Homebirthing vs Freebirthing: There is a Difference!
Posted by Amber Robinson at 12:50 PM on April 6, 2009
This morning in Babble Wrap we linked to a story about the tragic deaths of four babies in the last nine months during homebirths. The article in the Telegraph painted a picture of women undergoing ‘risky’ homebirths as they are ‘refugees’ of an interventionist hospital system which does not provide continuity of care towards pregnant women.
At least one of these births, however, was unattended by a medical professional. Janet Fraser, national convener of the Joyous Birth organisation, is mourning the death of her own baby during a water birth at her Croydon Park home, attended by her partner and a female friend. She is yet to make a statement.
There is a massive difference between midwife-attended homebirths, which have been proven in other countries to have a similar level of safety to hospital births, and what is known as ‘freebirthing’, where no qualified medical attendant is present. The difference was unclear in the original report.
The Joyous Birth forums, originally established to give to support to women who have experienced traumatic births, have become increasingly radical recently, to the point where planned freebirthing is seen as the ultimate statement of protest over the medicalistion of birth. Obstetricians are referred to as knOBs and the use of the term ‘birth rape’ is frequently used to less-than-ideal childbirths in a hospital setting. (Some of which truly justify the term).
To paint all homebirthers as radical fringe-dwellers however, is inaccurate – even though homebirthers only represent 0.25 per cent of all births in Australia. The numbers could be even less if recommendations to the maternity act go through and basically make independent midwifery impossible due to insurance requirements. A percentage of women may choose the more risky freebirthing option if this is the case.
Advocates of the hospital system claim that perhaps if hospitals were to become friendlier more women would birth there, problem solved. And maybe they would. But homebirthers say hey – we’re not refugees, we don’t want to be irresponsible, we’re happy to have midwives, we just want them covered by a medicare rebate. Being at home provides a more comfortable environment with less unnecessary intervention and less risk of infection.
Freebirthers who actively shun medical assistance for their own selfish ideological positions, however, don’t help anyone. Least of all their babies.
…Advocates of the hospital system claim that perhaps if hospitals were to become friendlier more women would birth there…..
…even though homebirthers only represent 0.25 per cent of all births in Australia…
So are we trying to coax the 0.25% to go to the hospital. I don’t think there is anything you could do to get this small number of women to deliver in a hospital.
“Freebirthers who actively shun medical assistance for their own selfish ideological positions, however, don’t help anyone. Least of all their babies.”
Freebirthers don’t shun medical assistance where warranted, they shun the automatic medicalisation of a normal, physiological process. It is an insult to imply that a freebirthing woman will not transfer if she feels that it is warranted simply to prove an ideological point. A mother will always put her child first, which is exactly why more and more women are abdicating from the hospital system that is more concerned with legality and time frames than positive outcomes for mother and baby.
Babble indeed. How apt.
Amber, I have to say, you have come across quite ignorant with all your assumptions. You obviously know no freebirthers in real life and have made assumptions based on your own opinions, not facts. To say that women who choose freebirth due to their ‘own selfish idealogial positions’ is very unfactual. I chose to have a freebirth after much research and soul searching, it had nothing to do with an ideal. It was a well educated decision. I know many women who have freebirthed and they are some of the most caring, educated and thoughtful mothers and women I have ever met. They are not a bunch of crazy, careless, selfish people. Please check your facts before writing such lies, based on your uneducated opinion.
You have not real idea on this topic do you. Let me guess you jumped on a forum had a quick look around, read a few posts and decided you were an expert. What makes you an authority on why or how a woman choses to birth a certain way? Who gave you the right to assume that because a woman choses freebirth she is making a polical statement? The only person making any statements is you and they are very uninformed ones at that. Do us favour and shut up.
I have not claimed to be an expert, not did I mention “political” statements. This is a blog and I am allowed to have an opinion, just as freebirthers are allowed to give birth anyway they want. I have researched the topic at length and have investigated homebirth for myself. At this point, I have seen no evidence that freebirthing is a safe option for baby or mother. Sure, 80% of births may be just fine, but who wants to be in the 20%?
Furthermore, as many freebirthers forgo any sort of pre-natal screening, I do not think they are necesarily able to judge whether they or their babies are high risk or not. So why are they choosing to do so? Because they hate hospitals? That makes it an ideological stand.
Good on you for writing this article Amber.
I agree with “Freebirthers who actively shun medical assistance for their own selfish ideological positions, however, don’t help anyone. Least of all their babies”
Especially the little babies!
I agree that the article should have been more overtly clear on the differences between the usual type of homebirth and a freebirth.
The former takes place in he presence of a qualified caregiver who has been well trained to manage a broad range of situations that may occur during a normal low risk birth. And also to advise on whether a transfer might be a good idea.
The latter, generally chosen by highly informed parents who have done extensive research, takes place without the presence of said professional. And sometimes (as in the case mentioned in the paper, but not in every case) without any prenatal care.
It is a fact that knowledge is power, and instinct is not the same as knowledge. If somebody chooses not to know anything except what their instinct is telling them about the condition and state of their unborn child then they are choosing a position of higher risk. This may be something that they are personally comfortable with, but it is also taking a punt on everything being OK. And it is something that many people looking in on freebirth from outside, including people who have enjoyed homebirths, are profoundly uncomfortable with. Not that anyone is really seeking to impose compulsory medicalised birthing on anyone, but it is natural that people would find it hard to shirk the type of low-intervention assistance that has saved so many lives in the past.
In any situation where death is a potential outcome, as birthing is, an element of risk management is what most people are comfortable with. For some people that is birthing in a hosital. For some it is birthing at home with an independent midwife. I don’t believe that there are ANY reliable statistics that suggest that birthing in the absence of skilled care is effective risk management for the mother and baby.
Sorry, I am the above poster. When I made the above post I didn’t realise I’d used the same name as the second poster in this thread. I’d like to make it clear that we’re two different people and not one person who can’t make up their mind what their opinion is! And to apologise for not checking before selecting that username.
What about in the event of internal bleeding during the birthing? How is the midwife expected to deal with that sort of problem?
In response to Banya. Midwives have access to a fantastic new resource called a telephone and have even undergone training as to how to call an ambulance. And yes, internal bleeding can be detected without machines that go ping.
First they came for the unassisted birthers,
but I did not speak out, because I do not free-birth.
Then they came for those who birth at home with lay midwives,
but I would would not speak out, because I would not have a home-birth with a lay midwife.
Then they came for those who birthed with Certified Professional Midwives,
and I would not speak out, because I would not have a home-birth with a CPM.
And then they came for those who birthed in birth centers and with Certified Nurse Midwives,
but I would not speak out because I would not have a birth in a birth center or with a CNM.
And then they came for me,
and there was no one left to speak for me.
From http://empoweredbirth.typepad.com/empowering_birth_blog/2008/06/why-we-must-stand-together.html
Great article! Thanks for addressing some of the issues around freebirth. I am pleased you made the distinction between freebirths and homebirths. As you so eloquently stated, midwife-assisted homebirth is safe for low risk wome. Freebirth on the other hand, has never been shown to be safe. Nor would it be ethical to study it. “Advocates of the hospital system claim that perhaps if hospitals were to become friendlier more women would birth there, problem solved.” – I agree in part – perhaps more women would be happier to birth in hospital if the hospital polices were friendlier to women and families. Just 2 days ago I received a call from a women who wanted to have a vaginal birth after a caesarean in hospital. I condifently told her that if she proceeds with a hospital VBAC wihtout an independent mdiwife, her chances of success were around 5%. With an independent midwie, her chances were up arounf 80% – 90%. Why is this the case? Same women, different model of care, striking differences in outcome.
However, it needs to be acknowledged that some women want to bitrh at home simply to be at home.
“Freebirthers who actively shun medical assistance for their own selfish ideological positions, however, don’t help anyone. Least of all their babies.” Here here. Many don’t shun all medical intervention, however, and they accept medical intervention as and when they believe it to be necessary. It brings us back to – who owns and controls birth?
*sigh*
This is really upsetting and disappointing. Thanks for dividing women even more.
“Freebirthers who actively shun medical assistance for their own selfish ideological positions, however, don’t help anyone. Least of all their babies.”
…”planned freebirthing is seen as the ultimate statement of protest over the medicalistion of birth.”
Generalise much?
Well I have to agree with freebirthing being a silly way to give birth. I am all for homebirths but I don’t understand why women who have not had ONE person who is qualified in maternity care decide that their baby is ok for a freebirth?
I get that people have horrible hospital experiences, I had one myself, but it didn’t stop me going on to have 2 much better ones, once I was more informed of what I was and wasn’t willing to have.
Planned freebirthing on THAT site IS seen as the unlimate statement of protest.
I free birthed my last baby. It was in no way a protest! What a stupid assumptin. It was an informed decision and one that I am very pleased with. Free-birthers are NOT trying to convert anyone to their position…not everyone has the trust in themself or conection with their bdies that free-birth requires.
Why try to divide HB’ers? What are you hoping to gain from this?
I birthed both my great big healthy fat delightful boys in hospital by c-section. I love them, I love having birthed them whichever way they came out because they are healthy, happy and beautiful beyond my wildest dreams. This birth argument divides women. free birth, homebirth, c- section etc etc all are births, all have people involved and all are enshrouded in emotions and deeply personal memories. It is so saddening to have birth given a value depending on how it happened. If I had to do it all again, I would not change anything. Let women love birth, and let them do it how they want to without feeling as though they failed if it wasnt at home and unassisted.
In response to informed’s response to banya. in the case of bleeding yes the midwife can use the “telephone” but that is not always going to be good enough to save the mother. My mom used to work as a nurse for an obgyn and she once told me of the time a woman who had choosen a homebirth with a midwife. After the birth she began to hemorrhage and yes the midwife did call for an ambulance. But by the time she arrived at the hospital it was “too late” and she died from blood loss. Using a phone to call for an ambulance takes too much perious time that a woman bleeding doesn’t have.
In response to feebirthing. Just a couple of months ago my baby cousin Sabastian (who was born in a hospital with “doctors”) got stuck in the birth canal. Both him and his mother almost died, but the “doctor” was able to free him and save them both. If it had been a free birth forget it, there would have most likley been a double funeral.
You want to talk proof that freebirthing is irresponable try checking out a study of women in indiana that showed that in the case of a regelious group that choose freebirthing recorded a 150% increase in infant mortality plus a 9000% increase in the mortality of the mothers.
Also in response to women not wanting to give birth in a hospital because they don’t like being over medicated and over exiamened. Did it ever occur to you that doctors are not emotionless monsters they are human beings too (who in most cases of children of their own) who thanks to years of studing medicine so they maybe just maybe might know more about the health of mothers and their babies than the typical lay person.
in the case of no pre-natal care, now you are at borderline negelct. There are a lot of deformities and conditions unborn babies that thanks to mordern medical intervention are giving these babies the chance to live that genrations before were not given due to the lack ofpre-natal and hospitals. Yes people still die in hospitals giving birth but at least the families can know that everything was being done to save their loved ones. With the case of freebirth the freebirther and their baby are no where near recieving the “best” care out there, in fact they are recieving the worst. Just because you did detailed research doesn’t mean you know what you are doing.
This is why I choose to have my babies born at a hospital with Doctor’s because I love them and want to make sure that they are going to recieve the best care possible and that does not include me, my husband, and friends. you might as well play russian roulette. The health of you and your baby is more important than your twisted way of thinking. freebirthing is beneath you, think, care, reason. giving birth unassited is something that should have died in the 1800′s. because as more and more people gain access to medical assitance during pregnancy and delivary, it is the responsiblilty of every mom to be to insure that the best care is being given to yourelf and your baby. and I am not sorry to point out because this is too important there is no way your baby can recieve the best if you are at home without someone who is actualy trained to birth babies.