More women choose do-it-yourself births - Pregnancy- msnbc.com

By Linda Carroll

msnbc.com contributor

updated 1:05 p.m. ET Dec. 6, 2009

"Jennifer Margulis thinks birth should be a private party — no doctors or midwives invited. So when her daughter Leone Francesca was born at home last month, only Margulis and her husband, James, were in attendance.

“My husband and I were the only ones there when she was conceived,” says the 40-year-old writer from Ashland, Ore. “I thought we should be the only ones there when she was born.”

Margulis is part of a very small but growing number of women who are choosing to deliver their babies at home without the presence of health professionals. Some choose to have a husband or another family member help, while others opt to deliver their babies completely on their own."

Jennifer Margulis, 40, of Ashland, Ore., gave birth to her daughter Leone Francesca at home Nov. 4 without medical or midwifery help.

I can understand why women would choose to birth on their own or with their loved ones in this modern climate around birth. These women are telling us in the health care industry that they are not happy with what we are doing. If we want to have a place at birth with intelligent, self aware women who understand the process and feel comfortable with their bodies then we have to pay attention to what they want.

I personally love it when I am redundant at birth. When the women are fully present and aware and confident. They manage their labours beautifully, they breathe their babies and their placentas out easily; they and their babies are well and healthy. When I've sat on my hands and enjoyed the process and the woman's sense of self mastery, that's my idea of a good days/nights' work.

Unattended births can be problematic, that's true. So can attended births.  The issue, no matter where or with whom women chose to give birth,  is how does the woman feel, what does she know, is she well nourished, does she love her partner and how is their relationship, how confident is she in herself and what else is going on?

For women in developing countries it is often a very different situation. The problems for birthing women in developing countries are multifactorial.  These women are usually anaemic, have no birth control and therefore too many babies already, they are tired and poorly nourished. They usually work too hard and don't have any support of any kind. These women often don't have the stamina and energetic resources to stay mindful and present to the birthing process to keep safe.

Let's listen to women, find out what they want. Rather than seeking to undermine their confidence to get compliance with our agendas, let's listen and change what we are doing to be more likely to be invited to be part of the most amazing experience on earth. 


More women choose do-it-yourself births - Pregnancy- msnbc.com