IS A HOME WATER BIRTH FOR ME? FIND OUT MORE ABOUT HOMEBIRTH IN THIS BLOG POST.
Continuity of Care
A beautiful homebirth…in the pool, in your living room.
What a wonderful concept. So how does homebirth look?
Homebirth gives you some freedom. Freedom to choose where you are most comfortable within your own four familiar walls. Freedom to make a brew whenever you fancy. Freedom to use your bath or shower, rest on your own comfortable bed with familiar smells, familiar people. Family, children, pets, it’s up to you…it’s all up to you. You can set the environment exactly how you want it to look.
Your independent midwife in the background, watching carefully and quietly. She is there only if you need her. Wise enough to know that birth happens without the need for intervention when all is well. Experienced enough to recognise any signs which need an intervention, or discussion.
Intuitive. Confident. Safe.
You know you are in safe hands because you have grown to know your midwife and trust her knowledge as you have travelled the path together through your pregnancy. True continuity of care. You are in tune with each other, and you are in tune with your baby and your body.
Homebirth gives you choice and comfort. Homebirth gives you confidence – you are in your own space. You decide where you birth your baby, whether that is in the birth pool or on the sofa, maybe in the bathroom or another room of your choice. It’s your decision and it’s about being comfortable and feeling safe.
Mammals need to feel safe and protected when they birth their precious young. Mammalian birth is instinctive. It is private, unobserved, and undisturbed and results in successful outcomes.
When we understand that we are mammals too, it becomes obvious that disturbance in birth—or any situation where the labouring woman does not feel private, safe, and unobserved—will interfere to some extent with the processes of labour. Feeling safe and loved promotes the production of the hormone oxytocin – the love hormone that labour loves! Being at home makes us feel safe and keeps the hormone adrenaline at bay. Adrenaline is the enemy of a smooth labour and birth – it’s the ‘fight or flight’ hormone and kicks in when we are disturbed or feel threatened or frightened in some way. For some women, hospitals are a scary place, and this can negatively impact the progress of their labour and birth. The bottom line is that when you feel safe, oxytocin flows, fear is furthest from your mind, and this is essential for a calm and comfortable birth. It’s just biology really!
Here's some interesting further reading;
The Office of National Statistics (ONS, 2022) has recently reported a slight increase in home birth rates to 2.4% as compared to 2.1% in 2019. It is interesting that there is a noticeable variation in homebirth rate based on geographical areas. Those areas with well-established midwifery continuity teams and community services having the highest homebirth rate at 8.9%. Once again, reaffirming what we already know about continuity of care being such an important factor in successful outcomes.
