so, where in your home did you give birth?

[babybirkel]

is the location where i'd like to give birth within my home/ where i'd like to labor something i should think about ahead of time?

or will it just kind of happen that i'll be where i'll be when i give birth?

i am planning a water birth, but i don't know if i'll end up using the tub.

right now i was thinking of giving birth in the baby's room. it's clean, and right now there's not much stuff in it (no crib or anything) because we'll be co-sleeping. it's also across the hall from the bathroom.

anyway, just wondering if you gave birth where you thought you would in your house, or if you just kind of played it by ear, etc.

any advice is appreciated!

[dogmom327]

Both times it was in the spare bedroom/office--but different houses.  The first time, it was the only place that wasn't the front room (where the front door would be opened and closed (privacy violation!) and was still close to the bathroom (I didn't want to have to walk far afterward).  The second time, privacy was even more on my mind (not sure why that was, nothing went wrong the first time or anything).  So I wanted a room where I could shut the door and be alone with DH if that's what I felt like doing.

[MarineWife]

Since I was in a small house and wanted a waterbirth I didn't have many options. The only place the tub would fit was the living room. Luckily, the windows faced the back of the house so people walking by the front wouldn't be able to see. (I had only sheer curtains.) I spent part of the time in my bed and moved to the tub as soon as it was full. I couldn't wait for that tub to be ready.

This time I'm in a much bigger house and have a lot of options. Part of my decision will depend on whether or not I can set the tub up on the 2nd floor. If so, I'll probably plan to spend the serious part of my labor in my bedroom, either on my bed or in the tub. I want to have the option to move easily and comfortably from tub to bed. If the tub has to be set up downstairs, I'm not sure what I'll do. I guess it will depend on whether or not I want to have to walk up and down stairs.

I think it's definitely something to think about and decide where you think you will be most comfortable. For example, if you want to labor on your bed, you'll probably want to make sure you put a protective cover on it and/or sheets and blankets that you don't care about getting stained. Same probably for any soft, fabric covered furniture you might want to be on. Then there's carpet to consider. I'm not really sure what, if anything, might need to be done to protect carpet since the house where I had my homebirth was all wood so I didn't have to think about that. Be flexible, though. You may think you've got the perfect spot picked out and the perfect plan set up and realize in the middle of labor that you want something different.

[Sharlla]

Birth tub in the kitchen

[love4bob]

In the bathroom over the toilet!! Lol. It was really convenient actually because most of the birth mess went in the toilet!

I thought that I had to poop, so we went in the bathroom, but nope, her head was right there! I didn't think that I had gone through transition yet even, so I didn't think I could be ready to push already!

ETA: I didn't plan it that way. I was planing a water birth, but my labor was so short that we didn't even get to set it up. My water broke, and 3 hours later she was born. 

[jessemoon]

One on the bed and one (3 years later) on the bathroom floor.

[carrierwright]

I agree w/MarineWife. It's something to think about now, have tentative locations that you prefer (if those exist) and then be open to change during labor!  ~in a birth tub in the dining room!

[motherhendoula]

My first was in the living room - and to protect the carpets - splurge on some plastic shower curtain liners!  My second HB was a waterbirth and the only sensible place to put the tub was our bedroom - although i didnt feel like i wanted to be in the tub toward the end - got out, leaned over a chair and delivered right there on my feet.  - getting the shower curtain liner open and on the rug was the most frustrating part! 

[Peony]

Yep, I've planned it out. With DD2 it was the playroom, aka the formal dining room because the bathroom was right there and the tub would fit into the room. In the end I seriously regretted  the lack of a door to keep noise from children out. So with DS I went all the way upstairs to the master bedroom so I could have my peace and quiet. 

[nilatti]

Mine was on the bedroom floor. I had planned to be in my bed, but my labor was so fast, I couldn't go anywhere! One warning--my MW put big absorbent pads under me, and I have a hardwood floor in my bedroom..and the pads kept sliding on the floor. I felt like I was going to fall spread-eagled on my face. So...think about the SURFACES whereever you decide to birth. For my next one, I'm going to make sure that either I get to my bed, or someone puts a yoga sticky mat under the absorbent pads. 

[broodymama]

With DD1 the birth tub was in the family room and she was born on the futon that was kind of in between the family room and the kitchen (open floor plan).

We lived in a different house when DD2 and DS2 were born, those times we had the birth tub set up downstairs in the family room in the basement.  There's a half-bath down there in the laundry room that I could use, and a sliding glass door that opens to the backyard so DH could just pump the water out to the yard afterward.  During DD2's birth my older 2 kids were awake but were upstairs in the living room with a friend and her kids.  During DS2's (very fast, less than 30 minute total) birth my older 3 were sleeping upstairs and didn't hear anything. 

[Chloe'sMama]

I spent most of the time on the toilet, actually started pushing there and midwife reminded me that if I wanted DH to catch the baby, I better move onto the bed. 

[dmbarker]

I had planned to have a water birth in our upstairs bathroom with a big tub.  But in the end I found I am much more of a pacer and wanted to move around a lot.  I finally gave birth standing up in the bathroom holding onto the vanity.   My midwife caught him.

[goldenwillow]

I decided to have as many options as possible.

Set up the Aquadoula in the bathroom, bed upstairs ready and futon downstairs ready for action!  My MW and apprentice ended up hanging out upstairs and DH and I went from the tub to the living room futon and the exercise ball in the kitchen! 

Options, options, options! 

I ended up in the tub in the bathroom, delivered on my hands and knees! 

Edited by goldenwillow - 1/7/11 at 5:39am

[homemademomma]

My first was on my bed, and my second was squatting on the floor next to my bed. I had a great big birth tub for my second, and it was fabulous for early active labor, but once I hit transition I couldn't stand the floaty feeling! I spent a lot of time holed up in the bathroom by myself with both labors, but ended up in my bedroom for comfort. I have a distinct memory from my second labor of curling up on my tiny bathmat, praying for just a five minute break!  

[laohaire]

Birth pool in the dining room. I knew the birth pool would be my lifeline, so you could say I planned it that way.

If it weren't for the birth tub, I would think I could have ended up birthing nearly anywhere, including a place as bizarre as the stairs (I could see myself leaning back on the stairs to birth, I really could).

A friend of mine birthed in bed, but it was just where she happened to be at the time. She started out in the birthing pool but then barfed - a lot - and didn't want to stay in there. So she'd wander around the house and sometimes stop for a while and curl up or squat or sit or lean or kneel or anything, and after a while she'd move on to someplace else.

[tourist.]

I spent my entire labor and birth in my bedroom and attached master bath.  I labored in the shower (most of the overall time), on the toilet, and ultimately gave birth on my bed. 

I ended up not leaving my room for nearly 2 days between going to sleep one night, waking up in labor, having the baby, and post birth baby time.  I didn't realize just how cozy I felt in there until it came right down to it.  When I finally left my bedroom the rest of the house seemed like I'd been away from it for a long time, like I'd been on vacation for a week or something.  It was all very interesting.

[MegBoz]

I'm figuring my bedroom - there's plenty of space for the tub as well as the whole birth team (MW, her apprentice, DH, and if DS is home & awake - I may have my sister come in with him to see the actual birth.)
But in case I don't feel like using the tub, I think bed will be 2nd best. With DS, I liked both laboring & pushing on hands & knees & I figure a bed is the most comfy place to be on H&K.

& finally, if DS is awake, I'm nearly certain I won't want him around while I'm laboring, so it will be better if my sister plays with him downstairs in the family room where all his toys are, so I can labor upstairs in peace.

Of course I'm open to wandering, but those are my plans for now. Even my unfinished basement has some advantages - we have ropes mounted to the house's support beams for anchoring giant rubber bands for working out (excellent for lat pull-downs and a supported-pull up that DH came up with. He's a genius!) So I could 'dangle' from ropes down there, but otherwise I don't expect to want to be there.

[earthworm]

Originally Posted by Chloe'sMama 

I spent most of the time on the toilet, actually started pushing there and midwife reminded me that if I wanted DH to catch the baby, I better move onto the bed. 

Yep. Once it got intense, I stayed in the bathroom. I kept feeling like I had to pee/poop anyway. I liked being in a small space. I am very easily overwhelmed when in pain so I wanted the least amount of things to hear/see/smell (I lit a candle ;).

I also jumped in the shower a few times.

I ended up giving birth on the floor, leaning over the side of the bathtub.

[BeanyMama]

Hands and knees on our bed. I didn't have any plans, really. I also loved the bathroom! It was small and quiet and the potty was a great place to sit and moo and squeeze DH's middle