The Birth

[lucieann21]

Beautiful photo's .. just amazing!!! 

[mynaturalchildbirth]

There are things that you can do during your pregnancy to help to get your baby ligned up in the right position. Sitting in the right postures, spending time on hands and knees, certain exercises, using a birthing ball etc.

Even if the baby is posterior it is still so very possible to have a calm birth like this one. Were you having back labor, is that how you knew the baby was posterior? Did you try anything during your birthing time to get him to turn? How did you stay relaxed?

[SHOBPAX]

you are so brave. congrats

[opinionatediam]

LOL sorry at 2:29 i just thought, and tomorrow we are going to have placenta casserole for supper,,, yummy LOL. i could never look at that casserole dish the same way again.

[llliiilllaaa123]

beautiful .. :) congratulations and many blessings to you and your lovely family!

[smsampson13]

I gave birth to a 9 pound baby at home unassisted. It was not planned that way. This just went too fast. Anyway, he was posterior and pushing was EXTREMELY difficult. I tore quite a bit and my son ended up with some trauma to his head and face. Your experience looks so peaceful. My experience was hard work!

[hepbhorsee1]

beautiful beautiful family you look very tightly knit and like a wonderful family.. thank you so much for sharing

[groundedbirthdoulas]

its amazing what our bodies can do when left to our own time and nature. thank you. :)

[Sienna10Sunz]

The photography was so elegant, seemed like a very expensive wedding photographer was at your birth ;) Your family is incredibly beautiful, much love to you all xo

[RedDirtMother]

Very sweet!

[Lindsey282010]

I ad 3 babies, my 1st was unassisted and the labour lastd bout 25 mins I slept thru the dialation and contractions, it was only wen I ad 2bare dwn and push that I woke up and felt it and it happend quick he was 8wks early. My 2nd was v quick 45 mins I ad no pain relief wotsoever and evrythin went realy well. My 3rd was best I did it on all 4 position and ad gas n air and contractions were v painful it also only bout 45 min all my babies were v healthy I recovered realy quick I av been so lucky!

[lilangel121980]

@Lindsey282010 You had your first baby in 25 mins that is amazing you're my hero. I so want the same kind of experience. 

[sTaRrYxsKii3s]

Beautiful video!

[Whoozinga]

Gorgeous video. I attempted a homebirth the 1st time (I have 2 children).But my midwife and I decided to transfer to the hospital at 9cm. I had been at 9cm for 4 hours and no position we tried seemed to dislodge him (he was acynclitic, cocked head). I hated to transfer and his birth ended up stressful (vacuum extraction) but safe. My 2nd was a lovely homebirth. I had every faith in my midwife, she knew when the hospital was best and when home was best.

[MissxCrayonsx]

Absolutely beautiful, I hope it inspires others to do the same!

[crunchyguru]

Beautiful! I loved the song as well. I'm planning my own UBAC so thank you for posting this. It will help me on my journey.

[houdashell41379]

@hzuiel: It is not the video's poster's responsibility to educate anyone of the pro's and con's of unassisted homebirth. Every woman/couple having a baby must do that research on their own, and ultimately do what they believe is right for them. And I must have missed the part of the video where they said "oh it's so wonderful, every woman should do it."

[hzuiel]

In order to have a safe home birth, there still needs to be good prenatal care, they should have checkups with a doctor regularly to make sure nothing abnormal is beginning to develop in the pregnancy, and both spouses need to read up on pregnancy and birth because you are substituting yourself as the doctor. Doctors go to school for so many years for a reason, there is a lot to know.

That's all I'm saying, let people know this, don't just say "oh it's so wonderful, every woman should do it."

[dawkicker1900]

i agree with most of this, but what i think is that women should do this if they can. of course if there is something medically wrong then they shouldnt, but i do belive that a women's body is made for this, and doctors are not necessary most of the time. it all depends on your veiw of health care

you did have some good points though. they should get prenatal care, and they should do whatever they can to make the birth safe. they have to do whatever they can do to be smart and safe about this

[hzuiel]

how "easy" childbirth at home could be, then try it themselves and something goes terribly wrong, and they don't know what to do, and before they can get an ambulance or get to the hospital, the baby is dead.

At the very least, if you're going to endorse something like this, take responsibility and tell people both the positives and negatives, and make them fully aware of the dangers that exist.

[hzuiel]

Okay here is the bottom line of what i'm trying to say. Not every woman can safely give birth at home. My cousin i mentioned earlier sure as heck couldn't. And you don't want to encourage people who don't know what they are doing to try home birth. Or to try it after they read one book about it. If you encourage people to try something and their baby dies because of it, that's on your conscience. That's why some of these videos on youtube bother me. I can see people trying it because they saw

[RobertoAgr]

what is that little door by the birthing pool???

[pretzel55]

It is a second attic storage closet.

[starofdawurld]

Whats the song in the video

[me0ha0ha]

Answer by Sarah Mclauchlan

[Grislanegra]

it sometimes displays at the begining of the vid.

[LillyIvy]

I am planning a UBAC (unassisted birth after cesarean) with my next baby. I have read (most) everything there is to read about it, what to do if this happens, that happens, etc. If, at any time, I do not know what to do, I can go to the hospital. The hospital is for emergencies and anything serious. If I don't go to the hospital when I have a cough, why should I go when I'm completely healthy and know what I'm doing?

[sharningu]

Giving birth is not a medical condition, it's a natural process for which a woman's body is perfectly designed. The medical profession would have you believe otherwise. They robbed me of my 'natural' birth and I hope women will watch this film and others like it and feel empowered knowing that they can do this!

[hzuiel]

Okay....many many women died in child birth in years gone by, or from the complications that followed. Yes it's a natural process, but not every woman's body is perfectly suited for it. Some women have huge babies and narrow hips. My cousin has a shortened cervix and it took medical intervention just to get her to carry the baby for 6 months and for it to live.

Just because you can, or people you know have successfully accomplished birth at home, don't try to make it out like all women can...

[hzuiel]

or that there is something wrong with accepting medical help with birthing. People go to the doctor for every little sniffle, and giving birth is hardly a trivial matter. There are so many complications that can happen and if your husband or friends don't know what to do, you could lose your baby or your life.

Even animals sometimes die during birth. Farmers often have to go turn a calf inside their cow or she'll keep trying to push it out backwards until she and the calf die.

[sharningu]

'There are so many complications that can happen and if your husband or friends don't know what to do, you could lose your baby or your life'.

That's why you employ the services of a trained professional (midwife, etc). I am not in anyway advocating that people should attempt a home birth without qualified assistance (though I am sure some people do, successfully).

[sharningu]

I am just saying that in the MAJORITY of cases, healthy women with healthy pregnancies do not necessarily NEED medical intervention. It's nice, however, to know that it is available to us when we do NEED it.

I hope your cousin is enjoying her beautiful child and I hope that you will enjoy your own if and when you have them.

[laurashanley]

The majority of deaths in birth are, and always have been, a result of poverty and/or cultural beliefs and practices. Throughout history women have successfully given birth without medical assistance. Today most problems can be traced to fear (which triggers the fight/flight response and shuts down labor), and unnecessary medical intervention. When a woman is well-fed, unafraid, and trusts her body, unassisted birth is a safe choice.

[laurashanley]

P.S. Lovely video!!

[hzuiel]

I can't say I'm exactly an expert on the causes of death during birth, but I do know that early settlers were usually well enough fed, maybe not ideal, but they were hardly starving. If you walk through any old graveyard you find that tons and tons of young women died in child birth, and that was with experienced midwives, and perhaps even a local doctor assisting.

[laurashanley]

Actually, many of these women had rickets which deformed the pelvic bones and made childbirth difficult. Wealthy women were often corsetted starting at the age of 11, so this caused problems, as well. Sexual shame and guilt (which was prevelent at that time - and actually still is) also had a disasterous affect on birth. And having a doctor or midwife could actually add to a woman's problems as many of these people pulled on cords and performed other unnecessary and dangerous procedures.

[amandawonderboy]

Early settlers starved to death until the Native Americans helped them and showed them how to grow food. They were unprepared for the weather. These women did not have balanced diets and vitamins ect... like modern day America has now. Not to mention, when you got sick, there were no vaccinations or antibiotics. All of these factors contribute to the high mortality rate in childbirth.

[Ludwigtremblay]

You seem to have a romantic view of early settlers, daily life was a struggle for survival for healthy people and almost no one had acces to what passed for medical "preofessionals" your midwife was your sister or a neighbour far from trained pro. That being said childbirth is a natural thing and having it done in hospitals is a realy new thing for humanity.

[hzuiel]

If i had a romantic view, I wouldn't have mentioned the rows after rows of graves. My point was that birth took many many women out of this world, even at times when their living conditions were decent. After farming was established in this country, the hardest parts of living in early settlements were surviving communicable diseases and child birth. Well and attacks by native americans, but that isn't health related.

[Ludwigtremblay]

Thats what I meant, surviving on the farm wasn't easy at all, remember your talking about a time when owning one cow was a luxury, there was no food coming out of the ground for months at a time, on a good year you got enough crops to feed your own family on a bad year you starved. A time where a simple injury could lead to death from infection. Yes many women died in child birth but those were some ugly times too people died from smallpox (400 000 a year in the 18 century). Settlers just got by

[xxgadixiegirlxx]

sarah mclauchlan's answer is a beautiful song for a beautiful video. congrats! i enjoyed watching this.

[Lovingmummy]

Beautiful! Congratulations!

[taenera86]

theres some really beautiful shots in this. Thankyou for sharing the beauty of childbirth. and to see the love and support of your family is beautiful too. thanks for reminding us that its not always that bad!

[stellinarieti]

what is the song?

[gefflin2020]

Sarah mclachlan - Answer

[gabbyisneat1]

That was lovely. Thank you for posting such a beautiful video of freebirth.

[dstmpsn]

Considering that the U.S. is #27 for maternal-fetal fatalities of the developed countries (in hospitals). The homebirth is completely safe.

And probably no MERSA risk.

Beautiful video.

[a1mint]

Birthing is dangerous. Life threatening complications are a risk, like postpartum bleeding to a point where you literally bleed to death. In the olden days, women used to die from birth all the time. In some poor regions in some countries, this still happens today.

You can take a chance that things will go well, but realize that it's not safe for some women.

[EVRY1LUVZME]

yes. SOME women.

i did research and it said only 1 in 200 women die of birthing complications.

thanks, you scared me, i am do any week now.

and so i hope this doesnt effect me.

[a1mint]

That number seems off. As long as you have access to a hospital, I highly doubt you're at risk of "dying".

I think it's still dangerous, but with the right resources these risks can be managed.

It's uber stupid for people to majorly click the thumbs down button all over the place when I say something like birthing is dangerous. Smells of arrogant midwives again. Hell yes it's dangerous, but with the right resources it can be managed.

[beautifulpassion]

DUE.

And you're going to be a mother.

[EVRY1LUVZME]

that really makes no sense.

by the way, i've had my baby. she's a beautiful baby girl named Annabel Kate.

[beautifulpassion]

It does make sense, in that you can't even spell 'due', you come across through your typing as a teenager/very young barely adult, and yet you're going to have a child.

On another, more cheerful note, I do like the name Annabel Kate.

[nik0245]

Wow! What a beautiful video. I just had a VBAC and my baby was posterior, so I know what it feels like. :) Congrats mama and I wish it was required for all pregnant women to watch videos like this so they can see just how beautiful birth really is when not in the hospital.

[themommy6]

Beautiful photography! I'm looking forward to my third home waterbirth this July.

[elisabettamalvagna]

Very nice video! I had 2 homebirths and I had a wonderful experience!

Thanks for this video!

[Minyadagniriel]

I don't think I'm capable of having children, if I was to get pregnant I'd probably be high risk T_T I don't want to go to a hospital, I want to enjoy births like these and have experiences like you...

[runeluvrose]

very beautifull video

[chazziegirl95]

my first baby was born at 28 weeks gestation due to preclampsia. she survived but is still very small and ligh. i am now 22 and pregnant with my second child! i am due in 6 weeks and really wanna have a home birth maybe even unassisted? any help via commenst would be great! amazing birth and new family - congratulations!

[mediate27]

If you had complications with your first birth an unassisted with your second probably isn't a good idea.

[krisdiane]

that's not true at all. most complications in pregnancy and labor are caused by dr.'s. pre-eclampsia in a previous pregnancy is no reason not to have a UC. do your research

[mediate27]

I've been studying births all my life, thank you.

[rebeckylee]

I was told that your chances of pre-eclampsia are higher in your first birth, but greatly decrease in your second birth. I'm bringing this point up because I did have pre-clampsia myself with my first and only child and have been curious about home birth for my second child.

[Naomidoula]

I was diagnosed with gestational hypertension with my first which prevented me from having a home birth, but the second time around I was healthy all the way through and had a wonderful home birth! You can do it!

[bluevviolet]

Lovely. :)

[khep23]

what an amazing video. Who was the artist and what is that name of that song? I loved it.

[DeathAngel1018]

It's 'Answer' from Sarah McLachlan

it really is a beautiful video.

Thank you for sharing.

[amberskyfire]

Absolutely beautiful! Amazing photography, birth, and family :) Congratulations on your little one.

I also had an unassisted birth and my baby was also posterior. I hope that I never have to have another one posterior again, but I did it!

[eyebelieve777]

This video is wonerful and inspiring. I hope that this is what people see when they search birth on YouTube.

CranioSacral therapy and acupuncture help turn breech babies, my miswife was able to turn mine with her hands hours before he was born!

[JulieFilter]

That was very beautiful. What a wonderful introduction into your baby's life! =0) I wish you all the best! God bless!

[cannonballsax]

Oh my heavens!

I don't tell very many people this, but I was a C-section baby. "Water birth" is a great idea too.

[callylulu]

I'm expecting a posterior baby in three weeks. Tried everything reccommended to turn him but his not budging. Just wondered if your baby turned in labour or was born 'sunny side up'? Did you have the back pain & longer labour i keep reading about? I'm planning a natural water birth too. Just getting a little nervous!

[NaturallyBLonde14]

oh God!

[77shi77]

Absolutely beautiful.

[RaeneDay]

Brought tears to my eyes. Beautiful baby and beautiful family. I can feel the love.

[dada444]

wow that was the most wonderful birth video ive ever seen :)

[daveandkatie123]

That is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen :)

[honeybunch2k6]

Great job!!!

I've been wondering this for awhile. What does posterior mean?

[pretzel55]

"The most common position for a baby during labor is head down with the back of the head (occiput) facing the front of the mother (anterior). When the back of the head is facing the back of the mother (posterior) the baby's position is called Occiput Posterior."

[sarahjeanne3]

awesome!

[myporche1983]

what's the song

[pretzel55]

Sarah Mclachlan- Answer

[mandashouse]

That was amazing. I didn't know unassisted birth was possible. You must tell me HOW did you know what to do??

[pretzel55]

Birthing today is about education- whether you choose to birth unassisted, assisted at home, at a birth center or hospital. It is about understanding normal birth. Your body already knows what to do, it's your brain that needs to re-learn what is normal. I suggest any books by Ina May Gaskin, Henci Goer or Pushed by Jennifer Block if you are interested.

[mandashouse]

I am very interested. After 2 c-sections and then being told by local midwives they are not legally allowed (in AR where I live) to assist me in a HBAC my husband and I are devastated and are trying to cope with having no more children. There are some hospitals that may do a VBAC but I hated the whole hospital experience so much. I would love to stay at my house and have a baby! Congrats to you!

[WhippleBaby]

Check out ICAN. They have some videos here. And some are of UCAC(unassisted childbirth after c/s). Great videos!

[Pridefulpain]

The video is absolutely beautiful! Whoever was in charge of pictures did a fantastic job!! I'm planning to birth my first child at home unassisted come July so I find myself on here often looking for inspiration. Beautiful video, gorgeous family and what a wonderful love!

[auroranrose]

Absolute beauty. Thank you so much for posting us this wonderful thing called birth. Can't wait... mine is less than 30 days away...

[loveCOACH4ever]

wow, wonderfull slideshow. beautiful baby too. hope all the best for you.xxx

ps: good job mum!

[myagrace]

Awesome!!! Love the pic of the whole family, all in bed, cuddles all around. The look on your face, as you watch your son, got a bit teary over here.

Love you Bets!!