Preparing for your home birth
If you feel like preparing for a home birth may be daunting, the truth is you don’t really need much. Everything that medically, needs to be at the birth arrives with your midwives. We are licensed by the Medical Board of California to cary IV fluids and medications in the event of an emergency such as postpartum hemorrhage. All those attending the birth are trained and certified in Neonatal Resuscitation in the event that a baby is born requiring some help transitioning to breathing on their own.
What you need to know
There is always a team of two licensed midwives at your birth. If you choose to have a doula, birth photographer or other family or friends, that is great too. We do ask you to be mindful of who is at your birth, as extra eyes can slowdown or even stall labor. We always say birth is not a spectator sport, an undisturbed labor is ideal in allowing a laboring mother to progress without interruption or prolonging of labor.
Eating + hydrating in labor
Not only is eating and hydrating in labor ‘‘allowed’’ in the home setting, it is recommended! This is because eating and hydrating helps support your body through the marathon of labor, giving your body the doses of glucose it needs to continue to labor and birth your baby. Oral hydration also decreases the need for IV fluids and helps in the prevention of maternal dehydration and exhaustion.
Your uterus is a muscle that is working hard during labor. There’s a reason why it’s equated to running a marathon. So we want to support your uterus through its labor-thon! Easy to consume snacks like honey, apple sauce, and even ice cream! These keep your energy up, support your uterus to continue working hard, and the calcium from ice cream is an added bonus.
Birth Kit
Your birth kit arrives from a third party supplier and has all the disposable items you will need for you birth including a tub liner for use with one of our inflatable birth tubs that is lent out to you.
Check out our birth kit through Simply Birth. This includes most of the necessities for your birth, including an adaptor and hose to fill the birth tub.
Things to have on hand
These are often optional items to have on hand. A lot of these can be found HERE on our amazon store front for convenience. As with any store front they are affiliate links.
- Birth ball
- Tens Unit
- Heatable rice sock
- Bluetooth music box
- a comb
- candles
- diffuser for essential oils (lavender, peppermint, eucalyptus, orange or other citrus)
