Several local women chose to have home births with the assistance of midwives instead of giving birth in hospitals. Shirley Robert, who had high-risk pregnancies in the past, gave birth to a healthy baby girl at home with midwife Nancy Wainer. Alba Cordero also had a positive home birth experience with Wainer's assistance. These women believed that home births allowed a calmer, more supportive environment compared to hospitals.

1. !"#$%&'()*'$+#,-#(
!!..##//,,&&00$%*/'#,$1&(234256332&'235763281
9:,&'#,$1&(234256332&'2373;281
Shirley Robert had a history of high-risk pregnancies. She
lost her first child the 21st week of her pregnancy due to
an incompetent cervix. Her son, Aiden, 5, was premature
and needed medical attention immediately after his birth.
She also has high blood pressure and gestational diabetes
during pregnancy. But when the 27-year-old Randolph
resident passed the 36-week mark in her third pregnancy
she decided to give birth they way she always wanted but
never thought possible - at home. Robert is not alone.
Many local women choose to forgo the loud, impersonal
environment of a hospital for calm, quiet birth,
surrounded by love ones in the comfort of their home.
<0$!#(#/&$8=$>(&?@*
Shirley Robert had a history of high-risk pregnancies.
She lost her first child the 21st week of her pregnancy due to an incompetent
cervix. Her son, Aiden, 5, was premature and needed medical attention
immediately after his birth. She also has high blood pressure and gestational
diabetes during pregnancy. But when the 27-year-old Randolph resident passed
the 36-week mark in her third pregnancy she decided to give birth they way she
!!""##$$%%&&''""(())**&&++,,**--&&$$%%..))//**$$..,,00))&&..""&&11""2233,,..$$%%22&&'',,..11
11))%%33&&""++&&((,,--'',,00))22
Local women find alternative to hospitals with help of midwives http://gm3-wlwebvarnish.newscyclecloud.com/x700959316/Loc...
1 of 6 8/17/16 10:01 PM

2. always wanted but never thought possible – at home.
Though Robert’s doctors discouraged her choice, she gave birth without
complications to a healthy 9-pound girl, Amelie, on Oct. 18, 2010 at her home
with the assistance of midwives, surrounded by her husband, Max, 35, their son
and several other friends and family.
“My daughter remained very peaceful and calm,” Robert said of the home birth.
“It was Zen in a box.”
Robert is not alone. Many local women choose to forgo the loud, impersonal
environment of a hospital for calm, quiet birth, surrounded by love ones in the
comfort of their home.
Robert’s midwife, Needham resident Nancy Wainer has assisted close to 1,600
home births in her career.
Wainer said she tries to work with her clients before delivery. She said they are
screened for health concerns and are instructed to eat well and take the right
nutrients. The women are required to be at least 36 weeks pregnant to give birth
at home. Wainer brings necessary equipment such as oxygen and heart monitors
when assisting a birth. She said she can recognize a problem and transport the
mother to the hospital before becomes an emergency. Wainer said this has only
happened three or four times.
Wainer said she believes birth is a natural event and should require a little
medical intervention as possible if there are no alarming health risks. She said
there are some women who had unpleasant experiences giving birth in the
hospital and view pregnancy as a danger.
“Such a shame to feel so frightened about a process that is so amazing,” she said.
Wainer said the many cultures that typically do not have hospital births, have
better birth outcomes than the United States. She said this could be because of
unnecessary drugs or c-sections that cause the baby to go into stress. She said her
clients are not induced because when a woman is induced, her body may not be
ready to give birth and complications could occur.
Wainer said she is not against doctors, but does not believe they are needed
Local women find alternative to hospitals with help of midwives http://gm3-wlwebvarnish.newscyclecloud.com/x700959316/Loc...
2 of 6 8/17/16 10:01 PM

3. during a non-risk birth.
“I like doctors, but we should need them only when we’re sick,” she said. “Birth is
a normal, natural process.”
Wainer, along with a few midwives and students, heads over to her clients’
homes once they start experiencing labor pains. They monitor the mother
throughout her labor and stay for a few hours afterward.
Robert called Wainer at 7 a.m. on Oct. 18. Wainer arrived an hour later and
Amelie was born at 1:39 p.m. Robert said while she was crowning, Wainer
instructed her to get on her knees. Wainer put some olive oil on her hands and
caught Amelie in her hands moments later.
“That took trust and a good relationship,” Robert said.
It’s the relationship between a midwife and mother, Robert and Wainer said,
that makes a home birth beneficial.
Robert said delivering in the hospital was not a bad experience, but it was
challenging.
“When a shift changes you get a new [doctor] and you don’t know them,” she
said. “It was really nice to have [Wainer and the other midwives]. Those are the
people that follow you throughout the day.”
Before giving birth, Robert said some of her family members were skeptic. But
after witnessing Amelie being born, their perceptions changed.
“My sister, who is 21, after she saw my birth she said, ‘I want that,’” Robert said.
There are some drawbacks to home births. Though home births cost left then
hospitalization ($5,000 as opposed to $35,000) health insurance companies do
not cover it.
Randolph resident Alba Cordero, 21, thought she couldn’t have a home birth for
this reason. Toward the end of her pregnancy, Cordero’s fiancé, Carlton
Christian, 21, convinced her that they would find a way to make it work
financially.
Local women find alternative to hospitals with help of midwives http://gm3-wlwebvarnish.newscyclecloud.com/x700959316/Loc...
3 of 6 8/17/16 10:01 PM

4. The couple met with Wainer and decided to have a home birth with her
assistance for their first child. That evening, Cordero started having
contractions.
Cordero called Wainer the next morning and she sent over one of her students
because she was at another birth. Wainer arrived shortly afterward and Cordero
delivered seven-pound Isaiah at 2:45 a.m.
Cordero had 20 women close to her at the birth. Each had their own purpose,
such as giving her water, fanning her or giving her a back massage. Her fiancé
was at her side the whole time.
“It was exactly what I wanted,” she said. “It was beautiful. I talk about it every
chance I can.”
Cordero did run into some difficulty with her birth. She said Wainer discovered
the baby had meconium, when a fetus breathes in fecal particles. She said Wainer
asked if she would like to be transported to the hospital but she opted to
continue. Isaiah’s meconium was not severe. Cordero said Wainer only had to
suction the matter out of her mouth.
Cordero’s decision to have a home birth was originally met with some hesitation
by friends and family. She said her mother was especially concerned because she
experienced complications delivering her and her brother. However, in the end,
she said her parents became supportive of the process.
Cordero said she did not have much anxiety about giving birth at home.
“I wasn’t concerned because I knew I had a perfectly smooth pregnancy and
didn’t think I’d need any type of intervention,” she said.
Weymouth resident Amanda Loring, 29, grew up with home births and thought
they were as ordinary as getting your teeth cleaned – her mother had home
births when delivering her and her siblings.
“I always thought birth was something you did at home,” she said.
Loring said opted for a home birth so she could control the elements in her
surroundings. Five months ago she gave birth to her first child Carleigh Mae, in
Local women find alternative to hospitals with help of midwives http://gm3-wlwebvarnish.newscyclecloud.com/x700959316/Loc...
4 of 6 8/17/16 10:01 PM

5. a tub full of water at her home with Weiner, the other midwives and her
husband, Patrick, 42, in the room.
“It was the best thing that ever happened to me,” she said. “I felt calm and secure
in my house … if I was in the hospital and if there was lots of bright lights, I
would have felt a lot more uncomfortable.”
Cordero and her husband did not leave their home for a couple weeks after the
birth.
“It was a nice insular environment,” she said. “[Carleigh Mae] is wonderful and
an outgoing child.”
Robert, Cordero and Loring connected through Weiner and have formed a
bond. The three get together with their children once a month.
For others considering a home birth, the women offer this advice: research.
“You want to be with the right person who knows all the signs,” Loring said.
Robert said she suggests speaking with other women who have given home
births.
Weiner holds open houses the third Wednesday of each month from 11 a.m. to 2
p.m. for her clients. More information may be found on her website
www.birthdaymidwifery.com.
“Women ought to choose where they have their babies and with whom,” Weiner
said. “It’s like climbing a mountain and it’s exhilarating.”
Local women find alternative to hospitals with help of midwives http://gm3-wlwebvarnish.newscyclecloud.com/x700959316/Loc...
5 of 6 8/17/16 10:01 PM

6. Local women find alternative to hospitals with help of midwives http://gm3-wlwebvarnish.newscyclecloud.com/x700959316/Loc...
6 of 6 8/17/16 10:01 PM