Anyway, my point to this was mainly to address the issue of out of hospital deliveries. People have this idea that it's extremely dangerous to deliver outside of a doctor's care. That is wrong in regards to women with low risk pregnancies. Yes things do go wrong sometimes, but it's so very rare... In most parts of the world women deliver their babies in the care of a midwife and are only taken to the hospital for serious complications. Women have been delivering babies since God created us. We're all still here and thriving, so birth is nothing but a normal process and should not be feared or treated like it's a serious condition.
People like to do things differently than others, and I get that. I fully support a woman who makes different choices than me as long as she's made educated decisions and feels confident that she's making the best choices for her and her baby. That's totally fine. No judgement from me... It's okay to have opinions on things, it's also okay to share information as long as it doesn't come off to other's as an attack on their personal preferences... People don't like to feel attacked. If people feel attacked they will not hear you... they will only be on the defense.
So... that being said, because of my different choices this time around, I've had a lot of people give mixed feedback about my decision and question my knowledge level. While I take this as a loving response because I know these people care, the reality is that they are likely uninformed or have been given the wrong idea about these particular choices... and that's okay. I expected these reactions. It doesn't hurt my feelings, but since people are worried about it, I do try to put their minds at ease with helpful information.
Below is some home birth data I have uncovered during my time researching birth options... It is basically a summary of data that a midwife compiled from an article out of the British Medical Journal. I have included the exact link to the actual article and study findings at the end of the data summary. While I do not plan to home birth this time, I think it's good information worthy of being shared with people who may have otherwise been misinformed or given the wrong idea about home birth. (And birth centers for that matter, as their stats are trending to be about the same as home birth). This information is not intended to convince people they should home birth, or that it's the best route... I'm simply putting it out there so people can see the facts that these methods of prenatal care and delivery are safe.
Safety of Home Births
Home Birth Statistics
A new landmark study* shows that planned home births are safe. The largest study of home births attended by Certified Professional Midwives (CPM), as published in the British Medical Journal, has found that home birth is safe for low risk women and involves far fewer interventions than similar births in hospitals.
Safe & Healthy Outcomes
- Results are consistent with most studies of planned home births and low risk hospital births
- Zero maternal deaths
- Intrapartum and neonatal mortality: 2.0 per 1000 intended home births (only 1.7 per 1000 intended home births when planned breech and twin births are excluded)
- Immediate neonatal concerns resulted in just 2.4% of newborns being placed in neonatal intensive care
- At six weeks well over 90% of mothers were still breastfeeding their babies
Home Birth Statistics: Low Rates of Medical Intervention
Much lower rates of interventions for intended home births compared to low risk hospital births:
| Interventions | Planned Home Birth | Hospital Birth |
|---|---|---|
| Induction of labor (only with oxytocin or prostaglandins) | 2.1%* | 21.0% |
| Stimulation of labor (only with oxytocin) | 2.7%* | 18.9% |
| Electronic fetal monitoring | 9.6% | 84.3% |
| Episiotomy | 2.1% | 33.0% |
| Vacuum Extraction | 0.6% | 5.5% |
| Cesarean Section | 3.7% | 19.0% |
* These numbers differ from the BMJ article where data for CPMs included forms of induction and stimulation only used by midwives and not comparable to hospital births.
Satisfied Mothers
Only 1.7% of mothers said they would choose a different type of caregiver for a future pregnancy.
Few Transfers to Hospital Care
- Only 12.1% transferred to hospital intrapartum or postpartum
- Five out of six transfers were before delivery, most for failure to progress, pain relief or exhaustion
- Midwife considered transfer urgent in only 3.4% of intended home births
High Credibility
- Included all home births involving Certified Professional Midwives in the year 2000
- 5,418 women in U.S. and Canada who intended to give birth at home as of the start of labor
- Prospective - every planned home birth was registered in the study prior to labor and delivery
* "Outcomes of Planned Home Births with Certified Professional Midwives: Large Prospective Study in North America." Kenneth C. Johnson and Betty-Anne Daviss.BMJ 2005;330:1416 (16 June). This article and related letters to the editor are available online, free, at http://www.bmj.com. The actual article and results from this study can be found here: http://www.bmj.com/content/330/7505/1416#T1
Go on with your bad self, Toni! You know what you can handle better than anyone else!
ReplyDeleteThanks Judy!! :) I feel like by now having made completely different choices both times, I know what my body can and can't handle. I've researched a ton, spent a lot of time talking with birth educators and midwives... and I feel like the decision I've made is best for me and for my baby. I totally realize it's not for everyone, and that's okay. What matters is that we all support each other in making educated decisions and leave it at that wether or not we agree with each other. It's not that hard!! lol
ReplyDeleteYou go girl! Its your body, your baby, and your birth! You can do it!
ReplyDelete