Where should I give birth?

October 10, 2022

We often forget that all birth used to take place at home until it moved into hospital in the mid-20th century, as the medical-model of birth took over and it became more obstetric-led. But what might surprise you is that hospitals are not the safest place for all births and simply planning a hospital birth gives you an increased likelihood of unnecessary intervention. So what are your options for place of birth and how safe are each of them?

Broadly speaking, there are 3 places where most people give birth:

  1. Hospital
  2. Midwife-led unit (“MLU”) AKA a birth centre
  3. Home

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Using a birth ball during pregnancy and early labour

July 01, 2022

The benefits of using birth balls in labour have been suspected for a while, and in 2020 a study was published that confirmed some amazing statistics. The Ball Trial was introduced to look into women’s experiences of using a birth ball in labour. Not only did birth balls improve women’s early labour experience, they were associated with hospital admissions later in labour, and amazingly they reduced the rate of unplanned caesarean birth. 

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