Moneysaving home birth essentials?!

JBD

My daughter was born at home 12 years ago. The only equipment I needed was a plastic decorating sheet for the bed and an ice cream tub [for the midwife to take the placenta away]. The only mess was sorted with one load in the washing machine.
Best of luck!

davidswife

I used a couple of cheap shower curtains and a hired TENS machine. My midwives took everything away with them.
The whole experience was great.

margaretclare

When I was a community midwife I never heard of the need for dust sheets to cover the furniture!!!

I once had to deliver a baby in a newly-carpeted bedroom, carpet was cream! Managed it without any mess at all.

MummyOfTwo

i had a homebirth in '08 with my son, easy peasy

birthed in my front room (curtains closed :rotfl:), on a 'birth quilt' thingy i made. just blagged an old duvet from family, made a quilt cover of sorts out of dust sheets and parcel tape, and slipped an old unwanted duvet cover on that. soft under the knees and fluid resistant! the midwives bring everything anyway tho - just make sure you are stocked up on lovely tea and coffee and biccies for them! the midwives cleaned the front room up, and when i got up the next day you wouldnt have a clue what had happened there the evening before. as for towels, i just treated myself to a new bale, and gave up some old ones for the birth. didnt really need many tho tbh, only used one to wrap the baby up in, and one for me to cover my dignity and ladybits while i hobbled to the shower.
make saure you have nice treats in for yourself too, its so lovely snuggling up in your own bed with baby and OH and eating just what you fancy.

good luck with the birth, its an incredible experience, so good i have booked in for another this september:)

theoldcynic

Thank you all for your replies, it is encouraging that if we should get caught short that we do not need a whole lot of stuff (apart from the MWs sandwiches, which are of upmost importance! ).

It is so encouraging to hear all of the positive experiences of home births and also interesting to hear of experiences that were not so positive so I can be prepared. I appreciate all of your input.

Thank you for the suggestion of having a bag packed for hospital I already do have a bag packed (just incase) and the MW suggested that too, saying that even if I don't need it for hospital it is nice to have everything in one place and easily accessible.

mandragora your birth sounds idyllic, it is the birth I dream of!

margaretclare it is a shame I don't live in your area and you can't be my midwife, it must take some talent not to stain a cream carpet, you are obviously very good at what you do!

theoldcynic

Thanks mummyoftwo, all the best for your birth in September too!

kjmtidea

I have had 3 home births, the 3rd was a water birth. Definitely get the pampers care mats, my midwives left me some but it was nice to have extras to put on the settee and bed or whereever I was sitting - just in case! You could ask on freecycle for old towels and just boil wash them. For my first home birth I got a tesco value shower curtain but I didn't bother with my other 2, it really isn't that messy and the midwives clean up everything - my house was cleaner after they left than it was when they first got here :rotfl:

I gave birth in my lounge twice and my bedroom once, other than my water birth I didn't plan the others, I was just pacing around and then gave birth where I felt comfortable at the time. My water birth I bought a birth pool in a box which was fab and I would definitely recommend them, you can hire them and just buy a new liner for it.

skintchick

I'm intrigued by why you think you need loads of dust sheets!

I had my DD at home, and there was no mess during the labouring. I went for a walk by the river after my waters broke, and was up and down stairs to encourage it all to get going until the very end.

Anyway. I had a pad on the bed for a few weeks for when my waters went. They did go as I got up one day so that was perfect. THey were just bed wetting pads from Boots, meant for kids.

For my birthing corner, I had oil cloth which my dad got for me but they sell it in Dunelm Mill, and if you get a nice one you can reuse it afterwards. I used mine as a floor covering when Dd was starting solids, to protect my carpet.

I do recall having an old duvet, but it wasn;t stained at the end - I think the MW brought stuff with her although I was in my zone by the time she arrived and I don;t remember.

I had old towels but again I don;t remember having to throw anything away.

I did have a birth ball which I used to give birth on - I lent on it and squatted.

Things I did NOT use were:
TENs machine - I hated it, made OH take it off immediately! I borrowed mine from my doula so it was free.

Candles - I'd had plans to light my space with candles but in the end one small lamp was fine and I really didn;t care.

Ditto aromatherapy oils.

Back massager - OH was supposed to massage my back for me but I hated being touched and told him to get lost! :rotfl:

So, really, protect your floor a bit, get some pads for your waters, maternity pads for you, maybe a birth pool if you want on (I didn't, I prefer dry land) a vest top to give birth in (forget special nighties) and do have something to put on afterwards that you can breastfeed in. I got a nightie with a front that unbuttoned.

I hardly used anything and DD's birth went brilliantly. My full birth story is in the birth stories thread on here if you want to read it. It's wasy to get carried away thinking you need this and that, but it's not as messy as you think and the MWs bring lots of stuff.

GobbledyGook

You don't really need a lot. A few old towels (mainly old ones because the MW's will take stuff away so if you use old ones they can take them and dispose of them instead of trying to wash them), a couple of shower curtains for waterproof sheets and you are set. A few people I know have used birth pool in a box, they seem pretty reliable.

One tip for your bed is to double bag it - so shower curtain, sheet, shower curtain then sheet. Means if your waters go or whatever you can just whip one layer off and you don't have to redo it.

It doesn't tend to get too messy so don't worry too much. I had 2 home births and 1 where I transferred into hospital and my house was cleaner when the MW's left than when they arrived!

Memory_Girl

Lots of Bacon, eggs, toast and buckets of tea ................ cos afterwards you will be starving LOL

Mind you I gave birth in the night - and was only in labour for an hour or so until the midwife arrived and "caught" DS2.

I laboured leaning against my bed - and a couple of towels were all I needed ............... although at one point I did think OMG!!! I'm on a cream carpet. No soaking through thankfully but probably because my labout was so quick I went from waters breaking to pushing with minutes.

Did I mention the bacon? LOL

Honestly - I have never felt a hunger like it, absolutely ferocious.

MG