Seeking Information on Home and Water Births

A family member of mine did a home birth last time for her last child. She did not have a midwife there, only her paramedic husband. It was horrible. She was in hard labor for 9 hours and had great difficulty pushing the baby out. He came out face up instead of face down, which is extra painful.
If you have the right support system it should go much smoother for you.
Addressing the no insurance issue, have you tried to apply for medicaid? That can greatly help and you can deliver in a hospital with pain medication.

I am planning a home birth and have gotten a lot of information from experienced moms on ivillage....
http://messageboards.ivillage.com/iv-pphomebirth

However, I do think that at either a home birth or a birthcenter you are not going to have any "medical" pain relief so you will need to commit to a natural birth and natural pain relief (water, massage, breathing, etc). As far as your medical concerns go...I totally believe that midwives are just as capable as OBs in handling these situations. There does seem to be a big push among OBs lately for c-sections which will at least double your delivery costs..so if you decide to stay with an OB you need to be very well informed and stick to your guns with what you want. I highly suggest watching "The Business of Being Born" (available at Blockbuster and Netflix). It is a documentary about labor and delivery in the US and compares the OB/hospitals with midwives/homebirths. Good luck with your decision.

Hey L.! It seems that you have gotten several great options. I just wanted to let you know that both my friend and myself have delivered at birth centers/home. My friend delivered at home with the midwife's from Allen birthing center. We are both nurses and they were our teachers for L&D. It was an incredible experience, she says. She delivered a 10lb 5oz baby nautrally. She did say it was hard but well worth it. She had a really bad hospital experience with her first.
I delivered at Birth and Womens center in dallas. I cant even begin to tell you how special and wonderful it was. I am not ready to have another baby but I cant wait for the next experience. By the way, I was on bed rest for 4 months with my baby. Cherie and Carol managed my health very carefully. They consulted with thier OBGYN (Audrey Grahm) after each of my visits. Had I needed more care they would have admitted me to Baylor and Dr.Grahm would have taken care of me. Fortunately they managed me so carefully that that didnt have to happen. I did meet with Dr Grahm and she was great. I do have to say that I believe Birth and Womens center is more experienced with high risk pregnancies.
When deciding who to use remember to take into account what hospital you will be transported to in an emergency (which is rare) and for non-emergent transport. What kind of relationship the midwife's have with the hospitals, and what kind of OBGYN they are associated with (will they support you like the midwife).
Lastly...Linda Worzer with new beginnings is the absolute best for natural child birth classes. My friend did the classes at Allen birthing center and she was not particularly impressed. She ended up wishing she had used Linda. Linda goes over lots of breast feeding info in addition to all the important labor and delivery stuff.

Good luck!! You wont regret it!
A.

You need to go to dallasareamoms.com There are tons of moms on there who had home birth and water births -they can allso tell you about all the local birth centers, and you might even get to see a slideshow of one or two. There is an "ask a midwife" section that Cori can answer all your specific questions.
Good Luck
D.

L., I have three girls. One was completely hospital, one started at the birthing center and ended at the hospital and the last one started at home and stayed at home. My favorite was the home birth. The hospital birth was fine but, I was only 16 and my mother's insurance and medicaid covered it. The 2nd one was with a midwife. We started at the birthing center but, I thought I could not stand the pain for another five hours and wanted to go to the hospital. By the time we got there (20 minutes tops), I could not get pain medication because her head was crowning. I almost had her in my midwife's van. The last was the best one. We had her at home, it was so comfortable to be in my own home. I wish I had done all of them that way.
Just a couple more things...when you think you can't do it anymore because of the pain, it is practically over. When it is done, it's done. You have a beautiful baby and you're tired but, the pain is gone. I don't care for water birth but, a lot of other people like them. You just have to experiment. You can start in the water and if you don't like it just try something else. Also, midwives are much more reasonable than doctors and hospitals. You can drink if you need to, you are not hooked up to an IV the minute you walk in the door (that was big surprise for me in the hospital), you can do whatever you need to do and have any family you need for support. The price is much more reasonable, too. I used Kathleen Mayorga for the last two. www.bellabirths.com ###-###-#### She has an office in Garland and in McKinney. You would not believe what midwives can do, if I have any more it will be at home. Good luck! If you want any more details, let me know.

L., i'm not sure if my advice will be of any help to you, but thought i'd share a bit of my home birth experience with you. i had my first in a hospital w/ no drugs. it was a 24 hour labor but very text book, no complications and i stayed at home for about 90% of my labor. i decided that if i had a second child than we'd have the baby at home. so when i got pregnant last year i interviewed 2 midwives, one on lovers near the tollway, and one in garland. i have heard amazing things about the allen birthing center, but i was too far for her to drive for a home birth, which is the route i wanted to take. my main concern in choosing my midwife was her number in hospital transfers. mine had just a few out of a couple thousand births. after i chose my midwife, i visited her every month or so during the first few months, then my visits became more frequent as i got farther along. i visited her office just like a regular doctor. she always took a urine sample and checked my levels on site, weighed & measured me, and felt my belly as i got bigger to see where the baby was. she did all tests at her office - for example the gestational diabetes test. the only thing i did out of office was my sonogram, and she sent me to a very experienced sonographer who charged only $85. the cost of my midwife was $2300. i paid upfront and received a small discount.
my labor lasted 11 hours, and i felt more pain then i would wish on my worst enemy. however, it was a natural birth. NO drugs, no intervention, just labor and birth. if you haven't already, i'd encourage you to talk to you mom about her birth(s) because typically you'll have a similar labor and delivery as your mom. i wish more people would go this route instead of getting all the drugs that can slow a labor down, then "needing" a c-section. there is an amazing documentary called "The Business of Being Born". (a friend rented in online from blockbuster) your eyes will be opened to what a home birth should look like. you will get lots of opinions and advice as you begin to talk about what kind of birth you want, but ultimately, you've got to do you research and then do what you feel is right for your desires. you're the one having this baby, nobody else. i'm sure i left something out, but you'll probably get lots of replies that will fill any holes i may have left. i hope you have a wonderful pregnancy and delivery! God bless you as new parents!

Hi L.,
I had an attempted home birth with my second daughter and a successful home birth with my son. I would definitely say having a baby at home was the most liberating and amazing experience I have ever had, but I would not suggest a home birth to save money. If you're going to do it, do it because you want the experience. If money is an issue look into applying for medicaid/medicare. I didn't have insurance with my second daughter and the payment plan of a home birth was about equal to that of the dr I used for my first daughter. You also definitely are more immersed in the labor process at home with no medical intervention, so that aspect has to be something you are totally up to. I think home birth is an awesome, organic option and I wish you the best of luck in whatever choice you make.

Hi L.,

You mention water birth. I think that is out of the question at hospitals. Some may have tubs, but not comfortable to labor in and not allowed to give birth in. However, I am not a comprehensive authority on ALL hospitals in DFW. Would be surprised to hear of a hospital that allowed this. Could be, but not likely. Though they may try to sell themselves as offering more than they actually do.

For water birth, your options are probably birth center or home birth. These are healthy options! You've gotten good recommendations on these. If the Allen Birthing Center is within 20 miles of your house (do a mapquest to measure it) you can have a home birth with them. You can rent a birth tub for home. www.aquadoula.com Or, you can go to the center where they have tubs. Cost is the same. The midwives can answer questions you have. Schedule a free tour and consultation. www.allenbirthingcenter.com Water birth is a VERY good way to manage pain in labor.

By the way, epidurals are very expensive. $5000-$6000 perhaps? A doula told me this number. Ask the hospital what the extra cost is of this. It is much cheaper and safer for baby and mom to go natural. This is a good reason for doctors and hospitals to downplay any support for natural birth. They make MUCH less money off you and your baby if you manage your birth naturally and efficiently, without the need for all their nifty "services". Modern medicine is a business. Like you, hospitals and doctors need to pay their bills too. Revenue goes up when patients are ill-prepared, ill-educated, and overly reliant on "the system" to fix everything. Educate yourself, take control of your health, and your costs will go down.

If you choose a midwife, your safety issue is to question the midwife about her back-up plan. Quality midwives are not unsafe at all. On the contrary, they usually have better statistics than the hospitals (lower c-section rates, healthier babies and moms). (I just learned that Presby Plano has a 60% c-section rate!!) You want to be sure there is an adequate back-up plan. Where will your care be managed in the event of an emergency and what will that cost you?

Some books and other information for you to consider if you want a natural birth:

-www.naturalbeginningsonline.com Good website for local doulas, birth classes, and breastfeeding. Sharon Mattes and Linda Worzer may be able to help steer you in a direction that works best for you. They are near your side of town. They give Bradley birth instruction.

- Read Ina Mae Gaskin's most recent book - Ina Mae's Guide to Childbirth. LOTS of birth stories and info about birth options - drugs, etc. This would be a very well spent $20, regardless of how you decide to birth. order from Amazon.

- Get a subscription to Mothering magazine. Available at Whole Foods. Good natural mothering resource.

- Consider Susun Weed's book Wise Woman for the Childbearing Year. She has good nutrition and other info. Whole Foods usually has a copy available.

- Consider Bradley birth classes. They have a very high rate of success for natural birth, proving it is very doable, PROVIDED that the woman and her partner are educated. Have confidence in yourself! Above-mentioned website offers this training. So does a woman at the Allen Birthing Center.

- FYI - Regarding your concerns of low blood sugar, your chances of getting help with nutrition and health improvement from an MD are slim. Midwives are more likely to know what to advise, and give you recommendations for nutritional counseling. Again, MD's emphasize drugs and surgery. Or, the doctor will give you a thimble size worth of helpful information, whereas the natural health community will give you a truckload. There may be better ways to improve your health, and baby's, that are simply beyond the scope of MD training. This is important. Your health impacts baby's health and development. Insurance doesn't really cover true "health" care anyway, - it covers "disease" care. There is a difference.

- If you are pregnant with twins, many midwives and birth centers won't manage your care. If you confirm a singleton, your options are more open.

Good luck!

Have you talked with the financial person at Rirchardson Regional? I volunteer at that hospital, and he is very nice. People come in to get charity applications and he can also work a payment plan or discounts with you. I also had my first there too, and glad I went the hospital route because I needed to have a c-section. Turned out my amniotic fluid was dangerously low and no one knew until I was overdue and went in for a sonogram. A vaginal birth would have been painful and the cord could have become compressed under the circumstances. Its so important to get prenatal care and deliver in a hospital, which can provide whatever pain relief you want. Plus you get lots of free stuff to take home (diapers, formula, diaper bag, blankets, baby bath stuff, etc, and they have breastfeeding consultants, and nursery staff to show you what to do with the baby) Also, 25% of births end up with a c-section, which your midwife can't do. Hence, more money you don't have, so nix the midwife all together. You stated you have low blood suger, and it sounds like you haven't had any prenatal care? You may also have other serious things like high blood pressure, pregnancy diabets, etc, these can be fatal to you and your baby. The responsible thing to do is prenatal care, the classes which teach you the whole process, baby care, and tells you about pain relief. Go with your gut, not what your mom tells you. It isn't her baby.

I had a home water birth with midwife Becky Burpo with the Allen Birthing Center. She is so nice, and the water birth really helped with the pain. I highly recommend that you take a Bradley Method Birthing Class to learn about pain management naturally.

i just had a home birth this past friday, and it was amazing!!! the whole part about not wanting to feel all the pain, etc...just fyi--you aren't going to get any heavy meds from a midwife! but the whole experience is well worth every bit of pain you feel and honestly, once it gets down to pushing, you've already passed the worst part. actually, by the time my midwives arrived (i withheld calling them for quite some time) i was already dialated to a 9.5! i went with family birth services in grand prairie and used a student midwife which cut the price even more (i think it was about $2500 total)--but you still get a second student AND a certified midwife, so i think it's actually better in a way. they also can arrange a payment plan and are pretty flexible. this was my first baby, and my mother had two complicated births, in which i was actually born with a c-section. still, everything worked out great and it is so nice to have someone to call whenever you have questions or concerns. and you never have to wait around in a doctor's office!!! if you want more info, just feel free to contact me. i wish you the best of luck!

p.s. two friends also just delivered and chose to go to the hospital--one ended up going into labor early and had to leave her baby at the hospital for a few weeks, the other was talked into having a c-section. i'm sure both instances occurred because of medical concern--but i bet if i had gone to a hospital my birthing experience would have been very disappointing. check out the documentary film "the business of being born"--it will offer a lot of insight about home vs hospital births.

I didn't have insurance when I had my son. Apply for Medicaid. I didn't want to go through a clinic or deliver at Parkland, so I met with several OB's. When the second one asked me how I intended to pay, I told him I would pay cash out of pocket. He chuckled, told me to get Medicaid, and he would take me as a patient. He said he didn't advertise he took Medicaid, but that it paid him same as insurance. Thank goodness I did! My pregancy was normal, my water broke at 31 wks and my boy was in NICU for 7 days! If I didn't have Medicaid, I'd probably still be paying for all of that! We all need help sometimes, go get some!

I would definitely check out Birth & Women's Center www.birthcenter.net. They are absolutely fabulous and you can choose any type of birth you want--you can even change your mind the day of delivery. They let you call the shots as to what you need during your labor. It was just the best experience of my life (along with marrying my hubby). Your fiance can be a huge part of the process as well. They have great payment plans available and are very reasonable. If you need to be transferred to the hospital, they are 30 secs from Baylor and always have a doctor on call. I like the idea of having my son's birth at a center because when we left there, we could go home as a family and have peace and quiet. If I had a home birth I was willing to bet everyone would have stayed around and we couldn't have bonded as a family alone. That's just my opinion tho! I bet other mom's have some great responses as well! Congrats and God Bless!!!

I had a water birth at the Birth and Women's Center in Dallas. It was awesome. It was my third child, and I've had all my kids without drugs, but by far the easiest labor. I'm leaning towards a home birth for the next one.

Don't worry about twins, they do ultrasounds and measure you and listen to heartbeats at every appointment (not ultrasounds at every appt) so they know ahead of time if you're having twins or not. If you are having twins then you could always decide to go the hospital route.

Unless you are in the hospital you can't have drugs for the pain, homebirths can't give an epidural. But what you can do is learn methods for managing labor, which make the pain much less intense. Plus the water itself helps a lot.

My advice? Find a midwife that you like and talk about your concerns with her. She'll be able to help answer your questions and help you decide whether a home birth is for you.

Please deliver at a Hospital!!!! there are so many things that can come up so fast. My friend recently gave birth at a birthing center, & when she was bron the umbilical cord had been ripped & it was around the baby's neck, they did not know how long she had been in this condition b/c the labor had not been monitored, after all that work to have natural birth, they had to rush to an emergency room & the baby is in ICU. Not something you want to woory about after the exhausting experience of labor & birth. If you want to go Au Nautural you don't have to get an epidural or use drugs. This is jsut my opinion..but I'm sure you wouldn't want your baby to suffer, without having immideate medical care if needed. I just had my first baby n Dec. it's very scary, I had no problems during pregnancy, but during delivery I needed oxygen & they were about to have to get her out ASAP due to her heart rate they had been monitoring. I'm just saying things happen so fast it's better to be prepared, especially since this is your first & you have no idea what to expect. Please just really think it through this is your baby's life & health. Good Luck

You should be able to get Medicaid since you are pregnant.

I would apply for Medicaid just so that you have it if you need to end up in the hospital for any reason. I am not sure where you are located but the allen birthing center is wonderful the midwifes that they have are very experienced. I did not have my children there because they were not around at the time I had mine. I am a nurse and did a interview with them while I was in school during my OB rotation. I was very impressed. I also did a rotation at Parkland and would not want to go there my self to have a baby. With medicaid several doctors accept it, on my third child my husband had been layed off and my second child was going through medical problems so I applied for Medicaid and the same Dr that delivered my other children accepted the Medicaid I also had the baby at the same hospital that I had gone to with the others. I was not treated any differently than I was when I was a insurance and paying patent.Even with that in mind if you want to do a birthing center I would place highly on my list the Allen Bithing Center, I also know that at the center you can use some medication during labor for pain. Although I had my three at a hospital I did not use any medication during labor and delivery I took some child birth classes while pregnant and focused on breathing and relaxing during the birth and did just fine.
Good luck.
http://allenbirthingcenter.com/ this is a link to the Birthing Center.