hospital vs. Birth Center

Sarah - posted on 08/01/2010

I chose a birth center, and I LOVED it! There was soft music, dim lighting, candles...it was so relaxing and beautiful.
1 out of 3 births in a hospital setting now result in a c-setion! That's 33%, which is up astronomically from the 80's.
My birth was 12 hours from beginning to end, and you will find that the process goes more quickly without medical interventions becasue your body is allowed to do what it is made to do!
Best of luck :)

Valerie - posted on 08/01/2010

I gave birth at a hospital and I'm glad I did. i didn't feel like I needed to worry about anything because all of the nurses and doctors were there. I don't know how it is at a birthing center. My husband was holding one of my legs while I gave birth so he was always by my side. Great experience for me.

Lauren - posted on 08/01/2010

I birthed at a hospital because I had to have a c-section and it was amazing! I only had to take meds if I wanted to after the c-section, which I did because haha it is a little more painful than a regular birth, but they were very nice and gave me so much freedom afterwards. I felt like I was at home with my husband because he was there every minute of the birth and while I was at the hospital. I think it all depends on the hospital you go to because the one I was at was very nice and really gave you your space and gave you tons of options! I was given an extensive checklist before I went in to set my preferences for birth and stuff, so they gave me just as many options as I would have at a birth center. It is also always very nice to do it at a hospital just in case something happens.

Jennifer - posted on 08/01/2010

kayleigh, it sounds like you know what you want so go for it!

I delivered in a hospital, and while it wasn't a bad experience, i don't plan on doing it again unless medically necessary. i also believe in trusting our bodies, and trusting in our own strength to get through it.

when i was pregnant i had no idea we even had birth centers in our area because we didn't have a computer. i did see a midwife through the hospital, but her practices honestly seemed no different to me than a normal doctor...she ended up inducing me which went against my belief that babies will come when they are ready. in the end my happy healthy baby made it all worth it, it was just so far from what i wanted my labor to be.

good luck. i'm jealous! :P

Kristy - posted on 07/31/2010

I had a high risk pregnancy, so I went to a Hospital. It just depends on how your pregnancy goes. It the middle of might my childs heart rate lowered because of him stressing and I was given oxygen. He ended up being born in Meconium, which means he was not breathing when he was born. They had to get the Meconium out of his lungs before I heard his cry. He was immediatly ran to NICU. There they found two heart problems (he's fine now). As for another story, my sisters first son was born with an actual heart defect, and needed to be rushed to a hospital in Los Angeles (CA which is 2 hours away) by helicopter for heart surgery and we live in a big town, it just did not have a place for an infant cardio ER. Her pregnancy was not high risk.

In my opinion I just prefer the hospital because of emergencies, they do not always happen, it just makes me feel safer My son most likely would not have made it at birth center, he needed extra care and immediatly. Good luck to where ever you choose :) :)

Kayleigh - posted on 07/31/2010

originally I was really concerned about pain and complications but after looking into everything and realizing that this pregnancy has has absolutely zero complications so far (doesn't mean things won't change and I am aware of that) its better to keep a positive outlook and choose what is going to be best for her, and to me that seems like a low stress environment and no chemical(etc) interventions... I'm totally open to changing to a hospital if its necessary, but I think I want to trust my body and my pain tolerance to handle something that billions of women over history have accomplished normally.
I know I have NO idea how painful labor really is, but I have had Cluster headaches and migraines and several painful joint issues most of my life, also many tattoos and piercings. I'm really not saying that i know what to expect or that i think I'm better prepared than most, but i do think I have a lot of great self discovered methods for working thru the pain that will help. So thank you both for your responses, I think I'm going to go with the birth center option ♥ Hopefully i know my self as
much as I feel like I do ^_^'

♥

Erin - posted on 07/31/2010

In my area we have a family birthing center...so if you are affiliated with that particular clinic then you go there...it was a very nice, cozy atmosphere. They are set up just for delivering children and have everything necessary for taking care of any situation that arises through the process. I couldn't imagine having my child(ren) anywhere else! My husband stayed w/me the entire time and even days after the birth of our first son. We only stayed in one night after the 2nd...With my 1st born we had 3 ppl aside from me & my husband and my sister & husband shared the long couch. We were the only ones in our room, no sharing...it was real pleasant! I definitely recommend birthing centers! After looking at your link, it looks nice...I never had a midwife? I prefer doctors...the birthing center we went to was connected to the hospital just a seperate wing designated for that sole purpose...

Ricky - posted on 07/31/2010

Sounds like you've done your research which is good. I went to a hospital because it was a 20 minute walk/5 minute drive away. The hospital I went to had private rooms, which was very nice because I was a cusser, and actually scared a bunch of moms doing a hospital tour, but back to the topic. I liked the hospital because I am such a worry wart, I liked the fact that if anything went wrong that they were there and didn't have to transfer us, my son ended up with jaundice and we stayed 3 nights. I would schedule hospital tours/ birth center tours and see what their proticals are about your future hubby and anything else you are wondering about because not all hospitals and birthing centers are the same.

Congrats by the way