Why I Chose to birth my babies at Home!

Two years before I became pregnant with my first child, I undertook training to become a holistic practitioner.  During the training I learned about the "power of the mind".  I also learned that we are "conscious beings" from even before we are born and that a baby is consciously aware of the birth process, although the memories are supressed and held in the subconscious.  When I was 16, I had an experience which changed my perception of the medical profession and the safety of hospitals.  I badly injured my knee, my parents insisted that I consult our local GP, although all the sporting professionals and Phys Ed teachers at my school said that I should go to an "expert".  As my parents paid the bills, I had to go along with their wishes.  Our GP completely misdiagnosed my knee injury which led to me further damaging it and requiring a major operation.  During my two weeks in hospital, I experienced less than expert or compassionate care from the nursing staff, I contracted a Golden Staph infection and experienced far more pain and discomfort than I should have.    I concluded that the medical profession are not always "right" and that hospitals were not nice places to be.  This contributed to my willingness to avoid the medical profession when it came to birth, especially as I realised that birth is not a "medical" condition.  I did not want to put myself at the mercy of others, especially those who did not have the same beliefs about birth as I did.

After I married, I started reading birth literature and Christiane Northrup's book "Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom" had a profound effect on me.  Her chapter on pregnancy and birth was all I needed to convince me that as long as all things were normal, then a home birth was the best way to birth a child.  The fact that she was an obstetrician and not just an alternative health practitioner helped convince me of the truth in her words.  I asked my husband to read the relevant chapters and he agreed to support me in regards to having a home birth.  I was elated and some months later when I found out I was pregnant, it was a no brainer and we signed up for the community home birth midwifery program.  The rest is history as they say!