How Safe Is Your Home Birth?
In the wake of Janet Fraser’s tragic homebirth a broohaha is erupting. How safe is your homebirth? What is a home birth and who should have one? Yes, the woman who coined the term “Birthrape” to describe an emergency episiotomy has lost her child during a home birth.
Let me be very clear here, that a baby died is a horrendous tragedy. Not learning from this would be even worse.
My friend, and fellow Mom Blogger, Amber Watson Tardiff wrote a compelling piece that asks the question everyone sidesteps, is homebirthing a crime? Amber notes:
You may have even seen quotes from Janet calling c-sections and episiotomies “birthrape” and insisting that “survivors are angry and we are starting to talk about it.”
What you may not know is Janet’s baby suffered cardiac arrest during her cherished unassisted water birth and died on March 27th at her home in Australia.
Apparently the possibility of “birthrape” was much more important to Janet than the safety of her child.
Well, she (Amber) has a point, but what Janet did wasn’t just a home birth, it was an unassisted home birth. Some call it free birthing (here’s what the Daily Mail says), and there isn’t even assistance from a midwife. Janet had also had a prior c-section, so a qualified medical professional sounds like a no brainer. Ms. Fraser also labored at home for some time, perhaps days, while refusing to call for help. The Australia Herald Sun says:
Janet Fraser is in labour. Her plan is to drop the baby on the lounge room floor, or wherever feels good at the time.
Has she called the hospital to let them know what’s happening? “When you go on a skiing trip, do you call the hospital to say, ‘I’m coming down the mountain, can you set aside a spot for me in the emergency room?’ I don’t think so,” says Fraser, whose breathing sounds strained.
Although a home birth may have had the same results, one can only imagine that a midwife just might have saved the baby.
I know a number of women who have given birth at home and, for them it was a great experience. Our own Jennifer Lance has a story (that I’m too squeamish to read) about her birth experiences. Derek Markham has a list of 35 reasons they chose home birth (he’s so actualized), and Carlota has talked extensively about her daughter’s birth.
Personally, I took the drugs. These aren’t the drugs of my mother’s generation. I’ve worked in the Emergency Room and seen natural child birth. It’s not for me. Again, I’m a self-identified candy ass greenie.
I support women who chose a home birth.
But a free birth?
I cannot see the wisdom in it.
Neither can Ms. Fraser’s baby.
What do you think? Is Ms. Frazier a criminal or a hero?
I realized that I didn’t clarify the difference between free birth (or unassisted home birth) and home birth until way late in the article and that sort of confused people.
But all confusion aside, I am all for birthing centers, full midwifery services and the nine, but as far as free-births or equating what these professionals do on a daily basis to rape is insanity.
I hope Janet Fraser’s followers realize that midwifes and doctors are good people (insurance companies that rush your delivery and hospital stay– not such much) and really should be present during the delivery process.
And if you think your OB/GYN is raping you– find another one!!
I saw this via Jerseymomma’s twitter.
It has taken me some time to be comfortable with the whole “home birth” idea simply because I lost a baby and am rather sensitive about the whole thing.
BUT…many of my internet friends have done it and if you have access to prenatal care and a midwife w/a hospital nearby I have come around to it being one of many parenting choices that is right for some. One even had a freebirth but it was more out of circumstances out of her control at the last moment. She had a totally clean medical history, though.
Freebirth with no one trained anywhere in sight when there have been known medical past issues that could impact the delivery of the baby in question?
NO.
This particular situation feels more like neglect-from what I read above she showed signs of trouble in her labor but was so attached to an idea and cause she ignored them and refused help?
Man.
I feel so deeply for her loss. And the hell she will most likely live in her head knowing she contributed to it.
Criminal? Not sure. Uneducated and careless, even if not on purpose? Certainly.
With this, uninspired, pathetic piece of blogging, I’ll now stop checking in to see what you have to share. This is clearly not the blog for me.
I went to the hospital to have my baby, and I delivered him on a bathroom floor, with only his father there to assist, because there was a shocking lack of ANYONE LISTENING TO ME when I said I was going-to-have-my-baby-right-now. Then, because this was not a plan the hospital had, they contrived to keep me there for monitoring (despite lack of any symptoms of anything in me or baby) for FIVE DAYS. I figure if I have my baby at home, at least I’ll have a midwife, right? And I’ll be home!
All future babes, barring medical emergency, will be born at home, assisted by midwife.
Since when is an unassisted home birth not worthy of being called a home birth? It happens at home. I have a problem with what looks to me like hijacking of the definition to suit an agenda. I’ve been around home birthers my entire life and have never, ever heard “freebirth” as the preferred term.
What happened to Janet Frasier’s baby is a tragedy, but it is extremely irresponsible to say that it is unequivocally the fault of her birthing choices. Babies die in hospitals and with midwife-assisted home births too. It’s thankfully rare in all cases.
I know many women who have had unassisted home births. Frankly, while I am quibbling with terms I have a problem with “unassisted,” since none of these women were alone in the woods or even alone in the bedroom. In every case, at least one person (usually the father) was present to assist, and in most cases there was also another woman present, whether her mom or a friend. That is not exactly a lack of assistance.
My point, though, is that birth is generally safe, and evidence stands to show that it’s actually safer at home. Most women who choose to birth at home without a midwife have had previous births and have a good support system. There is absolutely no cause to assume that their babies are in danger.
Criminal no.
In mourning, certainly. Will she mourn the rest of her life? Likely. Will she be able to encourage others in homebirth (not free birth)? THAT would be heroic.
I’ve had two wonderful homebirths. One of my babies was saved by our amazing midwife. I would not go unassisted. Having been through a situation in which my midwife actually saved the life of my baby, I’ll stick with my midwives. Also, they can carry oxygen and pain med for the stitching up in the end… yes, I accept pain med for the perennial stitches. Must have midwives for me to birth comfortably!
Ms. Fraser also chose to receive *no* prenatal care. None. From anyone. This is made clear in interviews she did before this tragedy happened, while she was still pregnant.
According to a study done in Australia, a slightly higher percentage of babies die in homebirth than in hospital. BUT the researchers thought this was almost entirely due to high risk pregnancies trying to deliver at home. Ms. Fraser was a VBAC and she had NO midwife or doctor assess this pregnancy, how it was progressing or what risks she or her child might face at birth.
According to US statistics, out-of-hospital birth pose–overall–a slightly higher risk of infant death.
Unattended birth and total lack of prenatal care, on the other hand, quite dramatically increase the risk that your baby will die.
This isn’t about homebirth. It’s not about reasonable people disagreeing.
This is about a woman with an extreme agenda who ignored *every* recommendation out there by *every* kind of health provider on how to give her baby the best chance of a healthy birth.
If that’s not reckless and negligent, what is?
By the time my second pregnancy was through, I was ready to do a UC. I was exhausted with the interventions through my healthy pregnancy. I felt like a lab rat, not a strong mama readying to give birth.
http://ecochildsplay.com/2009/03/12/the-medicalization-of-my-natural-birth/
It’s medical professionals who make us feel like they know better than us about what our bodies are capable of that make some women turn to UC. I definitely would have. But I only heard of the practice 2 weeks before Baby E was born, and it didn’t seem like an appropriate amount of time to prepare.
http://blog.thenatureschild.com/2008/02/home-birth-do-it-yourself-style.html
In the end, we were at the hospital a TOTAL of 20 minutes before he was born, and Mark and I were the only ones in that room who knew what my body needed to do. Every which way, I’m still annoyed with the way I was “handled” and “managed”, though they were all clueless. I was too damned calm for a woman pushing a baby out.
I know women who have had UCs, and I’m sure you’ll be hearing from them here. They had awesome experiences and would never look back.
Know why? The medical community has entirely and thoroughly scared them away. No surprise there to me!
I found this article, or should I say “opinion” poorly written and confusing to uneducated readers on this subject. I think the commenter, Annika should write a post for ECO Child to publish - very clear, concise, and to the point.
I’m sure Ms. Fraser has enough sadness to live with, let’s leave her alone. How do we know her baby would have survived if she had been in the hospital? People die, babies die - in all kinds of situations. What about all the babies that die in hospitals, shall we say that hospital births are criminal? What about all the unnecessary money that is spent on unnecessary interventions in the hospital, isn’t that criminal in a way - causing side effects and higher costs to people not even involved?
I’m sure Ms. Fraser was well-educated and informed of the birth process and the risks involved - we risk more putting our newborns in a car seat and then driving them home after a visit to the hospital.
If you don’t want to have a home-birth, by all means don’t, because you will have a hard time. However, don’t belittle the people who make different choices.
I had a beautiful home birth! I would do it all over again. I know I could do it without a midwife, but that is not an important rite of passage for me. Maybe it was for Ms. Fraser…
Birthing at home is a safe, healthy, empowering, and beautiful experience.
I’d rather read substantiated articles and posts - not personal and biased opinions.