Home vs. Birth Center–Which Is Right For You?
Although MAMAS offers only birth in your home (with our fully-equipped mobile office), all three of our midwives have also attended births at birth centers.
We think birth centers are great. Having a birth center birth is the next best thing to a home birth, because it is like having a home birth at someone else’s house–say, your grandma’s or your good friend’s. What we have noticed, though, is that women tend to relax more in their own homes because they know every nook and cranny and can find everything they need for comfort in labor. They also have the added mental comfort of being in their own environment instead of a guest in someone else’s space. If they want something to drink, for example, they just go to their own refrigerator and get the drink that they put there, and pour it into their own favorite cup. A home birth is just as safe as a birth center birth, because the midwives bring everything to your home that is available in a birth center, including oxygen, IV equipment, and medications. It may actually be even safer, since your midwife does all the driving! In addition, the germs in your home tend to be “family germs” for which you have antibodies that will be passed to baby in your breastmilk, whereas people outside your family pass through a birth center. After the birth, home birth midwives love tucking babies in with moms and their partners into their own beds instead of into cars and car seats. The midwives tidy up after the birth and start the laundry so there is no mess or fuss for the new parents. Other questions about home birth or birth center? Please call or email us at: mamasmidwives@gmail.com