WHY HOMEBIRTH?
HOMEBIRTH
Home is a place a woman shares with her baby - a place that is familiar.
When a woman births at home she is surrounded by colors, textures, lighting and sounds she loves. Many women find solace to rest and sleep, or the freedom to change positions, when they are in their own environment.
Birth is a time to feel secure and safe. What better place is there to relax in the total way she needs to in order to give way to the birth process?
Midwives monitor both: the progress of labor and a mother and baby's well being. Providing calm, watchful and intimate care - a midwife is there for the entire duration of active labor and birth. The birthing woman knows this. She depends on it and it helps her feel secure. She may also have her partner and/or family members with her—they know best what she likes and what soothes her the most.
Research suggests planned out-of-hospital birth is safe (some research indicates it is safer) for healthy low-risk women, when they utilize a trained and licensed birth professional.
WATERBIRTH
WATERBIRTH
The soothing, relaxing effects of warm water, along with the ease of movement that the water allows, greatly reduces the discomfort and pressure of labor and birth. Although giving birth in water is a “new” concept to many, oral history suggests that women all over the world have labored and given birth in water for centuries.
Research tells us getting into water provides comfort, supports relaxation, and is a safe and effective non-pharmacologic pain relief strategy that promotes normal childbirth. Using water for pain relief during labor does not increase risk for healthy women or newborns when evidence-based guidelines in place.
