What Every Expectant Mother Needs to Know about Birthing Centers
Before I even got pregnant last year, I knew I wanted a home birth or birthing center birth experience. I resonate deeply with midwifery care and for those interested, I highly recommend Ina May Gaskin’s findings and accounts. Birthing centers are a great alternative for those seeking natural birth but necessarily don’t have the budget for a home birth. The birthing center I received care from took my insurance, whereas the home birth options did not. That is not always the case, but where I live, it was.
For those curious about birthing center births, here are the basics you need to know:
You will receive all prenatal care with a very collaborative approach. Midwives will offer you evidence-based options, and you can take your time to decide whether it is the best choice. If you happen to decline a suggestion, there is no shame or guilt, or fear tactics, just a simple understanding of your autonomy and ability to know what’s best.
There will be no drugs before, during, or after the birth of your baby. They don’t even have them there, so before consenting to a birthing center birth, do your mind preparations. I highly recommend hynobirthing for help in this area. Consider courses from Bridget Teylor at Built to Birth or Karen Welton at Pain Free Birth.
Timing is everything. When you deliver in a hospital you may find there is a lot of down time before baby arrives and a 48-hour period after baby arrives. This is not the case at birthing centers. You won’t be permitted to your room until you are 3-1-1. Meaning, contractions or surges are 3 minutes apart, lasting 1 minute, for the duration of 1 hour. So, that means quite a bit of your labor journey will be done in the comfort of your own home. Not sure when to leave? Hire a doula. Ours was essential in counting for us and also making sure we left at the right time. After baby arrives, you will be able to cuddle in bed for about 5-6 hours. Then, as long as mom and baby are healthy, you may go home.
The element of surprise. There are usually multiple midwives working together in a birthing center. Because of this, when you arrive on your baby’s birth day, you won’t know who will attend your birth. We happened to like this aspect and felt whoever was there that day was the one who was meant to attend our daughter’s birth. We even sat down and wrote out the birth plan naming the midwife we’d like most, and sure enough we got her.
Your birth team is everything. Because the majority of your laboring will happen at home, and the intensities of labor will be met with comfort measures outside the realm of pharmaceuticals, your birth team is so important. I cannot stress this enough. My husband was my number one birth partner. I still tell him to this day that his strength, calmness, and focus provided me with the space to know and believe my body knew exactly what it was doing. My daughter and I were the perfect team to go through the journey of birth together. My doula, Frances, was also on my birth team and knew many comfort measures, made sure I stayed hydrated, spoke words of peace, and overall kept the environment centered. Once we arrived at the birthing center, David and Frances kept me on pace, while my midwife, Shannon, oversaw. Once things progressed to the furthest, Shannon stepped in and peacefully and tranquilly saw my daughter born in the birthing tub with the help of my husband to receive her as she arrived.
Be intentional and write your plan. Then hold it, but gently, staying fluid. I wrote my birth vision and was very specific with what I desired for myself and my daughter. In the event that it does not go that way, birthing centers are usually affiliated with a hospital very close by. They will have you transferred in seconds, if need be.
I hope this helps anyone who is considering a birthing center birth. My birth experience was everything I hoped for and more. I wish the same for any expectant mother reading this.
Here’s to holistic,
Megan
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