Need a good education about homebirth

[Ahappymel]

I am reading, listening and learning.
I am wondering if anyone can suggest some good books about homebirth...especially ones that quote recent statistics/information about the benefits of homebirth versus hospital birth.....
Thanks!-Mel.

[Saf]

Me too! Let us in on your secrets, oh wise women!

[alegna]

Do some searches here. There are tons of good sites and books in past threads.

-Angela

[jerawo]

Well, it's going to be hard to find homebirth stats vs. hospital stats because most hospitals won't release their data.

A very recent article in the British Medical Journal did a study on homebirth versus hospital birth and the results show that for normal pregnant women homebirth is just as safe as the hospital and results in much fewer interventions. You can read this on their website.

I've always liked the statistics in Ina May's Gaskin's Spiritual Midwifery and Ina May's Guide to Childbirth. They are simple amazing and count as homebirth/birth center. This is how I brainwashed DH about homebirthing.

[alegna]

Check out Henci Goer's Obstetric Myth vs. Research Reality. Dry- but has all the information you could ever want.

-Angela

[JanetF]

I can email anyone huge amounts of info and masses of studies. I run the Australian home birth network :D I practically keep studies in my handbag to wave at people ;) The basic premise to remember is that the notion that hospital=safe is a false consciousness because actually it doesn't but our cultures promote the idea that it does. There has never been a reputable study in the world which shows hospitals to be safer than home and most show home to be safer. It's not just the birth place though it's the care provided and hospitals don't practice evidence based medicine and most independent MWs do. Therein lies the basic reason for the far superior outcomes of home birth. Not that it happens at home per se, although avoiding the germs and superbugs and other nasties lurking in hospitals like Obs ;) is good, it's simply the model of care provided has actual, real evidence behind it. So, PM me if you'd like my massive amounts of info! :D

[JanetF]

Incidentally, there is an Australian study purporting to show higher rates of neonatal death associated with home birth but if you read the full study you find out it wasn't planned home births they studied, it was any baby coming out of any woman, anywhere other than a hospital. So women with loose cervixes whose 20 week old baby was born precipitately at home, or other women whose babies were accidentally produced at home, by the side of the road, etc are all counted as home births. And not surprisingly, a large proportion died. I've seen studies from the US showing death rates of 6/10,000 in your hospitals and around 2/10,000 at home. From vague memory...

[LoveChild421]

Spiritual Midwifery and Ina May's Guide to Childbirth (both by Ina May Gaskin) are great places to start reading about home birth and about the physiology and factors that are conducive to a natural birth. Spiritual Midwifery has a section of statistics from their community, The Farm, in Tennessee- they have better birth outcomes than U.S. hospitals.

[Ahappymel]

Spiritual Midwifery and Ina May's Guide to Childbirth (both by Ina May Gaskin) are great places to start reading about home birth and about the physiology and factors that are conducive to a natural birth. Spiritual Midwifery has a section of statistics from their community, The Farm, in Tennessee- they have better birth outcomes than U.S. hospitals.

Just ordered Spiritual Midwifery to read first! Thanks for all of these great resources!-Mel.

[Monkeybutt]

When I was pregnant I bought every book I could get my hands on. We just moved and most of then are in boxes but a few I can remember are:

"The Thinking Womens Guide to Childbirth" by Henci Goer

"Special delivery" by Rahima Baldwin

"Mind Over Labor" by Carl Jones

""Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way" by Susan McCutcheon