What week of pregnancy is MW OK with HB

[taliasully]

I am 33 weeks now and don't see my mw again til next week, in my Due date club a woman went into labour at 36 weeks and was advised by her HB midwife to deliver in the hospital,
My question is at what week is it normal for a mw to go ahead and deliver you at home ?

[mezzaluna]

i think the m/w's i've talked to said 36 weeks. this is in massachusetts where they are a-legal. i imagine if a gov't does regulate hbmw's they might impose limits.

[Hayes]

I worked with 2 midwives my last pregnancy. One said 37 weeks, one said 36 weeks. I put more stock into mom's previous pregnancies, how mom feels etc. It turned out to be a moot point since Samuel was 41 weeks just like his big brother. I am hoping Joseph thinks 38 weeks is long enough, but I am not putting money on it!

[mbhf]

in my state (NY) it's illegal for a midwife to attend a homebirth before 37 weeks or after 42 weeks. of course not all midwives abide by this, my MW said she would be comfortable with me going earlier, since my previous births were both right at 37 weeks and i had average sized babies (7 lb 8 oz and 8 lb 10 oz) with no problems. i think generally midwives are comfortable delivering at home after 36 or 37 weeks, and it probobly depends on the mother.

[kerikadi]

My MW and I had this discussion when I was pg with #3 and planning my first homebirth. My first two were early 38 & 37 weeks and silly me thought that was a pattern :
Anyway, we decided on 36 weeks 3 days. I know it sounds silly but I was concerned about going early and I really wanted a homebirth. At first she said 37 and then compromised
Of course I went to 1 day shy of 40 weeks

Keri

[mama_at_home]

I think for singletons my midwife said 37 weeks and for twins she would prefer 36 weeks but would consider 35 weeks. My twins came at 40 weeks 1 day so it wasn't a problem.

[time4another]

At the end of 36 weeks, closer to 37 weeks.

HTH

Heather

[cryspanimal]

Mine told me 36 weeks.

[rachelagain]

The ones I know, are normally comfortable with 36 weeks-- the baby is developed fine, just not usually much for body fat, so you have to be careful to the baby warm enough- but before 36 weeks you might run into difficulty with the baby breathing- I think the big thing is, since they cool down so easily, that if the baby needs the hospital, it's better to already be there, than to transport.

[Kellym]

My midwife told me 37 weeks. A friend of mine just had baby with the same mw and she was told 36 weeks. I think the difference is that all her babies to that point were born at 32 (with an OB overseeing the whole pregnancy) so 36 would pretty much be 'term' with her. She ended up going to almost 38 weeks though!!!

[stellimamo]

between 36-37 weeks is the norm around here.

[Ellarae]

My first mw said 37 weeks, my 2nd said 34. (Which would have been too early for my comfort.)

[momto l&a]

37 for my mw

[WAmommy]

My mid-wife said 36 weeks, which is TODAY! YAY! She told me anytime after Sept. 12th was good. I am so relieved!

[nurnur]

36. I have heard of a mama who was 34 and said NO to going in, she had her baby on island and baby did fine so I guess the choice is ultimately with the mama. Is there a debate on this wether it is the beginning of the 36th week or the completion of it???





Carrie
aspiring mw

[Peony]

The first MW I used in this pg followed the state law to a T and would not attend a birth before 37 weeks, even if it was within a matter of days. I switched MW's and this one is fine with 36 weeks.

[mamanurse]

My potential mw's all say 35-36 weeks. I live in Oregon.

[angelpie545]

In Washington I'm pretty sure that the law says between 37-42 weeks. During my last pregnancy my midwives were starting to get scared because I was almost 42 weeks and no sign of labor-they called me and said they were worried because my NST didn't look good and after 42 weeks I'd have to be in the hospital. Luckily, I let them strip my membranes and I right into labor and delivered a healthy baby girl the next day.

[mary3mama]

I imagine it's different for different midwives and whether there are state requirements they must meet. That said, my midwives do homebirths between 36-43 weeks.

[boscopup]

My midwife is in TN, and she'll attend starting at 36 weeks. She doesn't have an upper limit. I think TN has more lax laws, maybe because of the Farm being there? I dunno.