Homebirthin' Mama's Thread...April 22,2004!!! - Page 6

[ketilave]

If you call an ambulance (DH is a paramedic and I was an EMT) they won't do anything but a) pray you don't have the baby b) catch the baby c) make sure you have an IV e) make sure the baby is breathing/clear the mucous and d) drive you to the hospital where they will check out the baby and you and send you home. A little out of order but not much different than what you would do. May cause stranger anxiety tension because they won't approve which could hold back your pushing or cause you to tense and therefor maybe tear (more).
Just my thoughts

[ChildoftheMoon]

Tanj- Maiya is beautiful! Thank you for sharing.

[tanjarine]

nak
thanks everyone! maiya is soooo sweet.. she even sleeps in till 9:30 every morning! shes such a super baby!
Dh is going for his vasectomy tomorrow ..haha chances of getting pregnant before then are slim
thinking of all of you who are close and awaiting your birth stores!
Tanja

[Breathe]

Well, I'm someone who would call the ambulance if m/w couldn't get here in time. I would refuse the IV, refuse to be transported (unless in an emergency), but would want to have them here in case the baby needed resuscitating or I hemmorhaged. I might even make them wait in the driveway if I were already pushing. I may very well be able to resuscitate the baby myself, but in the moment, I might panic and would want some back-up, esp back-up with oxygen, if necessary. I know a friend of a friend who was a novice m/w when she homebirthed her second baby and she said that during the pushing stage, she realized that she had no idea what she would do if there was a problem. She was alert enough to know that her mind was blank, but it was indeed blank. Turned out all was fine, but I guess this is one reason why I would not be comfortable with a UC. I'm not trying to convince you either way, Harriet, but wanted to offer the other perspective and support you if you decide that you'd like back-up.

In terms of pre-labor symptoms, I didn't really have the textbook ones either, but I remember clearly that the night before I went into labor, I was desperate to hear some live music. Somewhere in the back of my head was a story of a mom who had gone to a concert to urge her baby out, and I just had this feeling that we needed to be at a concert that night. So we found one, and as we walked from the car to the concert hall, I remember thinking that it was the first time I was truly uncomfortable and ready for my pregnancy to be over. Less than 12 hrs later, my water broke. Hard to say which came first . . . loud music or the beginnings of labor, but I'll be doing that again if we get antsy!

[Mummoth]

Thanks for all your replies re:calling an ambulance... and thanks, Breathe, for bringing up the possibility of the baby needing resusitation (that seals it for me... I'd call an ambulance) When I was pregnant with Roland, I was really worried that the midwife might have to work to get him breathing (because it would be scary!!) As it turned out, Roland slid out *really* fast (after 45 minutes of pushing) and he didn't stop at his shoulders... DH says he thought: "Oh wow! An ear! HOLY CRAP!! A baby!!!" I remember hearing crying as I felt his body leave mine.

Pre-labour symptoms: I started losing my plug at bedtime one night. I knew that could happen weeks before the baby comes, and I was only 38 weeks along, so I just went to bed. I got up in the morning with DH ('Today' by Smashing Pumpkins was the song playing on his clock radio & I said "Wouldn't it be cool if that was the first song we heard in the morning on our babies birthday?!" DH looked at me like I was a flake) We had breakfast together, and he went to work. Then I went into a cleaning frenzy for 3 hours. It dawned on me that that wasn't normal behaviour for me (I'd usually go back to bed after DH left at 6am) I didn't think I was in labour or anything, I just thought 'why am I cleaning? I should be in bed!' I woke up at noon when my water broke. Roland was born 9 hours later.

****Note for first-timers: if your water starts to break, it's better just to stay put, rather than make a trail to the bathroom to blot up!****

[sweets]

I also missed all the traditional signs of pre-labour. Even though I was a week late I was shocked when I finally realized I was in labour. I waited to call the midwife, thus she didn't arrive until I was already pushing. My water didn't break until 20 minutes before my little man entered the world. For us there was very little that was traditional or followed the rules we had read about labour.

[Breathe]

Hee, hee . . . Hariett, that's a great tip about not tracking water all over the house! I'm not a first timer, but I bet I would try to make a run for it! (With my first, my water broke after I had stepped out of the shower. I was combing out my hair and was holding the towel between my legs. Talk about a good catch!)

And FWIW, our Bradley teacher was on the way to the birth ctr for her 2nd birth when she realized they would not make it. So she went back to her bed, had her dh call the m/w AND the ambulance and began pushing. Ambulance got there first, but dh had them wait in the hall outside the bedroom. They were apparently quite happy to do so! Then when the baby was born, they wanted to cut the cord and transport, but my friend told them, "My midwife is on the way and she said to not move until she gets here." They left her alone and sure enough, the m/w arrived within minutes, and took over. If I had to call 911, I'd hope for a crew as cooperative as those guys were!

[ketilave]

Just FYI - I was discussing this last bit with Dh (paramedic) and although he is pro natural birth homebirth etc (would be hard pressed not to around here) he said that if someone called for an ambulance he wouldn't take a refusal without a Dr or MW ok and preferably with a signature mainly to cover his butt. Protocols usually state that moms need IVs and O2 and O2 for babies and then rapid transport to hospital. If you are not pushing they will try and move you before you do. Again - this is not something EMS looks forward too - most would prefer not to deliver babies - a long standing joke is "call Dominoes for delivery." It's like anything - you are stuck with the luck of the draw! Good luck. Just wanted to get DHs opinion about this - you do have the right to refuse of course and you have to sign your life away - don't expect them to be super nice about it though - hopefully they are more professional than that though. Plus, I don't know how EMS works in BC just here in VA.