Another NY Times piece about homebirth

[pithydithy]

Did y'all see this essay today in the New York Times: A Near-Death Birthing Story?

I was really annoyed by the message that this mother's (frightening to be sure) complications would have been so much more dangerous if she had planned a homebirth. I would imagine that pretty much most midwives would check a laboring woman's blood pressure shortly after arriving at her home and, if it was severely elevated and staying there, talked seriously about going to a hospital. I hate this assumption that homebirth is about making a plan, not gathering any other information, and never deviating from that plan.

Argh.

[JessicaS]

IMO birthing is about listening to your instincts and following through, even when they are saying things you might not necessarily want to hear.

Just because someone is wanting a homebirth doesn't mean they do not intend to pay attention to medical facts and complications. Homebirth does not mean homebirth no matter what, like you said, a midwife would check bloodpressure.

I was planning a homebirth, I had a cascade of complications. I had a c-section. Seems pretty clear.

[*MamaJen*]

Yeah, that was a pretty bad leap of logic. I left a (one of those things we're not supposed to discuss) to that effect. Any decent midwife would have asked her to transfer when her blood pressure spiked like that. I was thinking the midwife likely would have pinpointed the problems a lot earlier, actually. High PB, protein in the urine, severely swollen feet, lots of warning bells going off.
That whole "the baby could have died in a homebirth!" phrase is soooo disingenuous. Sure, the baby could have died with no medical care, but a midwife is trained to identify problems and transfer to the hospital. It's not like she pulls out her crystals and starts chanting when the mother's blood pressure spikes.

[Ruthla]

Even with her planned hospital birth, her gut instincts kicked in- she chose to forge through in traffic rather than going home to labor at home a while longer- because she KNEW she needed to be in a hospital at that point.

I also can't help but wonder if a HB midwife would have treated the pre-eclampsia more proactively via nutrition and prevented this emergency that nearly cost this mama her life.

[peainthepod]

I've always believed a homebirth midwife is more likely to catch most complications in a timely manner than an OB, simply because of the greater amount of one-on-one time she spends with her patients and the emphasis on preventative care over medicalized testing and reliance on lab diagnostics.

I had an OB early in my pregnancy and switched to a midwife at 24 or so weeks. The difference in care was astonishing. It was like being bumped up to first class from coach.

[KLM99]

So we've got ankles so swollen in her third trimester that she can't wear shoes, an induction for a first baby "a few days shy of 42 weeks," didn't learn about her pre-eclampsia until she arrives at the hospital (why wasn't her OB taking her blood pressure at her appointments given her swelling and protein in her urine???), "desperately" wants to change positions during contractions but can't because of anti-seizure drug that makes her tired and out of it - and she thanks the hospital birth and the OB for saving her life and that of her baby's?

I certainly agree that there is a time and a place for c-sections and other medical interventions - and given that this woman's pre-eclampsia would have been recognized by any competent midwife, she probably would have risked out of homebirth anyway...

But to claim that the hospital saved her life and disparage homebirth because of her situation...?

[Full Heart]

Just another example of how misinformed or totally uninformed people are about hb. MWs are trained medical professionals. They know how to look for pre e. Women don't stay home no matter what, they can transfer to the hospital. I have run into this kind of thing like every week in the last mos. Must be some new anti hb argument floating around cyber space.

[haren.13]

I showed this article to DH ~ he said "That's not a reason to not have a homebirth...that's a reason to have medical care during your pregnancy! Seriously, where was her doctor??? Wouldn't a midwife have caught the preeclampsia much sooner?"

I've trained him well

[peainthepod]

Originally Posted by Full Heart

Just another example of how misinformed or totally uninformed people are about hb. MWs are trained medical professionals. They know how to look for pre e. Women don't stay home no matter what, they can transfer to the hospital. I have run into this kind of thing like every week in the last mos. Must be some new anti hb argument floating around cyber space.

People seem to think that midwives have little or no training and that once you decide on a homebirth, staying at home will be your only option no matter what.

I sometimes wonder if people who know I had a homebirth think I was biting on a stick while DH nervously drank whiskey outside and gore splattered the walls.

[*MamaJen*]

Originally Posted by peainthepod

I sometimes wonder if people who know I had a homebirth think I was biting on a stick while DH nervously drank whiskey outside and gore splattered the walls.

Yeah, and the midwife sacrificed a chicken and danced chanting around the fire pit during every contraction. That's how mine was.

[Lemon Juice]

Here they go again....

You know with the comments on there and with what she says in her article, it's almost as if she's honestly trying to make herself feel better for having to have a c-section. It was out of her hands and a valid reason to birth in a hospital w/ a c-section, yet she feels the need to express it outloud and take down homebirth with her. At least that's what I got out of reading it. Trying to spread fear and make those who choose to have a natural homebirth feel ashamed for doing so...some comments went as far as to compare homebirthers to bridezillas. Misinformed and uneducated on the subject. I am thankful I am not.