So who will be planning a homebirth? - Page 2

[minsca]

I feel like crying right now looking at this thread. I've been wanting a homebirth since dd1, but we've never been able to afford it. (hospital births are free). I just found out on sat that alberta healthcare is going to start paying for midwives in april. So I excitedly started looking for a midwife in the city where we are moing too. There is none!!! The closest is 4.5 hrs away. I am so dissappointed. This is our last baby, so my dreams of having a home birth one day seems impossible. Unless I did UC, but I don't trust myself enough to do that. Oh well, the hospital births I've had so far have been actually really good. I just am going to make it very clear to the dr that as soon as this baby is born i want to leave. I was able to do that with dd1 and it was so lovely!!
Anyways that's my complaint for the day. I will live vicariously through you girls.

[Lovely]

Am so excited to be planning my second homebirth. First with DS went really well, and we had a midwife and her apprentice with us. This time, the apprentice is now a midwife, and she is going to be our primary (we've been friends for a long time).

I was a doula before I ever had children, so I got to see what went on in hospitals and so when I got pregnant I was determined to stay FAR away from the hospital, unless it was an emergency. I cannot imagine going to a hospital to birth *shudder*

[ShwarmaQueen]

Originally Posted by minsca

I will live vicariously through you girls.

Keep looking at your options, call around, you might get a break.

[thewaggonerfamily]

Originally Posted by minsca

I feel like crying right now looking at this thread. I've been wanting a homebirth since dd1, but we've never been able to afford it. (hospital births are free). I just found out on sat that alberta healthcare is going to start paying for midwives in april. So I excitedly started looking for a midwife in the city where we are moing too. There is none!!! The closest is 4.5 hrs away. I am so dissappointed. This is our last baby, so my dreams of having a home birth one day seems impossible. Unless I did UC, but I don't trust myself enough to do that. Oh well, the hospital births I've had so far have been actually really good. I just am going to make it very clear to the dr that as soon as this baby is born i want to leave. I was able to do that with dd1 and it was so lovely!!
Anyways that's my complaint for the day. I will live vicariously through you girls.

We have been in this position for the last 6 kids. Insurance pays 100% for hospital birth. (Although I did have CNMs) It finally appears that the insurance should pay most or all of a homebirth. This same CNM does births in her freestanding birth center, which is what I think DH leans towards. But they don't pay facility fees so homebirth is mostly or all paid for, but a birthcenter birth will cost us out of pocket. So I'm pretty sure that is the tipping point to have DH on board for the homebirth. He's mostly onboard otherwise (his concerns are about having the repairs to the house done and the kids being home during the birth. Neither of us wants them in there during the birth and we're a little concerned since I'm a moaner. He doesn't seem to have real concerns about the homebirth itself, he's been too well indocrinated by me over all these years!)

Anyhow, all that is to say, I feel your pain, and keep checking around and looking at various options. You never know, it might still work out. You have some time. Don't give up your dream, yet!

[ShwarmaQueen]

Originally Posted by thewaggonerfamily

his concerns are about having the repairs to the house done

This is my DH too. I made him promise to redo the master bath this summer while he has a break between semesters. Currently, it's unusable- the bathtub plumbing is totally clogged and leaks from inside the wall, the tub itself is old and gross, the sink leaks, and the toliet runs so we had to turn it off. What a great reason to have a remodel! And I'm hoping I can squeeze in a garden tub to labor in!

[minsca]

Originally Posted by thewaggonerfamily

Anyhow, all that is to say, I feel your pain, and keep checking around and looking at various options. You never know, it might still work out. You have some time. Don't give up your dream, yet!

I did some phoning around and posted on the tribe boards. And so far everything has come up negative for a midwife in our area. I have one more email out to a student midwife who I'm hoping might know another avenue for me to try. I'm not giving up hope quite yet. But everything I've read about Alberta midwives is that they are only centered in the two big cities. Everyone else is out of luck, unless they want to travel to the bigger centers. But that the Alberta Midwife Association is hoping that because the gov't is now paying for midwives that more midwives will be attracted to Alberta and to the smaller centers. I really really hope so.