Home birth equipment

Rhiannon_of_Woolamai

I've had 2 home births in last 2.5 years. You don't really need anything - even a shower curtain as the midwives bring the lot including protection for your furnishings. They bring towels for the baby too. They bring their own food.

I did purchase that plastic table cloth material from Dunhelm for 99p a metre to put down as added protection as the couches are expensive, and my carpet is cream - but actually I preferred the stuff they bought with them.

I bought an isotopic drink thing to drink after the birth to stop the shakes (it didn't actually seem to help though), and put a load of frozen flannels in the freezer which were nice to bite on and cool my face down.

So - nothing special needed for the home birth bit - but for any birth things that I didn't get enough of/forgot were:
1. Lots of home made meals frozen so you don't have to cook/go shopping for a week or so
2. Lots of pads
3. Lansihol lanolin nipple cream
4. Leisure wear clothes - you don't want to wear your maternity stuff, and your ordinary clothes don't fit - so lots of soft, comfy clothes (no zips /buttons as they don't work when a baby is sleeping on you)

across

good luck!!! having a baby at home is absolutely brilliant theres nothing quite like it when everyone has cleared up the mess and you're sat in you're own bed with your brand new baby!!!!looking out of you're own bedroom window and showing it where it lives when it is brand new i would recommend this to everyone and mine was an accident at home! as for lights and stiches i had stiches and couldnt even tell you how they went on for light they must have had something with them so dont worry but ask your midwife!! the mess was taken away but my bedding was full due to not being prepared and it was all WHITE Laura Ashley bedding!!!!! but it washed out a treat so dont worry!!! very best of luck homebirth is a great choice!:T

BernadetteN

So are you giving birth during the World Cup? I'd say a TV guide of all the matches and some food to eat during the matches for you, the midwives, father etc..... I gave birth at home during a Nigeria match during World Cup 1998 and had 2 football mad midwives with me. I managed to hold on till the end of the match. The cakes and biscuits I baked were all very well appreciated too.
I think everyone else has covered every other useful thing.

Good luck

alanalea

I agree with the previous comments. I had my first at home last June ( my baby is now a evil walking talking snotting toddler who has learnt to say 'NO' and is 1 in 3 weeks :eek: )

Anyway, my tip is to have lots of ice cubes on stand by. I wasn't able to drink but having an ice cube to suck on or chew was excellent! I used the lucozade energy tablets throughout and i bought a Wilkinsons plastic fitted bed sheet for £3.99.

I also had lots of goodies in for the midwives, incase I had a long labour (they appreciate that, i know because i'm a midwife lol) As it was i only had a 3 hour labour!

Good luck!

Minxz

In case you haven't got one yet- you can buya simialr ball, called a gym ball, at Srgos for 3.99. I'm due in 6 days, and uit's great to sit on
Hope all goes well for you

Peakma

So good to read such a lot of other people who also favour home births.I had all 3 of my babies at home,and can't imagine doing it any other way,really positive experiences.I was only 21 with first,midwives were totaly for it,only met one consultant who tried to convince me I wasn't thinking of what was best for baby,and i was being totaly selfish??!!
I had gardeners foam knee pads strapped on for the second two,after slipping about on cushions with the first!
I used arnica tablets for bruising,whilst in labour and after.Raspberry leaf tea to strenghten contractions,and clary sage oil to go in bath/foot bath.For the first few days after birth,I douched(? is that the right word?)in warm water with a few drops of lavender oil in after weeing,to take away the sting, and my midwife suggested witch hazel dabbed on my pants under the pad to help heeling.
Good luck with it and enjoy it!! It was so weird with the first one,after he was born and the midwives left! and there we were in bed with our little baby.Better stop now,I'm getting broody!!

getcarter

I had my second son at home, the midwife will drop a bad of equipment off a couple of week before. I had a bean bag, a tens machine, I just put a bin bag under an old sheet on the bed, din't really have any other equipment or felt I needed anything else. My only problem was that one of the gas canisters was empty:eek:

I also got all the clean sheets out ready for after my bath, and as another person said, there's nothing like getting into your own bed after a bath and looking out into your garden!

(we did have a tiny spot of blood on the ceiling which we can only imagine came from the nurse cutting the umbilical cord!) It was there for years!! but no mess anywhere else.

Jo_R_2

How fabulous to see so many replies and all so positive about home birth! Some useful tips in there, so thanks all!

I have been holding off getting the final bits and pieces as there have been various niggly little issues which have led to a lot of hospital visits - nothing major but yesterday found out baby was breech :eek: so been to hospital today for an ECV. Seems to have done the trick - how long she will stay like that we don't know though! But as for now I am going to go ahead and get my bendy straws, birthing ball and whatnot - though all this going up to hospital and parking in the hospital car park has cost us a fortune in parking!

Thanks again all!

Jay-Jay_4

How lovely

Best of luck with your HB, it's the best thing ever to have your baby in the comfort of your own home.

Like the others have said, the midwives bring most things and there's a good chance that you won't use half the stuff you think you will anyway

I bought a HUGE polythene sheet from B&Q which covered my whole carpet... just as well as my waters went with my first push and caused a tidal wave I had a Smartprice shower curtain under my knees for extra strength and an old bedsheet on top for comfort. At the end it was all binned by the lovely midwives.

I had a lamp ready and hot water bottles but they weren't used in the end. I just had some towels ready for baby and that was pretty much it.

Good luck, enjoy your birth x x x

toadhall

as others have said, the midwives should have a pack and bring it round a couple of weeks before you are due.
I had my last 2 at home and it was so much better than a hospital birth. we had a white carpet on the bedroom floor, which is where i ended up and there was nothing afterwards to say there had been a baby born there!
hope all goes well