Feedback on how to do this please....

[Jenne]

Hello! I have been reading the threads and still need some information. DH and I are planning on beginning the TTC process in about 18 months. I definitely want a homebirth with a midwife present and assisting. We live in TN so that is legal. Aside from all the benefits there is NO way I could successfully deliver in a hospital due to fear and anxiety with needles and interventions. I am worried about not being "low risk" though. I am 27 and have never been pregnant before. I have an underactive thyroid which is controlled through medication and PCOS so I do take a Glocophage to help keep hormones at the right levels. I have read many studies about glucophage being taken without problem during pregnancy and in fact helping to prevent miscarriage in women with PCOS. I am willing to see my PCP or an OB during pregnancy in addition to a midwife. I am worried a midwife won't accept me for homebirth due to these two things. I so believe that I need to have a homebirth that I don't think I want to be pregnant unless I can have a home birth (if there was an emergency during delivery or something occurred during pregnancy that mandated a C-section I would not oppose going to the hospital). Is this totally weird???? Would a midwife be totally inconvienced or find it weird to be interviewed prior to conception???? Does anyone have a TN midwife they would recommend???? I know The Farm has great midwives but I really want to be at home...Thanks for your knowledge!

[mamachiquita]

I can't see why a midwife would be hesitant to see you with your conditions. You are definitely smart to interview a midwife before getting pregnant, though, just to be sure. My midwife actually likes meeting with clients before conception so that she can help you have the healthiest pregnancy from the beginning. As a side note, I'm hypothyroid and although I haven't yet been diagnosed I am pretty sure that I have PCOS to some degree and I have had perfectly healthy pregnancies. As long as you take your meds you shouldn't have a problem either, and I would venture to say that you wouldn't really be considered very high risk as far as a homebirth goes. Of course, I could be wrong, but those are my thoughts... meet with a midwife(s) and see what they think.

[mollyeilis]

I don't know anything about your health stuff, but I do think we should be interviewing midwives before pregnancy. With my two choices that I've made during this pregnancy, I firmly believe that *friends don't let friends choose birth practitioners while on pregnancy hormones*.

[ObsessiveAndrea]

A midwife will probably be more comfortable with a doctor monitoring your thyriod issues , but there is no reason why she wouldn't want to help you with your birth.