Birth Options Do Exist Here

I was beginning to feel discouraged in the lack of support for natural birth in my area. Then Linda reached out. She has been a doula here for 20 years and seemingly knows every baby-delivering person in a 100 mile radius. I had contacted her to see if she had any recommendations for providers who were NB-friendly, and further any outlook on which Illinois hospital was more successful with birth and VBAC rates.

After a couple e-mail exchanges, she said she did have some good suggestions for me and offered to meet me at my house. We spent 2 hours talking about how she got interested in child birth, our common interest and most importantly my impending pregnancy, labor and birth. After talking to her, I'm more certain than ever that I want to give birth in a non-hospital setting. I really feel that anything else would be setting me up for a disappointing experience. More than just wanting to have a NB, I don't want to spend my labor defending my decision. I want to be able to focus on the baby and creating the best experience possible for my IPs.

Linda did such a great job of explaining her role, and why she is so valuable not only to just the mama, but also the IPs and my hubby. Home or hospital, I had decided before she walked out the door that I want to hire her for my labor and delivery. She was a wealth of information, and when I explained needing to deliver in Illinois she even offered her home for me to give birth in if needed. Additionally, she volunteered to meet with me again when my IPs come to visit next month.

Prior to my first birth, I would have never considered home birth. I thought the idea was crazy, unsafe and only for hippies. I 100% understand why my IPs feel uneasy about it. I don't want to seem pushy or talk them into something they don't want to do, but I do want to give them the facts so that they can make an educated decision. If they choose hospital, I will respect their decision and we will make it work. It just might take a little more preparation and effort.

In the meantime, I have some calling to do. It seems that if home birth is an option for us, there is only one midwife who can do it and she fills up very quickly. She lives and hour and a half away, and Linda said if I want in with her I have to call now. At this point, I'm not even going to think about what we'll do if she says no.