What is a Mid-Wife and Why Should I Have a Homebirth?

In Alberta, the midwives are regulated but completely outside the medical profession. There is no formal training for midwives in Alberta so most of them become nurses first and apprentice with other midwives. Thus, freedom of choice is honored for all women. The medicalization of childbirth has deprived women and families of the normal, natural experience of welcoming a new family member into the world. Presently, a continuum of care exists, ranging from natural birth at home to highly medicalized hospital birth.

Midwife attended home birth remains a safe and viable option for women and families who wish to reclaim childbirth as their own. According to Whitney Collins, mother of two, of Ajax, Ontario, Canada she chose to have a home birth because "I didn't want to be anywhere near a hospital for anything. My first home birth was in Alberta where midwives didn't have hospital privileges at the time, and there were no birthing centers in my area so there was really no choice, but that ended up being absolutely perfect for me." Freya Perraton of had an altogether different reason, "The reduced risk of infection for both my baby, and me and, of course, avoiding the chain of interventions that so often leads to a c-section. People have a false sense of security in the hospital, and tend to put blind trust in their caregivers."

While this may not be the case for all women, it is a common thought among women that choose home birth. Since home birth today is primarily a middle and upper class option due to cost, women who have home births may have better diets, housing, education, and access to medical care than many of the women giving birth in hospitals or having unplanned home births.

There are still women who are ridiculed for choosing a home birth. Vikki Volk of Ontario, Canada remembers, "People would say to me why are you trying to be a martyr, you have nothing to prove, get the epidural. It's not about being a martyr, it's about doing what I felt was right for me and my baby, I didn't want drugs in our systems. I knew that my body could deal with the labor with its natural hormones and using a labor tub was great. People don't read all the risks associated with drugs and epidurals or they don't believe risks are real."

Pitocin and other drugs to speed up labor can cause extreme pain, hyper stimulation of the uterus, lack of oxygen for the baby, uterine tears, hypoxia, cerebral palsy, and pelvic fractures. Analgesic drugs are known to cross the placenta and enter into the fetus's system, possibly causing breathing problems, damage to the central nervous system, impaired sensory motor function, decreased processing and response to stimuli, interference with sucking and rooting, increased irritability, decreased developmental scores, poor maternal bonding, neonatal depression, poor muscle tone, lethargy, and tremors. When comparing the safety of a hospital and non-hospital birth it is important to note that the comparison is with planned home birth statistics.