ML and I were watching The Business of Being Born last night. Interesting documentary about the birth industry in America. Growing up with my radical mother, none of it was very shocking to me. My middle sister was born at a birth center and my littles sister born at home while I slept in the next room.
I'd done my research on our local hospitals years before we even started trying. Our community hospital has a c-section rate of over 35% with an epidural rate approaching 90%. The next nearest hospital isn't much better, and I've actually heard from their nurses that doula's are routinely asked to leave and that they've been given explicit instruction to increase their epidural rate as a revenue generating procedure. yikes!
The County hospital, which deals with a much higher risk population, has much lower intervention rates. However to deliver at the County, you must receive your prenatal care in their OB clinic, which has a large team of doctors. Appointments are will different doctors and you deliver with whoever is on call that day.
The next County over is much more granola than ours, and has so many good birth options. They have a birth center with awesome stats, and a well respected hospital that has impressively low intervention rates. There are practicing midwives in almost every OB practice. It is like night and day from our local options.
I chose my OB, Dr K., many years ago, before we started trying. She practices in the next county over and delivers many babies at the birth center. Skilled in VBAC's and breech deliveries, she believes that childbirth is natural. She has a small practice, just her and a midwife, and delivers all of her babies. It is a bit of a drive, but I feel like I'm in such good hands. I chose her because I really wanted someone who trusted pregnancy and birth as a natural process but also had the skills to handle unexpected risks.
We've had two appointments with Dr K's office, one with her and one with her midwife. I brought a typed list of questions to each appointment and they took plenty of time to answer the questions that I'd asked, as well as many others that I hadn't thought to ask. I feel like they really care about me, and want me to feel cared for.
So, last night ML and I are watching this documentary that included some footage of homebirths. ML says "It looks like homebirth is the way to go." I agreed because I really do believe that for a normal healthy pregnancy homebirth would be an awesome option, then paused as my mind repeated what he'd just said, and asked "Are you saying that seriously? Would you really want to do a homebirth?" He was, and he does. And its all that I've been able to think about since.
2 hours ago