Poor Danni at the centre of another round of homebirth slamming..

After reading the drivel published in The Herald Sun around Danni Minogue's apparently reckless attempt to birth her baby at home I am left feeling so enraged and very very frustrated. I'm not shocked- the very ill informed opinion writer S. O'Brien doesn't shock me any more- I have read enough of her un-researched opinion to expect to read rubbish from her when I occasionally paruse The Sun (if others are already reading the quality publications) while waiting for my coffee at my local cafe.

What is missing from many articles is the statistical information about the safety of birthing at home with a trusted midwife. It's not that hard to find. You can GOOGLE it! It doesn't take expert investigative journalism to find out- just a little effort. But you know what? These "journalists" do not want to read the facts. If you are healthy and low risk, home is a safe place to birth your baby. For the record, here's a little bit of investigative journalism of my own:

The Netherlands Study 2009: Homebirth Safety
Click the attachment at the bottom of the article to see the study information.
The largest study in the world confirms that homebirth is safe.
Over three hundred thousand women had planned homebirths with midwives in this study, proving that homebirth IS safe. The conclusion to the study "shows that planning a homebirth does not increase the risks of perinatal mortality and severe perinatal morbidity among low-risk women".

Danni Minogue was portrayed in such a negative light and made to look like she would put her baby's and her own life at risk by choosing to birth at home. We are not seeing anyone give the appropriate praise to her independent midwife who clearly made the resposible call to get Danni transferred to hospital when it became medically necesarry. This was not a bad outcome for a homebirth. It was a very very good one! It is further proof that homebirth is a safe option as you receive expert care by a trained midwife who knows when complications arise! If she had not needed to transfer I wonder if there would be such media hype? Maybe we would not know about it yet? Maybe Danni would have had the opportunity to let the world know on her family's terms and in their own time?

What scares me is that other's read the Herald Sun and feel they are reading accurate journalism. Someone's sensationalist, violating and insulting opinion of a private and personal event in the life of another woman is not journalism- it's catty trash.

Shame!

First appointment with my midwife

On Wednesday morning Molly and I made the trek across town to visit my midwife for my initial consultation. This is a meeting designed to help the mother get to know her possible future care provider and to think about whether this is the right fit for the mother.

I can happily say that I connected right away with Joy Johnston and feel very pleased that she will be journeying with me as I progress through the pregnancy and as we plan for this birth. Joy was very respectful of Molly and had a room full of interesting things for her to play with. She has grandchildren of her own and the place is kid friendly. I may not take her to the next appointment though as she was starting to get a bit restless toward the end. Joy and I had a long casual chat about my experience with Molly's birth, any concerns I have, any questions I had about the way she does things. She gave me a few handy fact sheets about different aspects of homebirth/bonding/stages of labour etc which will be handy if any friends or family are asking me questions about my reasons for choosing to birth at home. I will be booked in to the Royal Women's as a backup hospital as they are apparently really accomodating if a woman needs to transfer.

Joy answered my questions around what she could do in case of emergency- for bleeding after birth she carries the same sometimes lifesaving drugs that are available in the hospital but only uses them if there appears to be a problem as opposed to managing the third stage of labour which is routine in hospital. She also carries a full resus kit in case the baby needs help breathing. Basically most things they could do in hospital short of a caesarian section, she could do in case of an emergency. She has been assisting women to birth their babies since the early 1970s and is well trained to pick up any problems should they arise and has no hesitation to tansfer to hospital should it prove needed.

I feel very pleased with my choice in care provider and am lucky to have found someone who I connect with so quickly. Please visit her blog in my sidebar "The Village Midwife".

Give me feedback

What do you think of my new template??

A bit bright?

I like it.. I think..

Obviously it's a slow day at work today- when else would I have time to create a set at Polyvore and muck around with my blog template??!

If I had money this is what I'd wear...

Ash's maternity picks by ashleyecarr featuring Dorothy Perkins maternity

Pictures

I thought I'd do a little photo post with some pics from the last couple of weeks.

Last week Molly looked at me and asked so sincerely "Mumma, can we have an adventure tomorrow?".. Of course I couldn't say no to such an ernest request and we set off on a chilly Monday morning in our hats, scarves and coats, and caught a train to Belgrave (in the Dandenong Ranges) to take a ride on Puffing Billy- an old fashioned steam engine that runs on a track through the mountains. We were absolutely freezing but had an amazing time together. Here are some photos below. Sorry there are no photos of the train or scenery, the camera on my phone doesn't take very good longer range shots.

After a gorgeous day in the hills we visited my inlaws to thaw out and have dinner. While we were there I overheard Molly say to her Pa "Pa? Can I have a coloured texta and some paper so I can write up my next adventure?"... Too cute huh!??

Here is a 5 week (non) belly shot for the record- it just looks as if I've had a big dinner! :)

And here are some family shots taken two nights ago at my little brother's birthday dinner. My mum has recently lost 20kgs and is only now starting to be somewhat OK about being in photograps. Isn't she gorgeous- she is at any weight but try telling her that!

6 weeks pregnant...

Hi all..

Quick post to say that we conceived first try!!

This is something that I absolutely do not take for granted. Having a polycystic ovary, I assumed it may take a while but nope! First go! Huzzah!

I wasn't going to post until the 12 week mark however I had a think about it and decided that I would want to have support and document the whole journey whatever the outcome of the pregancy.

So welcome to the next 40+ weeks!

So far I have experienced a little queaziness, tender breasts and really full on tiredness. But other than that I feel great! May it continue!

:)

I have decided to hire Joy Johnson as my midwife as Robyn will be busy finishing her PhD. Have had all my bloods done which show everything to be normal and my GP is right on board with my plans to birth at home. I'm blessed to have so many supportive people around me.