Home Birth

Welcome to Coastal Midwifery of South Florida! We offer personalized care for women seeking a non-invasive, empowering approach to labor and birth. Our home birth services provide the comfort and familiarity of your own space, while ensuring that both you and your baby stay healthy and low-risk throughout the process. We would be honored to support you on this beautiful journey.

We believe that pregnancy and birth are normal, healthy life processes. With home birth, you have the freedom to labor in a familiar, comfortable environment, surrounded by loved ones, without unnecessary medical interventions unless needed.

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How Home Birth Works

Your midwife will be on-call throughout your pregnancy, especially as you approach your due date. When active labor begins, your midwife will come to your home to assess your progress, monitor you and your baby, and ensure you’re comfortable.

Once you’re in active labor, your midwife will stay with you until your baby arrives, offering guidance, emotional support, and hands-on care. You will be encouraged to eat, drink, and stay active during labor, with options like walking, using a birth ball, or getting into the birth tub if desired. A birth assistant will be called at the appropriate time to provide extra support and help your midwife as needed.

Routine interventions such as IVs, continuous fetal monitoring, or urine catheters are not performed unless medically necessary. The goal is to provide care tailored to your needs and preferences, using natural techniques to assist your labor.

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After Birth Care

Once your baby is born, the first hour is dedicated solely to bonding and initiating breastfeeding. Your baby will never leave your sight during this time. After the initial bonding hour, a newborn exam is performed, including offering Vitamin K and erythromycin eye ointment.

Your midwife and birth assistant will continue to monitor your health and your baby’s in the immediate postpartum period. They will stay with you for 2–4 hours after birth to ensure both of you are stable and recovering well. Throughout this time, you will be encouraged to eat and drink to aid your recovery.

Following the birth, your midwife will schedule follow-up visits: a 24-hour check-up at home, a 3-day visit at home, and in-office visits at 2–3 weeks and 6 weeks postpartum. These visits ensure that both you and your baby are healthy, that your baby is gaining weight, and that no issues like jaundice are developing. A pediatrician visit is recommended within the first 72 hours after birth.

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