Hospital birth - advice for a wimp

[Y Thingy]

We were lucky enough to get a private room in hospital last time so DH was there all the time to help me. However I was admitted 3 days prior to delivery due to complications so we had enough time to wait for a private room. I'm soooo worried that I won't be able to get a private room this time then DH has to leave at night. I don't want to sleep with some strangers and their screaming babies in the same room, take care of a newborn on my first post-partum night, lug the baby to the bathroom with me for security reasons...

I really hated those nurses burst in to check on me and baby around the clock and finally realized I could refuse the checking. I thought I would do that this time and suddenly realized: my roommates might not refuse the checking and those nurses will still burst in around the clock and check and talk...etc. :(

I wasn't feeling well enough until 3 days after delivery last time to go home so early discarge is probably not likely. Does it look like we should just consider home birth then? Well, we'll consider it of course but the decision won't be made until baby's is full-term and there's no complications. There are always possibilities that we won't get to deliver at home. How did you ladies cope if you didn't have a private room in hospital? Did anybody actually get any sleep? Any tips?

[hedra]

If you don't use meds, you may be able to get approval for early discharge, which means you don't need to get switched to a recovery room. That's what happened with us, anyway, DH 'got' to stay overnight because we never left the birthing room! Granted, we were also trained for early discharge (from being Birth Center prepped), so we knew how to do temp and breathing and color checks on the baby... it isn't rocket science, but you do need to do that in the first day or so.

Other than a home birth, or a different hospital that has LDR rooms (labor and recovery in one room, all private), I'm not sure what else to tell you.

Have you talked to the nurses about your concerns? They may have better ideas for you - just call the maternity floor...

[djk42]

Well, you also need to think about whether or not you will miss your baby. You may not want to be alone, but who will be with your older child? Having your husband there may not be an option anyway. I was blessed to birth Abigail at a birthcenter that had double beds instead of hospital beds- so that daddy can stay with you. There were no cribs either, I guess they assume everyone co-sleeps. :)

[rebeccav]

I see you are in BC - if you are considering a homebirth, midwifery care is covered by MSP in BC - are you currentlly seeing a midwife? If you are considering it, you might want to line up your midwifery care as soon as possible, as most midwives only take so many client due dates per month and you may not be able to get in. I just had my daughter last month with a midwifery clinic in the Tri-Cities area and I was really happy with the care I received.

As far as hospital births/stays go, midwives often have hospital privileges as well. I chose a hospital birth with my DD, and I had a choice of two hospitals. I chose the smaller of the two (both were the same distance from me) because I was more likely to get a private room at the smaller hospital - which I did, AND there was a fold-out cot for DH to sleep in.

As for interruptions, you can refuse the checks. When I had DD the maternity ward was so busy I hardly saw the nurses and I was annoyed that I wasn't getting any service! That was one factor in my decision to go home the same day. Early discharge can be an option if you have a meds-free birth - you'll usually find your recovery is much faster and easier - I certainly did!

And with DS's birth, I had a shared room and it wasn't too bad. DH still got to stay, but he only got a foam mattress on the floor. (this was a totally different hospital, and I'm not so sure they'll let you do that anymore). He ended up sleeping with me and DS in my hospital bed! From my experience with shared rooms, the nurses and other patients try to be quiet so as to not disturb other mothers, but babies do cry sometimes. Overall, if you don't opt for a homebirth, I think trying everything possible to make an early discharge a possibility would be the best option for your concerns..

Sorry I didn't mean to write a novel here! I hope that helps! I think we may live in the same part of BC, so if you have any questions about the hospital I was at, or the midwives I was seeing, feel free to email me!

[siffy]

I made sure that the hospital that I delivered at had only private rooms. I live in a major metropolitan area so there were many to choose from.
I also delivered twice at a teaching hosptal, and requested that no interns/residents be present at the births. I only wanted my dr, the nurse and the pediatricians in the room for delivery.
If you have reasonalbe requests...don't be afraid to speak up!

Shannon

[Y Thingy]

Thanks! I am seeing a midwife who can do either hospital or home birth. We only have one hospital choice, though and we had our first baby there. (Planned a homebirth last time as well but ended up in hospital) I'm just hoping things don't go wrong this time and we can have the homebirth we wanted.

[BrandiL]

I've had both a hospital and a home birth. The first time around in the hospital I had a private room (I only stayed one night) but I didn't get any rest and the food was horrible. The second time around with the homebirth I actually had a very restful night of sleep following the birth. It was so nice to be in my own bed in my own house with my faamily!