Considering homebirth

Matt and I have been talking a lot recently about birthing our next baby at home. No, I am not pregnant yet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But it's never too early to start considering options, especially since Matt and I don't agree yet about the idea of homebirth.

There are several reasons why homebirth appeals to me. I love the idea of being in a familiar and comfortable place for such an important event in the life of our family. I love that the fluidity of the birthing process would be unbroken by a journey to the hospital and all the hospital procedures that must happen pre-birth. I love the idea that Matt and I would get to know our midwife and build a relationship with her through normal prenatal visits in our home rather than having to travel to an office, wait in line, feel rushed on busy days, etc. I love that we would have continuous contact with the baby, and that Abbie and the baby would be introduced as soon after the birth as possible. I love that there would be no rushing the baby off for any procedures soon after birth. I love the expectation of a normal labor and birth, with the norm being minimal use of drugs and technological interventions. I love the possibility of a flat rate, too! (I remember trying with all my might to keep my terror at bay when I woke up in the hospital at 7:00am on May 20, realizing that I had already spent 12 hours in the hospital and having no idea how much that would cost us!! That is not where my concentration should have been!!!!!) Also, since Matt and I have been trained in the Bradley Method, I am confident that, given the right atmosphere and a supportive midwife, we could have a peaceful and intervention-free birth. I have also talked with several friends lately who have birthed their babies at home and rave about the experience. Although I know my sample is limited, none of these women had any trouble or needed any interventions.

But there are several components of homebirth that make me nervous as well. The first and biggest concern is the standard: what if something goes wrong???? Can I get to the hospital in time??? We live about 20 minutes away from the closest hospital, but with traffic the drive could feasibly take twice as long. Another major concern is finding the right midwife. Right now, I have three names, but only two that are licensed and very experienced; the other is licensed but relatively new to the field. When I say I want to find the "right" midwife, I mean that I want her to be licensed and experienced as a minimum; I also need her to agree with my birthing philosophy and, ideally, to be a Christian. I doubt any midwife would deny the powerful component of spirituality in the birthing process, but spirituality without the Lord...well, I wouldn't want to go there. The third main concern is cost, and if our insurance would cover any of it. I've been told that most insurance companies will flat-out deny covering homebirth at all, but if you submit the claim after the fact, most will usually pay at least some of the cost. I'm not sure if Matt would add anything to this list, but these pretty much sum up the factors of my nervousness.

Unfortunately, there are no birthing centers in Kentucky. The options are hospital or homebirth. When I was pregnant with Abbie, we chose to stick with my current ob/gyn practice first of all because I liked the doctors, and secondly because a close friend of mine had had two really good (hospital) birthing experiences with them. The Bradley Method sounded right up our alley, so we were trained and hired our instructor to be our doula, hoping to strengthen our chances of a normal intervention-free birth. Everything was in place! Then my water broke two weeks early, without any contractions. From there, Matt and I made compromise after compromise, leading us to go to the hospital before active labor started, begin pitocin which entailed constant monitoring along with a horrendous blood-pressure check every 30 minutes, stay in an uncomfortable hospital room all night and all day, and ultimately agree to having an epidural--not only did I have to labor on my back (which is the absolute worst birthing and labor position because I was working against gravity) with my legs in sturrups (who else can attest to the humiliation and discomfort of this experience???), but worst of all, I was not able to feel my own baby being born. Also, because I was in labor so long, several different nurses took care of me, and my midwife was not able to stay with me the whole time. I didn't know those nurses and they didn't know me.

Looking back on the experience, I can see how all these factors contributed to my labor failing to progress without intervention. I can only imagine that the calm, familiar atmosphere of our own home, an attendant working with us whom we KNOW, and the expectation of a normal, intervention-free labor and birth would contribute to a better experience. (This will be a cheap shot, but isn't the definition of insanity doing the same thing over and over, expecting different results?)

So, I invite your comments. What do you think of homebirth? Have you or someone you know birthed a baby at home? Are there other considerations that I haven't included here?

Also, check out these links:
Homebirth myths disputed
Donna Galati, the most qualified midwife in Lexington
Sara Hood, another midwife in Central KY