Congratulations! If you’re here I’m guessing that you are expecting a baby and you are or are considering a home birth.
As a momma of 2, I can say with full confidence that a new baby is such an exciting blessing and a truly beautiful and wonderful experience.
I was about 28 weeks pregnant with my first when I decided to do a home birth instead of a hospital birth and while it was not exactly how I planned it, it was still a beautiful experience!
We opted for a birth center birth with our second entirely due to finances at the time and I share that experience here.
However, I love home birth and have compiled what I found helpful to prepare in this list below.
Some of this stuff should be covered by your midwife so I won’t go into too much detail but some of it is stuff we learned as we went.
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Natural Birth Class
One of the things that I underestimated the importance of was a birthing class specifically for natural births. I did it with my first and not my second and my second was much harder to handle.
I also did a lot of mental prep with my first and spent time practicing the rhythm and mindset needed for a natural birth.
With my first I took the Mama Natural Birthing Class and it was very informative. I am not affiliated with them but I do recommend them. In fact, I plan to take it again whenever we have another baby.
Linens
You will need to be prepared for the inevitable mess that giving birth makes. Your midwife should be giving you a list and going over what exactly they need you to have ready but it will likely include:
- Washcloths – (These are a great price and very soft. They have lasted well through baby #2)
- Towels
- Bed sheets(We got 2 of these and love them) and mattress protectors
- Baby Blankets – (These are receiving blankets that are cheap but get the job done. After I mostly used it to cover my clothes while feeding because I was constantly getting soaked.)
- Bedding – (We got this duvet and a couple of covers so that we could change it out without washing the huge blanket everytime.)
We opted for some cheap Walmart towels and washcloths that we wouldn’t mind getting stained or straight up thrown away. Even one of the baby’s swaddle blankets (that aren’t even big enough to swaddle my babies lol) got thrown away during clean up due to how difficult it would have been to clean off the meconium.
The bedsheet and mattress protector we set up so that there were layers and so that after the birth they were able to take off the top layer quickly to be cleaned and the bed would already be ready for me to lay down.
Your space
One of the things we had to work out was where the tub was going to be. This was fully prepared and discussed so that everybody knew what to do when it was time to get the tub set up.
I also had wanted lights but that did not end up happening and it was fine. However, it’s something to consider when preparing your space.
Figure out how you want that space to feel and if you want any lights or candles or any comforting items. Get it all set up and prepared and tell your people what your expectations are so that they can help.
This is not something you want to be worried about when you are dealing with labor.
Food prep
Labor Snacks
Early labor can be a good time to fuel up and if you have a long early labor then you want to have a few different things prepared to snack on.
I didn’t eat after things picked up because I was too focused to feel hungry at all. However, I was hungry right after and was brought orange juice and crackers.
I did throw it up though so be cautious that whatever you eat even in early labor that you won’t mind so much if it comes back up.
Drinks
You’ll also want to prepare drinks. During labor it is important to stay hydrated and I went back and forth drinking tea and water. Then like I said I had an orange juice ready in the fridge that they brought me.
If you like any electrolyte drinks or sparkling water or anything hydrating then stock up for labor, postpartum healing, and breastfeeding.
Postpartum Snacks and Meals
I highly recommend preparing granola bars, muffins, freezer meals like lasagna or enchiladas, breakfast foods, and anything else that you would like easily accessible.
You will be sore, tired, bleeding, feeding, busy, and not feeling your best. Dad will also likely be tired and busy trying to clean and take care of you both and any other kids you may have.
It makes life a lot easier when you don’t have to worry about cooking or baking on top of that.
Your support team
A BIG one – who is on your team and what will their roles be?
Figure out and communicate with them exactly what your wishes and expectations are.
Do they want to be a part of it? At what stage do you want them to come over? Who is getting a hold of them? Do they need to bring anything? How much notice do they need?
Get this information straight and everybody on alert so that when the time comes it is smooth sailing. I go into more detail about how to prepare your support team here.
People’s Questions
Prepare to hear a lot of the same questions and a lot of horror stories and complete disbelief that you are opting for an unmedicated birth.
It can be a lot of fake smiles and nodding, at least in my case. There were a lot of people that would tell me about how they wanted that too but when the time came it was just too much.
Some people were sad about that but some people had this pretentious air like I was naive and I was about to learn the hard way that I couldn’t do it.
If you face any of this, know that you are not alone and you absolutely can do this. I don’t even need to know you to know that if you just prepare as much as you can, then anything within your control, you will handle it, you will overcome it, and you can have an empowered birth experience.