What kind of birth did you have?

[Greaseball]

Just curious!

[Elphaba]

hey, i had a midwife-attended hospital birth. best of both worlds for me. of course, i was wishing i was at home afterwards, because i had no privacy in my post-partum room. it was like grand central station! i even put a sign on the door telling people to clear heir visits with my midwife, but did they listen, noooooo. freakin residents and med students think they are exempt from respecting our wishes.

[mom at home]

Two wonderful midwife-attended homebirths. I wouldn't do it any other way unless there was a good reason.

[organicmama]

I had a hospital birth with my first, a wonderful waterbirth at a free standing birthing center with a certified nurse midwife for my 2nd birth. I am planning a home/waterbirth this June with a wonderful licensed midwife. I guess if I have another, I'll have to take it a step further & go unassisted. Just kidding...I don't have the nerve for that!

[parisfrance]

I checked both midwife-assisted homebirth and emergency cesearian. I joke about my "natural cesearian" because I got to the hospital with my midwife after three hours in transition (his head was flexed) and only got the epidural about 15-20 minutes before they got my son out, so he was an alert little dude, Apgar of 10. She also wrote all sorts of things on his chart like no glucose solution, no nursery, and no bottles, which I didn't even know she did but boy was I glad when I found out, because I was in no condition to think about those things afterwards.

[Milo]

Parisfrance, your "natural c-section" sounds like my first birth...midwives are great about all those little things. My second was a midwife attended-homebirth, and I'm planning a homebirth this time too. I really, really don't like hospitals....

[glad2bemama]

Both of mine were midwife attended homebirths. First one, back east and next one her in CA. Can't imagine it any other way!

[pina la nina]

Absolutely beautiful - midwife & RN (& dh & my mom) assisted hospital birth. In a beautiful private room, the midwife forbid anyone coming in so it was just the 5 of us (+baby!) the whole way. Really magical experience.

[Sara29]

Unassisted birth with my first.
Sara

[Rachel Fox]

I had a hospital birth with a mid-wife. In my area there are no midwives who do home-birth. Now that I know I can do it I won't ever have a baby in a hospital again! I hope next time midwife at home then unassisted at home. Even though it was in the hospital it was still just perfect. We went totally drug-free, it's funny how people look at me when I say that. I owe that to mothering- the very first article I read weeks after I found out I was pregnant was "epidurals the untold story" I am so thankful. Doesn't it feel so good to push a baby out!? I'm going off- I just can't wait to do it again!

[tasha]

I had wanted a natural birth but was in labor, intense labor for 32 hours without my cervex dialating. The doctors said that an epidural would help me to relax so that my labor would progress. They were right but I was very dissapointed. I had so many tubes attatched! I never want to go through that again! But I was exausted! Kyrra was born after 40 hours.
I had to let go of my expectations and give in to something I didn't want. I think it was a good lesson for me I just wish I didn't have to learn it in that way!

[jenoline]

Other

I said "Other", because I started out at a midwife-run birth center, and then was transferred to the hospital (which was uneccessary, IMO).

I was kind of upset about the way my birth was handled by the midwife, especially after we got to the hospital. However, I still had a natural, unmedicated birth, which is what I wanted. And I got to go home the same day, which was also what I wanted. So, I try not to complain too much:

I'm hoping to have a homebirth next time, if I can find a good midwife who will attend.

[Christi]

I had a hospital birth. I have an awesome family doc. She was ttoally cool about me doing whatever I wanted. I labored in a whirlpool. and my dh, parents and a massage therapist were all there. I was the only patient so only the nurse and Dr. were even in the OB wing. It was totally natural, no moniters or iv's Just me! When I had a misscarriage my Doc didn't think anything of it when I told her I wanted to do it at home. I had a great experience. I will definately go to that hosp for another birth.

[drachonfire]

I had a midwife attended hospital birth for my first and a midwife run birth center for the second. But, I wasn't allowed to vote them both, so only the birth center made it. The other wasn't really a choice.

[Plady]

Homebirth!

I had a homebirth with a midwife and doula and my husband, mom, 2 dogs and cat. Everyone was in the room (and half of them on the bed!) for DD's birth. I wouldn't do it any other way if I had the choice. The only drawback with homebirth was having a construction project going on in the house and not having nurses around for the next few days to shoo away visitors and tell me I had to stay in bed. But I felt great (no drugs, no episiotomy, no tears) so I guess I shouldn't gripe about anything. Really, it was even better than I'd hoped.

[KPduty]

There was no option for completely unnecessary non-emergency cesarean (and I do not mean a planned cesarean, either).

[Nee Nee]

birth

Mine was a planned homebirth, that was transferred to hospital for "failure to progress", which in my opinion is a crock of SH*T


R.

[Raven]

Planned water birth at home with a midwife...beautiful!

[Greaseball]

Failure to BE PATIENT!!

Renee - Yeah, I agree the whole "Failure to Progress" is a bunch of crap. I hear some places only allow a first time mom 18 hours to get the whole thing done, and 12 hours for a second time mom. It took me 38 hours and although I was in the hospital I was grateful they respected my wishes and did not give Pitocin.

Supposedly the baby is "in danger" if a mom takes "too long", but I think it's in more danger at the hands of an impatient doctor.

[glad2bemama]

I hear that, Greaseball. Thankfully I had a homebirth with very supportive midwives at both of mine. In fact, my midwife from CT flew out to help with doula work for my 2nd. I have back problems and can only carry my babies posterior and as a result, my cervix stays posterior through most of labor-- both of mine were actually arched backwards instead of fetal postition. The result-- 52 hours of "active labor" and 3 hours pushing with first. My second was 64 and a half hours " active"-- a lot of which I was 8-9cm and 1 and a half hours pushing. My midwife finally had to hold my cervix forward for the last 5 hours.
Anyway, there are many reasons that a labor may take a long time. I wonder how many women have the same trouble as me and just don't know it because their docs insist they are "failure to progress." By the way, both boys were 9/9 on apgars-- I was just a little tired, but exhilirated!