This is when a woman decides to have a baby, at home,
without the help of a medical professional (ie. Doctor or Midwife).
Sometimes there may be assistance from a partner/friend/sister/doula
and other times to woman may choose to have here baby in complete
privacy.
The reasons a woman may
choose this option are many and varied. It may simply be the case that
the woman does not have access to a medical professional who is able to
attend a homebirth, or perhpas there are no Birth Centres in the area,
and so to achieve a birth without medical management she must take sole
responsibility for the birth.
To
most people the idea of an unassisted childbirth will seem horrifying
and they may wonder why any woman would choose to do so. Rest assured
that any woman who chooses this option has not done so without very
careful consideration and many hours of soul searching - not to mention
extentsive research into pregnancy and childbirth.
The
women that choose this option are usually highly educated and have a
very strong belief in themselves and their bodies ability to birth.
Even
if this choice is something you would never consider, I think that one
of things we can take away from this women is their positive attitude
towards birth and their bodies.
While
this kind of mindset is not a gauruntee that there will not be
complications, it still goes a long way to helping one approach labour
and birth without fear - essential for the correct perception of pain.
This section of the website contains information on different ways of giving birth, including information from magazines and videos.
