Only Dirty Hippies Birth At Home
Later I realized how biased I was being. Any type of woman can birth at home. And it seems to me that more and more of them are. We (or I) tend to think of people having their babies at home being women who are kind of alternative, maybe braid their hair, use natural deodorant, don't shave, go to chiropractors and all "that stuff".
When I take a step back I realize that I don't even fit all that criteria. And more and more I am seeing women choose homebirth who I never would have expected to do so. Women who look "normal". Women who go to church. Women who don't dislike modern medicine. Women who are just your neighbors and friends but want something more than what is offered in hospitals.
Why are these women choosing homebirth? When I ask them I find that they just want a natural birth experience. They feel they will be most comfortable in their own home. They don't want the interruption of traveling and arriving and checking into the hospital. Most of all they do not want to be another one of those one in three who have abdominal surgery to remove their baby. They realize that the "normal" hospital birth is not really that normal and certainly is not natural.
I love Ina May Gaskin. I love her books where women talk about feeling "high" while they are in labor. I love hippies. I have even been called one a time or two. But what I love even more is that women who appear "normal" and mainstream are choosing homebirth. I also love that ACOG and all their knife wielding cronies are running a little scared as they start to realize that a tiny minority of women are choosing to birth on their own terms. They are scared because they realize that we as birthing women have the power to CHANGE OBSTETRICS all on our own. All we have to do is realize that homebirth is not just for fringe hippies who live on communes, it is for anybody who recognizes the power of their own body.
Take back your power. Choose natural birth.
Comments
I was lucky to have my first child, a homebirth, in the Netherlands where 30%+ women give birth at home. They feel if you have no complications there is no reason for a doctor to see you. Pregnant? See a midwife. It was the most powerful and transformative experience of my life.
I was 8 months pregnant with my second when I moved back to the USA. Knowing the chances of a less than optimal experience happening the second time around if I went with the standard hospital birth I chose homebirth with a midwife. I was informed late in the pregnancy that my baby was breech and would need to be "flipped" to avoid the MANDATORY c-section that WI requires of all breech births (anyone who has read about this kind of breech and homebirth knows how unnecessary a section would have been). I was referred by my midwife to a chiropractor who practiced the Webster method. In fact I was given a choice of over half a dozen chiropractors that offered this in my area. The Webster method of chiropractic saved me, and my baby, from that fate in 2 sessions just scant weeks before the birth, oh and it was PAIN FREE. This cost me less than $40 w/insurance. It would have been $90 without. Much less than a c-section.
I may fit all the hippy "criteria" but really, I've just been given options, educated myself on all the ones offered (and all the ones not offered) and come to a place where I realize I am capable of (in fact, made TO) birth babies with as little to no intervention. I've realized being at home and using non-painful, non-medicated ways of optimizing my birth experience has impacted every facet of my life in such wonderful ways. Ways which would not have been available had I left my fate to the Doctors who, though home birth friendly (not easy to find here) had no good advice on how to flip my baby and avoid a section though that info was readily available and a scientifically proven method of doing so. Face it, even OBs aren't focused on avoiding problems, they are trained for emergencies. They have their place. For me, that is not at my birth unless I have a concrete medical emergency.
Signed - A "Dirty Hippy".
I would love to know what your book is called and maybe do an interview with you Kelly?! I am starting weekly interviews on the blog-
thanks! people are always surprised when they find out i attempted two homebirths and at 15 had my baby in a hospital with midwives.
Im the furthest thing from a hippy, i wanted to stay home and listen to some good jungle, happy hardcore, or trance, my TNA bags were packed in case of a hospital transfer and god i wish prada would come out with a ring sling ;)
its nice to be represented!
It has me contemplating going completely unassisted, and just showing up at the hospital later for Rhogam.
peace and love
kimra diggs
www.humanitarianopp.blogspot.com
and kelly's book is great! my midwife had a copy. it's called We're Having a Homebirthand her site is here: http://homebirthchildrensbook.com/
:-/ By going to the hospital, I *put* myself and my baby at risk. :(EFM on my back when I first went in and then being denied any food or ice-chips because of the possibility of C-section {OB's orders}). I felt like collapsing and the IV was out for most of it. Medical staff didn't even look at my face until our midwife friend asked about the ice chips and I finally had the attention I needed to tell them about the IV dislodging. 8-S Little one had a seizure a few hours after due to birth trauma (low sugar, low oxygen or something like that).
One OB told me that no I didn't want a home-birth when I did (decided against it for GBS - not enough information beforehand). I've never been a hippy, but maybe a little enchanted by hippy-ish people. My parents had five home-births, me among them.