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Is Home Birth Safe? Let’s Talk About the Facts (and the Clean-Up!)

Updated: Jun 6

If you’re pregnant and thinking about where to birth your baby, at home might have crossed your mind, along with a couple of big questions including "is home birth safe?" and "is home birth messy?", you may have also had some interesting conversations or unsolicited opinions from people questioning your choice. This blog is here to answer these big questions with evidence and experience, and equip you with some empowering questions to ask yourself.

Firstly, the big one...


Is Home Birth Safe?


In short: YES.

All my clients know how much I blooming LOVE a good study, so let’s look at the evidence…

A large 2019 study published in The Lancet looking at over 500,000 intended home births found:

“The risk of perinatal or neonatal mortality was not different when birth was intended at home or in hospital.” (Hutton et al 2019).

Another study published in The Lancet, (also looking at more than 500,000 intended home births) concluded:

"among low-risk women, those intending to birth at home experienced fewer birth interventions and untoward maternal outcomes" (Reitsma et al 2020).

This study showed for low-risk women and birthing people, planning to give birth at home was associated with significant benefits including:

  • 40% less likely to have a caesarean section

  • 50% less likely to experience assisted operative vaginal birth (forceps & ventouse)

  • 70% less likely to request an epidural

  • 55% less likely to receive an episiotomy

  • 75% less likely to develop a maternal infection

  • 30% less likely to experience a postpartum haemorrhage

  • 40% less likely to have a 3rd or 4th degree tear

  • 35% less likely to require synthetic oxytocin drip during labour 

Pretty amazing right?

These statistics include those birthing their first and second / subsequent baby. The benefits are shown to be even greater for second or subsequent births.

These studies were based on people labelled “low-risk”, but it’s also entirely possible to birth at home with additional complexities or a “high-risk” label, especially if you're well supported and make informed choices - you are more than simply a "risk" label.


If you're someone who likes to really dig into the numbers, the brilliant Dr Sara Wickham has gathered loads of up-to-date research in her blog post, “Is Home Birth Safe?” - definitely worth a read!


But Is Home Birth...Messy?


I completely understand asking this, and honestly, it’s such a valid thing to wonder. When I was planning the birth of my second daughter and considering home birth as an option, this crossed my mind too! The idea of prepping everything and then having to clean up after birthing a human felt... a lot.

But here’s the truth:

It's really not that messy.

Especially if you give birth in a pool - everything is nicely contained. I hired mine from Birth Pool in a Box and found it pretty straightforward (you can use my discount link here for 10% off any orders). If you're local to Leeds/Wakefield, there's also a brilliant and very cost-effective community birth pool hire scheme available; there may be similar schemes in your local area.

Not keen on a pool? No problem. Shower curtains or oilcloth tablecloths are brilliant for protecting furniture, and having lots of towels and puppy pads available is always helpful during a home birth.


And no, you don't have to clean up.

That’s not your job. Your job is to cuddle your baby, soak in those golden oxytocin moments and just be. Tidying up? That’s where your birth partner, midwives and possibly your doula (hiya) step in. Midwives are generally fabulous at helping get things sorted before they leave, and many doulas will help make sure your space is back to cosy and calm.


What to Consider When People Question Your Decision to Birth at Home


If anyone, be that a doctor, friend, relative or even a stranger questions your intention to birth at home with unhelpful statements like:

"You're brave"

"I’d NEVER have a home birth”

“Home delivery is for pizza, not babies”

"I wouldn’t take the risk”

Remember, these statements assume that hospital is the safest place for everyone to birth their baby, implying (intended or otherwise) that birthing at home is "unsafe", which given the previously discussed evidence on the safety of home birth, is untrue.

So, here are three empowering questions to ask yourself (or them) if someone questions your birth choices:


  1. Are These Statements Based on Any Evidence?

    Very often the answer is: no.

    They're usually based on opinion, assumption, fear, media influences or societal conditioning, rather than statistical evidence or lived experience of home birth. Happily for you, as discussed earlier in this blog, there is loads of evidence to show the safety of home birth to help you inform your decision.


  2. Do They Understand How Physiological Birth Works?

    This is a biggie. Understanding how birth actually works can be a game-changer when it comes to feeling confident in your choices.

    Birth is a physiological process involving a finely tuned orchestra of muscles and hormones. One of the key players is oxytocin - often called the “love hormone.” It’s responsible for making contractions effective, progressive and powerful. More oxytocin = stronger, more efficient labour. Less oxytocin = slower, less productive surges.

    But here’s the catch: oxytocin is shy. It thrives when you feel:

    • Safe

    • Calm

    • Unobserved

    • Warm and relaxed

    Birthing at home naturally supports these conditions. You're in familiar surroundings, with people you’ve chosen to be there. You can control the lighting, sounds, smells - everything. That’s why midwife-led units (like the Lotus Suite at Leeds General Infirmary) are designed to feel “home-like” - it’s all about protecting your birth hormones.


    Want to dive deeper into how oxytocin works in labour and how to boost it? Check out my blog: All About Oxytocin: Practical Tips for Boosting Your Oxytocin Levels During Pregnancy, Birth and Postnatally.

    And if you want practical help, I’ve written about 7 ways to create a birth environment that supports oxytocin, whether you’re birthing at home, in a midwife-led unit or hospital.


  3. Is this person expert in what is right for you?

    Even the most well-meaning doctors, friends and family members aren’t you.

    You are the expert in your body, your baby and your birth wants and wishes. And ultimately, it’s not your job to convince anyone else.


    You have the right to birth wherever and however feels best for you.

    In Positive Birth Leeds hypnobirthing courses, I go into depth on how to make confident informed decisions using simple tools. These include:

    • Asking “Why?” before accepting or declining anything

    • Using the BRAIN acronym (Benefits, Risks, Alternatives, Instinct/Information, Nothing)

    • Requesting evidence in absolute figures instead of relative terms (e.g. “from 0.1% to 0.2%” rather than “double the risk”)

    • Understanding your birth rights in any setting


    If you’d like someone to talk through all this with you, a doula or hypnobirthing teacher (hello!) can help you make sense of the info and find what feels right for you.


Four Tips if You're Considering a Home Birth:


Here are four practical tips to help you plan:


  1. Get Informed:

    Know your options and use the tools above to guide your decision. Knowledge is power and it can also be incredibly reassuring.


  2. Connect with People Who've Birthed at Home:

    Hearing real stories from others who've choses home birth can be so helpful (for you and your partner). You could join Leeds Home Birth Support Facebook group, or attend out one of their regular meet ups.

    I’ve also shared my own home water birth story on this blog if you’d like a peek into what it can be like.


  3. Read and Listen to Evidenced-Based Resources:

    Fill your ears and mind with information that supports informed and empowered choices, I've listed my go to resources below.


  4. Know You Can Change Your Mind:

    Planning a home birth doesn’t lock you into anything. You can decide at any point to go into hospital - and that’s absolutely okay. But it's often easier to book the home birth and change your mind, than to try and arrange one later.


The safest place to birth your baby is...

...the place where you feel safest.

That could be at home, in a midwife-led unit or in hospital. The point is: no one else can decide that for you. You are the one who chooses what's right for you, your baby and you birth.


Still Feeling a Bit Overwhelmed?


Charlotte, a white woman with blonde hair wears a grey jumper and is sitting in a chair with a cup in her hands smiling at the camera.

That’s totally normal. Planning for birth brings up a lot. You don’t have to figure this out alone.


As a doula and hypnobirthing teacher, I’d be honoured to support you, whether that’s through a Birth Prep Power Hour, a private or group hypnobirthing course or one-to-one doula support.


Let’s chat about how I can support you, book a FREE Discovery call or message me.

Home Birth Resources I Recommend

Here are some resources I regularly share with clients:

Studies referenced:

  1. Perinatal or neonatal mortality among women who intend at the onset of labour to give birth at home compared to women of low obstetrical risk who intend to give birth in hospital: A systematic review and meta-analyses: DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eclinm.2019.07.005

  2. Maternal outcomes and birth interventions among women who begin labour intending to give birth at home compared to women of low obstetrical risk who intend to give birth in hospital: A systematic review and meta-analyses: DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eclinm.2020.100319



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