10 Celebrity Home Births

I think it is awesome to be lucky enough to live where we have choices. Home birth always sounded so cool to me. Unfortunately I had preeclampsia with both my pregnancies and would have been in serious trouble without medical intervention. I found my antepartum and labor and deliver nurses so great. I was pretty disappointed with post-partum care actually and I am a nurse myself. And I had to stay extra in postpartum because you are still at risk for seizures after the birth for 48 hrs and on IV medication.

I had my first three children in a hospital, but my fourth child was born at home in our tub. It was the most amazing experience ever, and even my husband raved about it to all his friends. The best part was sleeping in our own bed, with no nurses waking me up or noises in the hall, and our children all joining us in the morning. I can't wait to experience it again :)

My sister had an awful experience in the hospital with my nephew, and her doctor was actually the one to bring up home births for any future kids she might have. Her doctor is a very close family friend, so it's nice that she has a personal connection to my sister and is willing and happy to discuss different options with her. I'm glad that alternative methods like home births are being more openly discussed; it doesn't have to be hospital or nothing!

Unfortunately for me, the only way I was going to learn about home birth was to experience a very negative hospital experience. I thought I was taking the middle ground: midwives in a hospital, planning and prepared for unmedicated. While that was the outcome, I was also shocked by how hard I had to fight for it and that I had to resist midwives trying to hurry things along. My baby was born with no problems after 38 hours of labor. I realized then that it would be easier to have done that at home without having to fight for my privacy and my decision making power to be respected. My next baby was born at home in the water. Only 6 hours. It was completely peaceful and joyful. At this point, I won't ever go back to the hospital unless there is a medical indication (and pregnancy is not a medical indication!)

Homebirth is the ONLY way to go for me. The idea of gving birth in a hospital terrified me... and it seemed so impractical... imagine having to ride in a car when in labour for one thing!! Being at home and relaxed and allowed to birth at the rate/timing suitable for my baby and my body made sense and was a blessing. I'm so grateful to all the wonderful midwives out there who support women to birth naturally. And, I admire the women who are brave enough to freebirth too! :-)

I would love to try a home birth with my next child, but unfortunately my husband isn't to keen on the idea. Plus, the state (Nebraska) we live in doesn't allow it. I looked it up and it is a misdemeanor offense if a father delivers his own child at home. Midwives are not allowed to attend homebirths otherwise they can lose their licenses. There is a free standing birth center in the works, but unfortunately it is in a different city and my midwife won't have privileges there when it opens. I was induced with my daughter a week early because I was borderline hypertensive (high blood pressure) 2 weeks before she was due. They kept an eye on my blood pressure for a week and then sent me to a perinatologist who decided induction would be better to avoid any other problems, so right there I lost my hopes of no IV, no induction, no water birth, no continuous fetal monitoring. I felt like I was tied down the whole time (because I practically was). I had to beg to be let off the monitors twice to go walk the hall. I was reluctantly given 10 minutes each time. I tried to go without an epidural but the pain was so bad that I couldn't stand it! The women in my family have a history of back labor and pitocin makes it 100 times worse! If someone would have checked me BEFORE the epidural was placed, I probably would have talked myself into not getting it. I was at 7cm and had just started the transition phase which is the hardest part, but no one checked me till after it was in. I had a know it all L&D nurse in my face bossing me around and she ignored my pleas to leave me alone. Needless to say, nothing seemed to go the way I had hoped except for the fact that I was threatened with a c-section but managed to push out my healthy 8lb 8oz baby girl 26.5 hours after the pitocin was first started. The perinatologist was the one who wanted to do the c-section because he wanted to get home in time to eat dinner with his family. The midwife begged him to give me one more hour to complete that last centimeter so I could push. After she came out, the nurse called his number to tell him that he wouldn't need to do the c-section and when he didn't answer his phone, we left a message on his voicemail with her screamin and the rest of us laughing lol.

Home birth is well and good, as long as you're lucky enough to have a straight-forward, uncomplicated birth. But not all births are so simple, and moms should be aware of some of the risks associated with home-birthing.

Not all babies are born pink and healthy and crying heartily - a few need emergency treatment immediately after birth. And just because you had a peaceful water birth doesn't mean a new mother can't have a fourth-degree-tear or a massive hemorrhage, requiring immediate treatment at a hospital. And yes, these events are rare and yes, you can call an ambulance if you need one. But sometimes seconds can make the difference between a positive outcome and a negative one. And just because you are healthy and strong doesn't mean everything will go perfectly according to plan.

ALSO - there are a lot of moms who have had GREAT experiences giving birth in hospitals, surrounded by supportive doctors and medical staff who did NOT push various interventions. Not all hospitals or doctors are the same. In fact, more and more are trying to accommodate mothers' wishes during birth.

I'm NOT saying don't have home births. That's not what I'm saying at all.

I'm just saying BE INFORMED about the choices you're making. Not everyone's birth experience is the same, and we need to make sure moms are aware that while home births can be lovely, they do not come without some risk as well.

This is 2011...not 1811..Great that these women had a lot of help. What about no help? Just you and the father?
I think all this is pure nonsense. God help someone if something goes wrong.
Did they get good pre natal care? To many "unanswered questions" to convince me.

Here's my homebirth--at the hospital @ emptynestdiary.wordpress.com/2010/06/14/my-homebirth-at-the-hospital

All three of my children were born at home and each older child was home and awake to witness their sibling(s) being born. It was the most beautiful, most present days of our lives.

Yay for choice but please refrain from comments such as "hospital births are horrible" etc. I had wonderful midwifery care with both pregnancies and intended to have drug-free deliveries but unfortunately both ended in caesareans (actually, I should say fortunately because had these births been at home I would have undoubtedly died or the baby would have died) due to the shape of my pelvis. Neither child could actually descend and both were over two weeks post-date. Homebirths are great options for those who are lucky enough to have uncomplicated births but let's not bash hospital care. Nor should we be making women who have had to have lots of medical intervention feel like they have had less of an empowering birthing experience. Birthing a healthy baby is a wonderful and life changing experience - no matter how they arrive.

I gave birth to six beautiful children at home. They were all healthy and no complications. The lowest birth weight was 8 pounds. I did not have a licensed midwife but had several family members assisting. Yes things can go wrong but they can also go wrong in a hospital with even the best doctors assisting. It may not be for everyone but those who go to the hospital should not condemn those who choose not to.

Magickster, you have a couple of common misconceptions there. One, pain medications do get passed to the baby during labor, as anything else in the mother's bloodstream, and there are well-documented negative effects ranging from sleepiness after birth (which can affect breastfeeding initiation) to late decelerations in heart rate, which necessitates emergency c-section, and trouble breathing - Google "Kim James" "baby side effects" for a well-cited chart (since this form won't let me post a link). Two, pain is one thing, suffering is another. It is possible to birth without pain, it is very possible to birth without trauma - I had an unmedicated 2-hour labor with my second child that was not pain-free but utterly peaceful, there was no stress and no suffering. You don't have to tense your body in response to pain; in fact, a good deal of the pain is caused by tensing in response to the fear of pain. Google "fear-tension-pain cycle." I consider myself pretty practical - why subject myself and my baby to these risky (yes, there are risks!) medical treatments to deal with pain when, with the proper preparation, I don't have to? It isn't about toughing it out, proving how strong I am. No one's looking. It's about birthing my baby in the manner that is best for him and for me.

I think it's great that homebirth is becoming more prevalent. And I think that celebrities are probably more used to the attention that comes from doing unusual things than your average mom on the street, and hence have less trouble doing something out of the box. I do hope, however, that articles like this don't promote the myth that homebirth is just a fad, and I hope no one chooses it purely because her favorite celebrity did; it's not something to go into lightly or without preparation. Birth is serious business, and when you choose to birth at home you take on a lot of responsibility. I hold myself ultimately responsible for my and my childrens' health, regardless of environment or care provider, but it is a shock to go from believing that everything is in the doctor's (or even midwife's) hands to really accepting it yourself. I think that realization prepares you to be a more responsible parent.

I had my daughter at home, with no midwife or medical attendant. I must say, it was the most awesome and powerful experience I have ever had. It wasn't just that it was wonderful to be in my own home, alone with my fiance, but the feeling of triumph I felt afterwards left my high for weeks! I knew that if I could do that, I could do anything. People say homebirthers are brave. I know I wasn't...I BEGGED my fiance to take me to the hospital, so I could get drugs! But I had told home beforehand that I would say that and that it's not what I want and he was strong and refused. It's the best thing he's ever done for me. My beautiful daughter, Ava Lenore, was born into our hands, in our home. I would recommend to any woman with a healthy pregnancy to consider birthing this way.

Yes there should realize the opportunity to RSS commentary, quite simply, CMS is another on the blog.

You say don't condemn those that home birth but the people that choose to home birth act as if they are better then those who choose to give birth at a hospital. I am choosing to give birth at the hospital in case anything goes wrong I want to be close to medical help if need be. I do not want to put my babies life at risk. In saying that, I also believe in home birth and I fully support those that do. What I am saying is that there is no wrong or right way to bring your child into the world, there is only your way. Everybody had the right to do it how they see fit. Everybody needs to stop acting holier then thou and be happy for one another, you brought your children safely into the world, no matter how you did it.

I've given birth naturally twice- first in a hospital with an OB and the second time at home with a midwife, assistant and doula. Currently pregnant with my third child and planning another home birth.

For me, it was MUCH more difficult to give birth naturally in a hospital setting- they didn't allow me out of bed, constant fetal monitoring and angry nurses (one suggested if I got up to pee the baby could fall out and be born in the toilet- and I wasn't even 10 cm!). I was taken to the OR for third-degree tear and separated from my baby for 5 hours after he was born. For the remainder of the stay in the hospital they took the baby at 4 am each morning for a pedi check, made us sleep with the light on at all times, and encouraged formula supplementation because my son lost 13 ounces despite breastfeeding well.

My home birth took less than 5 hours from first contraction to birth, I was in the water most of the time. Once my water broke at the point of pushing and there was meconium in it, I was out of the tub. Typically my midewife would have transferred to the hospital at that point but she knew I would have the baby in the car. He was born perfectly healthy, and had he had problems from meconium, the midwives were ready to administer the same treatment as the hospital would have. We were all asleep in bed a few hours later, healthy and happy. Loved it and excited to do it again@

The women on here that keep going on about the dangers of home birth and making comments to the effect that women who choose home birth act like they are better than those that chose the hospital need to sit back and relax for a second. Retread the posts. None of them say they believe they are better than anyone else. Each post just shares an incredibly beautiful experience they personally had. Perhaps the fact they enjoyed their experience so much and this bring out some jealousy from women who have had less than wonderful experiences in hospitals, but why take that jealousy out on women who are just sharing their experience?
I am planning on having a home birth, but I've done my research and I've taking every precaution. I have read countless studies and know all the statistics. I've had excellent prenatal care and when I discovered baby was breech I was prepared for a c section if he would turn on his own or with help from the doctor . To assume that home birth mothers don't do their research and don't know for certain they are low risk and excellent candidates for home birth and statistically have the same odds of delivering at home as in the hospital is just ignorant. Also to assume women who choose no medication are choosing pain is also completely ignorant. Instead of spouting off wild assumptions. Google it. Spend ten minutes and you will learn that pitocin makes labor a hundred times more painful, which is why epidurals become necessary and this leads to decreased fetal heart rate and emergency c sections. At home without meds in water and relaxed environment with a midwife is far less stressful to healthy mother and baby than in a hospital. But there is not a single home birth mother that would say shed take the risk if her pregnancy was complicated.. Read the posts from women who have gone both depending on the circumstances..
It turns out our baby turned head down so I will continue my plan for a home birth, but don't think for a second I don't have an emergency back up plan. Midwives in California are legally obligated to have an emergency plan in place. And we are 7 minutes from my hospital.
If you are anti home birth, do some research. You fear what you don't know.
For healthy pregnancies real scientific studies prove that home births are just as safe than hospital births.. Google it and you will quickly find out why!
And let women share their positive experiences. No need to get snarky and equate home birthing with drinking and driving like one woman did. Once you look into it you will realize just how absurd you sound!
I don't do well in hospitals I passed out when I went in for an ecv to turn baby. Thankfully he had turned on his own but when then strapped me with fetal monitor to check heartbeat my blood pressure dropped and I scared the crap out of the nurses and my husband! I pass out in hospitals for whatever reason they make me feel so uneasy. The room with no windows, filled with machines and fluorescent lights.. The hospital bed and wondering what germs are lingering on the bed and equipment and if anyone has ever died in this bed.. No thanks.
If baby was breech and stayed that way, my midwife wouldn't legally be allowed to deliver so I would have had a c section. But because Ive had every test under the sun and know I completely safe to give birth at home, I'm looking forward to the warm birth tub, my hubby next to me, candles, relaxing music and experienced midwife and back up plan if I need to go to the hospital for any reason. I look forward to the experience and know that it won't be horribly painful because I will be totally relaxed and feel safe in my familiar surroundings. I can't think of anything more logical than a home birth when all the right circumstances are met.