Ina May Gaskin, America’s Leading Midwife, has a new book out this month titled Birth Matters: A Midwife’s Manifesta. And I am in tears from just finishing it.

I am sure many of my reader’s are familiar with Ina May and her life’s work of not only providing phenomal midwifery services to women at The Farm, her community in rural Tennessee, but also her dedication to promoting the midwifery model of care to improve women’s birth experiences.

Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth truly made me believe in my ability to birth my son at home.  It made me realize that I needed to “let my monkey out” while laboring, as Ina May so famously suggested.  I needed to tap into my primal self, the self that instinctively knows how to birth a baby.  The self who, if she didn’t realize she was pregnant and suddenly doubled over in pain and thought she had to make a gigantic bowel movement, would assume the position and birth a baby.

And I did. I moaned, I swayed, I paced, and knelt, and reached, and I grabbed that baby -at home- with the care of 2 great midwives, a doula, and my husband by my side.  So thank you, Ina May.

Birth Matters is different from her other books because it is a history of birth, an exploration of why birth changed from midwife driven to obstetrics and surgery, and how we can get it back to being about women, not profit.  Birth is not only a feminist issue, it is person issue.  Birth shapes mothers and fathers; and how babies are born can shape them as well.  Birth should be respected and honored, not treated as a medical issue in need of solving.

The US has a serious problem.  Our Motherhood Morbidity rates far exceed other nations with comparable technology and wealth.  As it stands, we are at 15.1 maternal deaths per 100,000 births in 2005, up from 7.5 per 100,000 in 1982.   Even sadder, the rates are likely higher than even we know since the CDC reports that two thirds of maternal deaths are not represented because the method of reporting deaths has no standard and is not being done properly.  We are behind 40 other countries.

To understand where we are, where we have been, and where we need to go Ina May documents her own journey to midwifery, the witch hunt and near total eradication of the midwife culture in the US, the resurgence of midwifery care thanks to the Natural Birth Movement, and how we still have a long way to go to get midwifery care to all mothers who desire it.

I myself had to travel 1.5 hours away to receive care in order to have a homebirth. Was it worth it?  Yes!  Would I do it again?  Absolutely.  Should I have to?  No. And NY isn’t the worst in terms of laws regarding midwifery care.  At least here midwives are now legal to practice and Certified Nurse Midwives can be covered by insurance.  Others have it far worse than I did.

So much of this book took me back to my own hospital birth.  In a way I am grateful for it because now I see why hospitals aren’t the best place to have a baby.  The OB/GYN model of care treats women as “ill” who need to be monitored, tested, and have their birth’s practically mapped out if the baby won’t come on their “estimated due date.”  Even the EDD’s are changing.  When once the expectation was that a mother would have her baby around 40-42 weeks, we have shortchanged mother’s by 2 weeks and say 40 is the max!  Just in my own life, the mothers I know who chose an OB and delivered in a hospital usually ended up delivering in the 37-40 week timeframe.  Many ended up with inductions.  Of the women I know who chose a midwife and/or a homebirth, most delivered in the 38-41 week time frame, or later.

I appreciate technological advances but where do we draw the line?  Ina May relates many of the “advances” in medicine and technology that have in fact done great harm to mothers and babies.  She even discusses the new phenomenon of stopping periods with birth control.  It seems the research on many drugs and procedures prescribed to women are lacking the long term studies they deserve.  Examples include DES (the hormone pill given to women to prevent miscarriages which has given two generations, maybe more, a rare cancer), X-Ray’s on pregnant women that were once all the rage, forcep deliveries for nearly every birth at one time, twilight sleep (women were drugged and given amnesiacs, tied down, and went totally crazy.  They gave birth tied down but never remembered it, thus thinking it went well and was painless, when in fact it was not).  Then there is the technical advance of Electronic Fetal Monitoring and the pain relief drug, the Epidural.

The last two can be useful, but with overuse they cause more harm than good.  EFM in particular seems wonderful, but it has replaced nurses and doctors with a beeping machine.

And what about the Cesarean? I don’t think even the most staunch natural birth adovocate will deny that the C-Section has a place in this world. It can and has saved countless mothers and babies.

It has also become commonplace, accepted, and normal.  It is no longer just a life saving measure.  It is prescribed for virtually all breach babies, multiples, and of course, for any women who has had a previous C-Section.

The World Health Organization says C-Section births should be no higher than 10-15%.  The US stands at 32%, nearly one in three women! Some hospitals have rates in the 60-75% range.  When the C-Section rate reaches its highest point at 5:00-6:00 PM we know something is wrong.

Ina May and others are proposing we change the broken maternal healthcare system.  Easier said than done, right?

There is a new Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative, and this is laid out in the book.  Among other things, to be classified as a CIMS hospital, free standing birth center, or homebirth practice, C-Section rates cannot exceed 15%, but the goal is 5%.  Inductions (a topic close to my heart) should not exceed the rate of 10%, episiotomies should not exceed 20% but the goal is 5%, and VBAC (vaginal births after Cesarean) should be at least 60% but the goal is 75%.  The VBAC rate finally has a chance to increase thanks to the recent ruling by ACOG saying every woman has the right to a trial of labor to achieve a vaginal birth after cesarean.

Other goals are to treat women with the respect their deserve, to give more women access to midwives who want it, to let women labor and move about freely, to let women eat or drink, and so on.  Things that you would think are common sense, yet they don’t happen in many hospitals.

The CIMS hospital would also discourage non religious circumcisions, follow the WHO-UNICEF’s “10 Steps of the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative”  for successsful breastfeeding, and mothers would receive adequate post-partum care including homevisits.

I am almost in tears again reliving the story told in this book (and many other places) of a woman who died of a post-partum hemorrhage a few years ago in NY.  Her mother was concerned about her, and last time they spoke the woman complained of a head ache.  When police finally broke down her door many days alter (after being asked to many times) they found the mother had bled out and her newborn had died of dehydration and starvation.

Had there been a postpartum homevisit her condition would have likely been discovered.  And at the very least, the baby would have been discovered in time.  In the book the number of babies born to single mothers is reported to be nearly 50%.  Many probably don’t have family to check on them.

The US has a problem. There is a solution.  God-willing one day this broken system will be fixed and the needless deaths of mothers (and babies) due to inadequate care, botched C-Sections, and post-partum complications left undiscovered will cease.

That is why I will be joining the Rally at the U.S. Capital with Ina May Gaskin and The Safe Motherhood Quilt.

Find out more information on The Motherhood Quilt and its mission.

You are damn right Birth Matters.  So let’s fix it.

You can find a copy of Birth Matters from my affiliate Amazon.com.  If you buy from my link you can help fund my trip to DC!  I am also hoping to attend her speech which has a hefty ticket price and would involve an extra hotel night.

I received a copy of this book in advance from the publisher for review. I also devoured it in 3 days.  Clearly, I enjoyed it and I think you will too.

My second birth experience was a homebirth and I wouldn’t change a thing. But I also had a hospital delivery in what I believe to be a wonderful hospital. At the time I was looking for OB GYN’s (I never considered a midwife, it was so far off my radar you wouldn’t believe it.  I was quite a different person then and not educated in childbirth, breastfeeding, or AP anything) based on the recommendations of my husband’s co worker’s.  I switched OB’s early on because my first doctor would see us for 5 minutes after the nurse did all of the heavy lifting.  He criticized me for gaining too much weight too quickly, frankly, he was right, but it wasn’t in the nicest tone.

We picked a new OB GYN based on the hospital he delivered at and the fact that his office was 8 minutes from my house.  St. Joseph’s Medical Center was touted as a wonderful place to give birth.  They even had The Birth Place, an epidural free zone meant for low risk, natural birth deliveries that was more like home.  I wanted to give birth there but didn’t get to (I was “high risk” with Gestational Diabetes).

Still, this hospital was wonderful.  It is also one of very few “Baby Friendly” hospitals in the nation.

The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) is a global program sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to encourage and recognize hospitals and birthing centers that offer an optimal level of care for infant feeding. The BFHI assists hospitals in giving mothers the information, confidence, and skills needed to successfully initiate and continue breastfeeding their babies or feeding formula safely, and gives special recognition to hospitals that have done so.

My labor and delivery nurses honored my birth plan.  I won’t write out my own birth story, but the induction process itself inhibited my desire to labor the way I wanted.  This ultimately led me to get an epidural.  This was not spurred on by my nurses or my doctor.  In fact, the doctor who delivered my son (not my own OB who was not on call) accepted our plan to leave the cord attached (delayed cord clamping) and allowed me to pull my son out on my own.

St Joseph’s also encourages “rooming in.” Rooming in means your baby is with you at all times as long as you are both healthy.  The nurses will likely change your baby but you are in charge of the rest.  Hopefully your hospital also allows your significant other to stay the night to help you.  Nurses will help you around the clock to nurse you baby (hopefully) if you need the assistance. If you are set on breastfeeding your baby you will want to insist on this.  If yours does not have this policy you may want to look around for a new hospital or ask if you can room in anyways.

Giving birth at a “baby friendly” hospital means you will also have access to excellent Lactation Consultants.  I have already written about how my Lactation Consultant saved my breastfeeding relationship with my first son.  I had free follow ups and I took advantage of them.

You will also want to ask:

• “What is your hospital’s C-Section rate?”
• “Can I eat during my labor?”
• “Can I eat my own food?”
• “Is there a shower or tub I can labor in”
• Are the rooms equipped with birth balls, birth stools, or other labor tools?”
• “Am I required to be monitored?”
• “Will the nurses read over my birth plan and honor it?”
• “If I have a C-Section, can I use a mirror to view the birth?”
• “Will I be able to nurse my baby within 15 minutes, barring any immediate complications?”
• “Can I check out early?”
• “Can I have a waterbirth if I choose?” (some hospitals have tubs for waterbirths, others allow you to bring your own tub.)
• “Can my doula be present?”

If you are delivering in a birth center that does not allow epidurals, you will want to ask what the transfer plan is in case of an emergency C-Section or if you decide you want pain medication.

Choosing the right care provider, whether it be an OB GYN or midwife, is also important. I can’t say that one is more important than the other.  Even the best provider can’t provide you with your birth experience if the hospital is working against you, and vice versa.  Most of these questions can apply to finding your provider.  If you are looking for a homebirth midwife I have a list of questions that you may want to copy.

Every woman deserves quality medical care.  I am so happy I chose a homebirth, but I know even if I had known more about childbirth while pregnant with my first son I still would have birthed in a hospital.  Being a first time mom, I wouldn’t have known how my labor would be, and being in a hospital would have felt safer.  However, I would have educated myself better about inductions and would have chosen a midwife rather than an OB GYN.  Unfortunately many women have no choices in hospitals because they only have the one in their town. In this case you will want to be your own advocate! Hire a doula, make sure your husband is on the same page with you regarding your birth plan.  And speaking of birth plans, having one that is too long or too strict may do more harm than good. Sometimes it is best to have 2, a detailed plan to discuss with the doctor/midwife who will be delivering you, and a shorter, list form for the labor nurses.  They will be more likely to read it this way.

Because everyone I know online is pregnant I have been hearing a lot about their labors.  Some were hospital births, some were at home, and many were even VBACs.  Luckily, most of my friends are pretty informed about pregnancy, labor, and delivery.  This meant that most of them waited for the baby to come when the baby was ready.  Many of these babies decided they wanted to wait until after their “due date.”

This is what I noticed.  These “overdue” babies gave their mamas a short labor.  All labors, whether they are an hour or 20, hurt.  If I were given a choice, I would rather have a relatively quick and intense labor like the one I had with my second son, than the 20 hour slow starting, induced labor of my first.

Everett was born at home at 41 weeks and 3 days.  My labor was 4 hours and 45 minutes including 20 minutes of pushing.

Friend A was 41 weeks and 3 days with her third baby (her second HBAC), and her labor was 6 hours.

Jill from Baby Rabies recently gave birth to her second baby at 41 weeks.  She walked into the hospital at a 7 and delivered 2 hours after checking in after an intense and fast labor. Her birth story.

We were all “overdue,” very large, uncomfortable, and ready to have a baby.  We waited a long time

One of my theories is that my babies need to bake longer than the “40 week” mark.  Every woman is different, every pregnancy is different.  Why is there so much importance placed on this magic 40 week mark?  The reason I say this is because of the differences I saw in my first son after birth compared to my second.

My first son was induced when I was 39 weeks 3 days.  To most pregnant people they would assume this is plenty of time to bake a baby.  My OB decided to induce me because I had Gestational Diabetes and was told going 1 day over 40 wasn’t an option (pshaw… wish I had known) and because at my growth scans they noticed my baby’s abdomen was measuring small (but consistently small, why worry?).  The day we went in for a follow up scan they told me to pack my bags and come in the next day because, and I quote, “the baby has baked long enough.”

I had a pitocin induced labor which took over 20 hours from start to finish.  I couldn’t take the humpback contractions and opted for the epidural.  To this day I am amazed I ended up with a vaginal birth now that I know the statistics for inductions and long labors.

Fletcher was 7 lbs 2 0z and 19.5 inches long.  He was coated with thick vernix.  Why do I mention this?  Typically, full term babies have already sloughed off most or all of their vernix.

A very cheesey newborn

Fletcher was very drowsy and we had an insanely difficult time with nursing.  He didn’t latch properly and would fall asleep at the breast in minutes.  Instead of cuddling my new baby I was forced to torture him to stay awake in order to eat.  I undressed him, flicked his feet, blew on his face, all to get food in his belly by order of the nurses.

He was also fairly small and rag dollish.  He became jaundiced but not severe enough to need lights.  He looked like a stick figure baby when I look back at photos.

In comparison, my “overdue” baby, Everett, was born at 41 weeks 3 days (2 full weeks more than Fletcher).  He weighed 8 lbs 8 oz and was 20.5 inches long.

He also had vernix, but a much lighter coating.

He was alert and ready to nurse.

He had the head control of a 1 month old and could lift his head off my chest at a few minutes old.

His latch was perfect (but he was tongue tied which we had clipped, more on that here)

He also slept great from day 1 (at night that is)

I am not saying every problem I had with my first son was related to him being born too early, nor am I saying every thing right with my second has to do with him being born overdue.  My boys both also had very different birth experiences.  Fletcher was induced, put through a long labor and a very long pushing phase (3 hours) and was born while I was on an Epidural.  Everett came when he was ready, he had a calm labor lasting less than 5 hours with a 20 minute push phase.  Part of their difference in labor is probably because second labors are typically faster as well, so I can’t blame everything on being induced.

My wish for all women is that they not have to even deal with the pressure to be induced.  With the staggering rate of C-Sections, babies born too soon thanks to being induced before the baby was ready (you can read a recent article in Time magazine to that effect, which is ironic since I wrote this a week ago, good timing!), and the high rate of Maternal deaths in the US, women need to educate themselves and possibly prepare to butt heads with their care provider.

I wasn’t exactly thrilled about being 41 weeks and 3 days pregnant but I trusted my body and my baby. I had a very routine (and easy) pregnancy other than my gestational diabetes, which was well under control.  My baby made a grand entrance into the world and kept us all anxiously waiting.  I’m so thankful for our supportive midwives and the internet for informing me that I am in charge of my body, not my OB GYN.

When my sons took a 3.5 hour nap I managed to edit a video compiling the photos from my homebirth.  There are no graphic images, in case you wondering.

I am patiently (mostly) waiting to go into labor.  As of now I am 5 days “overdue” if my due date is to be trusted.  The thing is, my baby takes directions pretty well.  Here is why:

First, my in-laws, who are going to drive here from North Carolina (12 hours), couldn’t come until after the 8th.  I waited until the 8th and felt relief when that date passed.  It will be nice to have them here to play with Fletcher.

Then, my main midwife was going to be out of town the 8th through the 11th.  I have been seeing 2 midwives but she is the CNM.  The evening of the 11th arrived and the baby was still baking.  Midwife called and said she was back in town, all systems go.  Sweet.

Around this time my husband had a nasty cold and was acting like the biggest baby on the planet.  Here I am waddling around, with a giant thing inside me, and he is being pitiful and absolutely NO HELP around the house.  Also, bringing a newborn into cold infested air sucks.  Now he is over it.

My husband has also been super busy at work with a big project.  He goes in early, he comes home late, and he works in the evening from home.  Seems like this is going to be done after this week so he can be off of work without working from home as much and stressing about this.  That is good news.

The biggest worry has been that my toddler has regressed in his sleeping habits.  For the past 3 weeks he has been waking at night.  He screams and won’t go back to his bed, when normally I can just give him a cuddle and he will go back to sleep in his bed.  So he started sleeping with us at least half of the night again.  2 nights ago I decided it had to end before the baby arrived.  He woke twice that night and I managed to get him back to sleep in his bed both times.  Last night he slept all night in his bed again!  Please say he is over this!  What a wonderful thing that would be!  The great thing is that I actually just talked to him and told him he was a big boy and needed to sleep in his bed.  He nodded and said “yeah” and let me put him in bed that night.  Amazing!  He is growing up so fast!

The last thing on my list I wanted to do was see Jackass 3D.  I am going to try and see it today.  My hope is I will laugh until my water breaks!

Do you think my little tummy baby is really listening for the perfect time to come out? I do, because anytime before today would have been less than perfect.  He is welcome to come any day now!

To say I am not terrified of giving birth naturally would be lying. Labor is painful (unless you are an amazing hypobirther or you have that rare disease where you don’t feel pain) and I am afraid I will suck at it.  But then again, I am ready to go for it!  And I am excited to do my birth my way with the wonderful support system I am putting in place.  I will have my midwife, the assistant, my doula, and my husband.

My husband, son, and I went to meet my homebirth midwife for the first time on Tuesday.  We came armed with a million questions and stayed for 2 hours.  Even though I have been using a midwife for my prenatal care thus far, the one on one attention we received at this appointment was more than the combined time I have talked with my former midwife.  It felt great to discuss all of my fears, concerns, ambitions, goals, hopes, and expectations.  The room was relaxed, and there was a playroom that kept my son occupied nearly the entire time.  I thought sharing the questions my husband and I came up with would potentially help other couples who are considering homebirth, even if some seem silly!

1. Tub rental: do you rent a tub, which tub, and how much?

2. Does the tub come with a pump (for drainage)?

3.What documents do you need (medical history from prev doctor)?

4. What number do we call, back up numbers?

5. Travel time (she is 1.5 hours away):  when do we call?

6. What do you bring (medical supplies like oxygen)?

7. What if there is a transfer, do you have hospital privileges?

8. Should I have a birth plan?

9. Payment: upfront or after billing insurance?

10. Is there a specific birth kit you want me to buy?

11.  Should we have 2 plans (in case of change to a hospital)?

12. If the blood sugar is low for baby, what would you do?

13.  If baby shows signs of jaundice, what to do?

14. When/ how do we follow-up with pediatrician?

15.   Birth Certificate/ etc, how is this done?

16.  Clean-up?!?!  Who does this and how? (my husband’s number one concern.  Answer: they do it all)

17. What do we need in house that isn’t in the birth kit?

18.  What is your record of c sections/ transfers.

19.  If I need stitching?

20.  Tear prevention massage?

21.  Medical waste disposal?

22.  How long do you stay after the birth?

23.  How late can I go?  How will you monitor to make sure it is safe to go over?  Natural induction methods?

24. If I go “too late” would I need to deliver in a hospital?

25. What would warrant a change to a hospital birth?

26.   If in a tub, how do you tell if the cord is wrapped around neck?

27.  If I am Group B positive, what happens then?

28.  What about pushing the tummy to get blood out?  Not needed?

All of these questions were answered for us.  Some answers were surprising (like that nurses don’t need to push on your stomach every hour and wake you up, but you can do it yourself if you want) and some were reassuring (her second time mom rate of C Sections was 1% for 20 years).  I felt very at ease with her and am very confident she can help me have a wonderful birth experience.  I never would have considered homebirth with my first child, and I can tell you if I had my husband would not have budged on it.  Now, we have both learned a lot about being parents and pregnancy, as well as how the “system” isn’t always in the best interest of the mother and child.  I regret my induction with my son, which was not necessary.  If only I had known!  We had a positive outcome and still had a vaginal birth, but so many women are induced for no reason and end up having a C-Section.  I ordered my birth kit already and it is on the way, and there are so many other things to prepare.  It has been a long battle to get this homebirth, but in a way I always knew it would happen. Every time I imagined giving birth to my son it was at home.  Now it is a reality.  Yikes!

My next baby will be here in a few short weeks and I am feeling the anxiety.  I don’t have a baby bath tub, or enough swaddling blankets.  I have to pull out all of those fun things like burp cloths and my handy Nose Frida (no bulb syringe here, this thing works great!).  I also need to get a new dresser to hold enough clothes for 2 children.

What I won’t be preparing: bottles.  Won’t use them.  Pump: probably won’t be using that either, though I may grab it in a moment of engorged desperation.  Nursery: baby will be either sleeping next to me in bed or next to our bed in our Hushamok hammock.

What I hope not to prepare: a hospital labor bag!  I will find out very soon if homebirth is a possibility for us.  Since the MMA (Midwifery Modernization Act) passed and Certified Nurse Midwives have the right to practice homebirths in the state of NY without a signed practice agreement with an OB, there is hope.  The only foreseeable block is that my potential midwife already has a mom due at the end of October and she also wants to take some time off that month.  If she can get coverage from one of the other midwives in Ithaca then I should be good.  The next hurdle would just be meeting with her and making sure I am comfortable with her.  It looks like my insurance does cover homebirth, at least 70%.  NY State does have a law stating a woman has the right to choose her birth setting and doctor and insurance must cover it.  Strange that NY is great for Homebirth in terms of insurance, but it took so long for homebirths to be practiced without the legal tape and hoops.

Besides my obvious reasons for wanting a homebirth, the main perk would be not having to scramble for childcare when I go into labor.  Living far from friends and family is very hard, and even harder when you need to leave your house in a relative hurry with short notice.  Grandma’s are good for that, “friends” are not.  Especially those with jobs and children.  I would still want to have someone come to help with Fletcher depending on the time.  But at least he wouldn’t have to pack up and come to the hospital with us, which is what I am afraid of.

If things don’t pan out then I will be ok, but only because I do love my current midwife.  She is caring and competent and will make my birth experience as close to a home birth as possible.  I would actually be sad to lose her if I get my homebirth.  I only wish she could deliver me at home!

Pregnancy wise, this has been a breeze compared to my first.  With my first I weighed close to what I weigh now before I even got pregnant.  And I kept gaining.  I had constant hip pain very early on.  It hurt to walk up and down stairs.  I ran out of breath, my Gestational Diabetes had me on far fewer carbs than I can eat now, and I was generally pretty miserable.  These days I forget I am pregnant.  While I am beginning to experience trouble sleeping and some hip pain at night, during the day I am comfortable.  My GERD has settled down thanks to my Gestational Diabetes diet and I stopped taking any medications for it besides the occasional Tums.  I do have to pee a lot but I don’t think there is a way to avoid that at this point.  I am also getting a little lazy.  My floor hasn’t been mopped in a couple of weeks!  The only reason it isn’t coated with crumbs is that I have a Roomba.

I am getting more and more excited about meeting my next son.  I am also starting to dread the impending loss of sleep that I have only recently started getting.  I am afraid two children will kill me, especially since the one I have keeps me busy enough.  Still, I will be happy to have him here with us!

My next birth experience will be in roughly 107 days, at a hospital located about 15 minutes from my home, and will hopefully be attended by my Midwife, my husband, and my doula.

Things I would like to be different from my first birth.

• I do not want to be induced again.
• I do not want to be chained to an IV pole and fetal monitor
• I do not want to have limited access to a shower (I had none)
• I do not want to be barred from any food from the start of labor until giving birth. (I did not eat for over 24 hours and all I could think about was food, not my labor or my baby)
• I do not want to receive pain medication (I did receive an epidural.  Though the nap was nice, I am hoping having food, not being induced, and laboring at home more will prevent this)
• I do not want to be told when to push.
• I do not want my baby to be prevented from nursing within the first 45 minutes because he is breathing a tiny bit funny.

Things I want to be the same as my first birth.

• I do want my husband by my side (at my beck and call)
• I do want A Lindt Chocolate bar in my labor bag for after delivery (Since I had gestational diabetes last time.  I test in 3 weeks)
• I do want the most delicious tuna sandwich in the world after delivery, especially if it is at 4 am.
• I do want great nurses who are supportive and helpful.
• I do want to delay the cord clamping.
• I do want to pull my son out myself once the shoulders are out and put him on my chest.
• I do want a lactation consultant to check with our nursing progress, even though I am an experienced breastfeeder, my son won’t be an experienced nurser.
• I do want to cuddle my adorable new son, who will be rooming in with me.

I am looking for an almost entirely different experience that my last.  I am hoping that my midwife will allow me to go into labor naturally even if I have gestational diabetes.  I also just met with my doula and I believe she is going to help tremendously with attaining a natural birth.  The only concern I have currently is who will watch my son while I am in the hospital.  We do not have family (or friends really) in the area.  My son relies on me to fall asleep for his naps and at night.  He also sleeps with us the majority of the night.  Me being gone will be hard for both of us.

Now that I have a great support team in place all I need is to wait for my son to arrive.  Hopefully that will be on 10-10-10.

Image: Free Our Midwives

The past few weeks I have been feeling a need to really own my birth experience this time around.  My son’s birth was a very medical one.  I was induced at 39 weeks because his abdomen was measuring small and because I had gestational diabetes.  I was not going to be allowed to go over 40 weeks no matter what.  I was given pitocin and chained to a bed or glider for something like 22 hours.  Bed to chair, chair to bed.  No wonder I couldn’t manage my pain (or pee for that matter.)

I was slow to progress and stayed at a 2 for a very long time.  When I got to a 3 I asked for the epi.  I was ashamed of myself but between the nausea and humpback contractions (no one warned me about that… I was one of the lucky ones) and exhaustion I needed that break.  I slept for a few hours and when I woke up they told me I was a 10.  Shocking how out of it I was for the last few hours of my labor.

They turned the epi off and I pushed for 3 hours.  By the time I was in the homestretch the epi had mostly worn off and I was able to work with my contractions to get him out.

When I got pregnant with number two I was once again planning to try for a natural birth.  I looked for a midwife who would support me in that decision.  I did not do research with my OB and had someone I wasn’t happy with.  I found a wonderful midwife and a very pro natural birth practice.  I will be working with a doula as well.

This week I decided I wanted a home birth.  I used to be pretty afraid of that option.  As much as I admired those women who did it, I was worried about being too far from a hospital.  The idea just wouldn’t shake.  Imagining laboring in my own home, where I could get comfortable, take a shower, be in a tub, get a drink or snack, and be with my son made me decide I wanted to look into it.

I approached the subject with my husband.  He was less than thrilled.  After begging I was granted a phone call to a homebirth midwife.  The closest ones are all 1.5 hours away.  I told him it was unlikely to begin with since I am far along and they have to select patients who fit their schedule.

Not only was the midwife going to be on sabbatical, but apparently insurance issues made the decision for me.  As of July 1 midwives from Ithaca can not do home births.

In NY state Midwives have to have a practice agreement with an OB.  These midwives had one with an Ithaca doctor.  Then, he terminated that thanks to insurance issues.

Basically no woman in my area can have a home birth.

I was crushed.  I had this vision of being relaxed and at peace in my home.  Instead I will have another hospital birth.  I am hoping the doula and caring midwife will help me be strong and avoid an epidural.

It is so sad that my choice was taken from me.  If this is my last baby I will never get the home birth experience.  And if the laws aren’t changed, neither will hundreds of other mothers in my area.

Free Our Midwives is working to change the law to help midwives in NY practice.  Hopefully they do!