All About Birthing Centers And Home Births

I believe that every woman has the right to the birth SHE wants. You’ve grown a human that you now have to push out a very small opening in your body. YOU are doing all of the hard work so YOU should be in control of the plan. You should have every chance to have the birthing experience you want (leaving an open mind for emergencies) and nobody else should get a say (sorry dads!).

Sadly not every woman knows all her options.

Everybody knows the hospital drill – you get an OB, you go to your appointments, they tell you what you need to know and you follow instructions. What many women don’t know is that they can have a beautiful and SAFE birth at home or at a birthing center! The entire goal of this post is to give you all the information you need to make an informed decision and hopefully answer all you questions surrounding these options.

A birthing center is kind of a happy middle between a hospital and home birth. Personally, I loved my birthing center experience from beginning to end but, just like anything else, it’s not for everybody.

Like a hospital…

When you go to a center you’ll have all your normal prenatal care; labs, ultrasounds, glucose test, etc. They’ll ask questions, answer questions, make sure you and your baby are healthy, the typical things.

They offer labor encouragement after a certain point in pregnancy. The center I went to offered a membrane sweep, foley balloon, and/or a castor oil smoothie. I could do any combination or just one (or none!) after I hit 41 weeks. There may be differences in what the hospital will offer vs. the center, but both typically offer some form of encouragement.

Some birthing centers and hospitals offer nitrous oxide (laughing gas) as pain management. Well, its more of a distraction from the pain, but it is used to help with pain management. If you’re interested in using it, ask your OB or birthing center if it’s offered!

Unlike a hospital…

Birthing centers are usually midwife run so instead of having one OBGYN that you see there will be a team of midwives. You’ll get to meet each of them during your pregnancy and get to know them so there’s no risk of somebody unknown being on call when you go into labor.

They may require a birthing class and doula for first time moms, but things like that will vary from center to center. The center I gave birth at required I have a doula and take a birthing, breastfeeding, and baby care class as a first time mom. They had a list of approved classes that I could take outside of the center so I could take my pick.

They offer water-birth. Only around 10% of hospitals in America offer water birthing and they usually only allow it for labor, not the actual birth. A birthing center will allow you to both labor and give birth while in the water if that’s what makes you most comfortable. They also typically have beds, birthing balls, seats, etc. so you can birth in whatever way is most comfortable.

They DON’T offer epidurals. For me, this was a plus. I didn’t even want access to the epidural because I knew I’d probably take it and I was set on not getting it. So it could be a pro or a con depending on what you want for your birth and how set you are in getting or not getting it.

They won’t try to push induction. Obviously not every hospital pushes for induction, but there are lots that do. Sometimes necessarily, sometimes not. Depending on state laws, a birthing center has a certain amount of time before they have to send you to a hospital. Where I live, I had until I hit 42 weeks and 1 day to go into labor. If I was in labor by 11:59PM on the day I hit 42 weeks I could still go to the birthing center to give birth even if it labor lasted until that 42 weeks 1 day mark.

Birthing centers are set up to feel like home, meaning they won’t have that sterile, made for sick people feel. Birthing centers are set up with furniture you might find in a bedroom which may include regular beds, dressers, art on the wall, pretty curtains, etc. The more comfortable you feel the better labor will progress so they’re designed to make you feel at home and safe.

You have to have a healthy pregnancy. This is one downside, yet a necessary one. Because a birthing center doesn’t have the capacity to take on high-risk pregnancy or take care of emergencies they only take on low-risk, healthy pregnancy because keeping mom safe is incredibly important.

In America there’s a stigma around home birth; they’re “unsafe” and “unsanitary”. Yet in some countries home births are almost more common than hospital births. With a good midwife you can have a totally safe, beautiful birth at home. Home birth is nothing like a hospital and has some similarities to a birthing center.

Like a center…

• You get a water birth, it won’t be in a big tub (unless you have one at home) but you’ll get a large inflatable tub and a hose will hook up to your tub to keep the water warm.
• You may be required to have a doula and birth class if you’re a first time mom.
• You don’t have the option to get an epidural
• Your care is midwife led however each home birth midwife may do things differently regarding prenatal care so you should find one you like and know that they have a process you like.
• They won’t push inductions
• You have to have a healthy, low risk pregnancy

Unique to homebirth…

Nowhere else can offer the comfort of your own home because nowhere else is your home! So if you really really want to give birth at your house, I would for sure do a homebirth.

You don’t have to make the trip to the hospital or center while in labor. You get to do the entire labor process in your own home without worrying about when to go in, being in pain on the drive there, or having a vehicle ready to go.

The biggest risk you’re taking with a home birth is if things do go wrong and you live pretty far away from the nearest hospital, an emergency could be a lot scarier than if you’re at a center that’s right by a hospital or already at the hospital.

Most birthing centers are covered by insurance, as well as home birth midwives.

Yes! You won’t even have to pay out of pocket for this! And, at a birthing center, anything you do have to pay out of pocket will likely be less than what you would’ve paid at a hospital if you don’t have full coverage insurance.

Whether you give birth at a hospital, birthing center, or in the comfort of your own home, you deserve the birth you want and you deserve to be informed. I hope I was able to shed some light on the other options out there and help you make the decision best for you. Personally, I took the birthing center route and loved it, though I would absolutely take the home birth route one day as well!