everything necessary during the birth of the house, think not to violate the law at the same time. The situation with the legislative framework looks in two
On the one hand, according to the law, private obstetric care is not legalized, in fact, medical workers have no right to help outside the walls of a medical institution on a commercial basis. All forms of agreement exist only in a private order between the midwife and the family of the woman in labor. Accordingly, no legal liability in the negative development of the situation is assumed
On the other hand, parents determine the choice of the place of birth of a child themselves. Make a woman in labor without fail to contact one or another medical institution no one has the right. There is also a law on the doctor’s duty to provide medical assistance to a person in an emergency, for example, when the birth began on an airplane, train or other public place. Then the non -provision of assistance outside the medical institution is persecuted by law
From all that has been said, it follows that home birth with the definition of the necessary qualified assistance is the choice and responsibility of the parents themselves
The most famous midwife doctors are home birth supports

In Western Europe and the United States, home birth or childbirth in special obstetric centers are more common than in the Russian Federation and cause approval of doctors.

According to Mark Baker, the head of the clinical practice of NICE (Great Britain), most women of childbearing age have no health problems, their pregnancy and birth activity occur without complications
Therefore, according to the collected statistics, home births offer a safe alternative to childbirth in the hospital. Moreover, he believes that in general, home birth is safer than sick leave, since they provide a comfortable environment and more attention to mom and child
It should be noted that in the case of a complication of home birth, an emergency assistance is provided, since in most cases the ambulance is in the immediate vicinity of the place
In our country, doctors adhere to a more traditional point of view. This is due to the great risk of a dangerous situation for the mother and the child. Official medicine advocates conducting birth in special institutions under the supervision of doctors
At the moment, the medical staff of the maternity hospitals is prescribed to provide maximum assistance to the woman in labor - in choosing the method and posture of childbirth, as well as the possibility of the presence of a partner, including in the case of cesarean section. After birth, the child is also constantly with his mother

Is it dangerous to give birth at home?

To solve for yourself whether home birth is dangerous, each expectant mother must herself. Even with an absolutely normal course of pregnancy and the excellent physical form of the woman in labor, many factors affect the process of childbirth:

Weak tribal activity is a long period of the opening of the cervix. As a result, the fetus may suffer from the development of hypoxia
Bleeding. They may occur during childbirth due to placental detachment-a great danger to the fetus, since the diet occurs due to a lack of oxygen. Also, bleeding can begin after childbirth, which is dangerous for the woman herself - hypotonic bleeding cannot be stopped without medication

Gap of the cervix. Occurs due to insufficient disclosure of the neck and requires urgent intervention (suturing)
Uterine rupture. It occurs with intensive labor (rapid birth) or in case of non -compliance with the size of the fetus width of the birth canal, if emergency assistance can lead to death
Complications are also possible from the fetus - a child can turn over at the time of childbirth, taking the wrong position, which will lead to the impossibility of passing through the birth canal. Then the intervention of a doctor or a cesarean section is required
Opening of the umbilical cord - represents a huge risk of hypoxia and strangulation of the fetus

A professional doctor or obstetrician who turned to the adoption of home births for help should inform the woman and family members about all possible complications and, if possible, dissuade the future mother from the risk of giving birth to at home.

Childbirth at home: tips and reviews

On the network you can find a huge number of positive reviews about homework. Women with great pride share their impressions and give advice. These stories are pleasing with the warmth and happiness of the birth of a little man.

The main thing is not to forget that no one will share the negative consequences of his erroneous decisions, and along with happy stories there are many less joyful finals.