In case you haven't heard, Joy and Austin Forsyth have announced the birth of their son, Gideon Martyn Forsyth. (Check out this morning's post for more details.) In the video below, filmed just before Gideon's arrival, the expectant parents share what they have done to prepare for the birth.
The two-hour season premiere of Counting On airs tonight at 9pm ET/8pm CT on TLC. Be sure to come back to the blog after the show for our recap.
Photo/video courtesy TLC
Time 2:45PM
ReplyDeleteCongrats Joy & Austin on the birth of Gideon Martyn Forsyth.
I can't believe that they were planning to deliver that baby, her first, obviously going to be very large, at home, in a birth pool. Who gave her the advice to do that??
ReplyDeleteWho do you think? Jill was her Buddy-caregiver growing up.
DeleteI know women who've had a large first baby delivered at home, why don't we wait and have all the info before you start judging Joy.
DeleteCommon sense? Humans have given birth in their homes for thousands of years. Like she said in the video, have various plans in case you need to change your plan. Her birthpool was clearly her first plan but it sounds like they had planned for the event of a transfer to hospital too.
DeleteMaybe Jill. It seemed like a bad idea to me.
DeleteGlad everything’s turned out well in the end but I have to agree with the original poster. Birthing plans are all well and fine in theory but they are dependent on the individual circumstances and the expected size of the baby is one. Any doctor, maternity nurse or qualified midwife could have told them the Joy’s baby was going to be on the large size.
DeleteWhy not? Several of her siblings were born at home. Three of Anna's children were born at home. Jessa had complications with the first but not the second, both at home.
DeleteJoy can choose for herself where she wants to have her baby. Just like you get to make your own choices.
DeleteIf they knew the baby was going to be that big, they should have known about potential complications during labor. Weren't they worried she would tear, for starters? I could see trying a home birth on the second baby, but trying it for a 10 lb. baby the first time around doesn't sound like a great plan. Your goal is to both come out healthy, which could definitely require hospital staff and equipment. The bigger that baby got, the more they should have rethought the pool plan.
Delete7:11, news flash! She would tear just as easily in a hospital, if not have a bigger chance, since the position they have you lie in normally causes a tear even if you aren't delivering a 10lb baby. Tearing heals much more easily than a csection cut too, so if you can have the baby naturally that's the best thing to do. Judging from one of Gideon's pictures, and the fact that they waited 3 days to announce his arrival, she probably did end up having to go to a hospital, but there's nothing wrong with her trying at home first, as long as she had a safe plan B, and was willing to use it if need be.
DeleteI think she did not have advice from a real doctor just as Jill en jessa. This was not save.
DeleteI could not agree with you more anon 7.11pm. Any properly qualified medical professional (I am mean someone with years of study & degrees behind them) would have advised joy to have that baby in a hospital from the get go once they realised what size it was going to be. It worries me too that other young girls may follow in the duggar girls footsteps because they see them as role models & attempt births at home that are dangerous. I believe these girls have been very fortunate that they have had happy outcomes & healthy babies when things could have been very different & I would say from a personal point of view having seen the effects of women who have not had this happy outcome when trying to deliver at home the devastation they feel is heart wrenching & they would give anything to turn back the clock.
DeleteMy mom had three over ten pounds babies at home(I was one of them) with no real problems.
Delete4:02- The argument "we've done it for thousands of years" doesn't hold much water. History shows that women and babies were frequent casualties of childbirth prior to proper medical care. I'd like to think we've evolved for the better in this department.
Delete10:23 - News flash for you, too. Hospitals can do strategic cuts to keep a ragged tear from happening. I know - I had it done!
DeleteEveryone here knew she was going to have a big baby. A C-section seemed likely. For people who feel so strongly about the rights of the unborn, I don't understand why they take the risks of home births.
DeleteShe was definitely in the hospital at some point. The baby's pictures were taken there.
DeleteIf you are a low risk pregnancy your chance of poor outcomes can be higher at a hospital, especially when it comes to infection rates.
DeleteI don't have a problem with a trial of home birth as long as there is also a Plan B set up in case medical intervention is required. AFAIK this has been the case for all the Duggar births. I suppose there is room to quibble about how long they waited or didn't wait before going to the hospital if needed. But to suggest "home birth is so obviously unsafe it puts your pro-life cred in question" immensely overstates the risks.
DeleteI don't know where you're getting your hospital infection information. There are strict anti-infection protocols followed at hospitals. Do you follow them at home? I'll bet I could swab you, your house, and your pets and find 40 different kinds of fungus, bacteria, and other microbes right now.
DeleteUnknown..you are misinformed. A recent study has shown that, for low risk pregnancies, the probably of a poor outcome is slightly less for hospital births than for home births but the difference is not significant.
Delete9:39, your body heals more easily if you let it heal naturally, trust me I know.
Delete9:39, ragged tears are easier to stitch
DeleteI don't believe that, 8:41. Why do surgeons use scalpels and make straight cuts, instead of ripping you open with their bare hands?
Delete3:09, What these girls have done so far puts THEIR pro-life cred into question. They'll stand beside a road holding signs and trying to get people to honk against abortion, but they won't get the usual prenatal care or go to a hospital when in labor, not unless forced to. Doesn't that seem peculiar?
Delete12:16, First of all, they don't use a scalpel, they use medical scissors, second of all are you for real? That would cause a 4th degree tear, which is very uncommon if you would let you body tear naturally. A 2nd degree tear is the most common, and the scar isn't as thick as it would be if you make a cut.
DeleteWhat do these girls have such huge babies? Are they eating too much food and too many sweets?
DeleteScalpels are used for surgical procedures, 4:05.
DeleteCongratulations to the new parents!! So glad mom and baby are doing well. :)
ReplyDelete-Rachel
Congratulations !!!!!!!!! I'm so happy that all went well. Enjoy motherhood and fatherhood !!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! He is super cute! You're going to do great as a mom!
ReplyDeleteJill.
ReplyDeleteWOW WOW WOW 10LBS!!!!!!!! I ALWAYS NEW U WERE COURAGEOUS, BUT AT HOME, WITHOUT DRUGS, WOW, JOY, AND HE IS SOOOOOO CUTE!!!!!!!!! I AM SOOO HAPPY FOR U,THAT U ARE OK, AND NOW CELEBRATION TIME!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteWho said the baby was born at home?
DeleteIt wasn't. It was a hospital birth. There are pictures. Maybe at some point Joy will address this.
DeleteOK I STAND CORRECTED, WONDERFUL JOY, HAD A HOSPITAL BIRTH!!!!!! BUT STILL 10LBD!!!!!!!!
DeleteI never noticed it before, but she and Josie share a definite resemblance.
ReplyDeleteYour right!!
DeleteThey all give birth at home unless medical intervention is required, I believe that Jill went to hospital for Israel's birth after 70hrs in Labour not sure about with Samuel
ReplyDeleteShe had a hospital birth for Samuel after 40 hours of labor. Samuel ended up on IV and oxygen, so there were complications.
DeleteBlessings onto your family, Joy Austin & Gideon!!! My boy was also ten pounds 22" and a water birth at home!!! I can't believe how aligned we are : ) What a special time. Enjoy every moment and wishing you happy healing. It doesn't happen overnight but you are lucky to have such a big support structure! Lord knows my hips didn't sit right for months after delivering that big boy but it was all worth it for such a special son and time truly heals all. Pro tip: get a nice soft baby carrier if you haven't already! And if you have a midwife who knows anything about healing herbs, indulge-- I'll never forget the post partum tea my midwife gave me, or the milk tea. Lots of oat straw and rosehips I believe. All the best!
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry to hear about your c-section Joy and wishing you happy healing and prayers for a VBAC next time if you so choose to try. I'm sorry I assumed it was a water birth I just got excited when I saw this video with the birth pool.
DeleteSomehow the idea of giving birth in a pool of water makes me think Joy wants to be a dolphin
ReplyDeleteWhat an odd comment
DeleteLOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!
DeleteLOL! Water birth is actually considered the "epidural of natural birth" because it canned very pain-relieving to a laboring mama. It also helps to keep mama intact during the delivery; it's like a big allover hot compress. Plus baby doesn't breathe until s/he touches air for the first time so it's perfectly safe for humans : )
DeleteMy easiest birth out of many was a water birth. I couldn't believe how much relief the water gave!
DeleteI take to a hot bath if I'm having a kidney stone, but I would never try to have a 10 lb. baby at home in a tub. Hot water can only do so much.
DeleteCongratulations to you both,enjoy your sweet new bundle of pure joy
ReplyDeleteCongratulations to the new family! Sharing the birth with us does not give anyone opinions on the birth plan. Its not anyone elses concern.
ReplyDeleteAll of the Duggar girls had problems with their firsts at home! Die should have to go to the hospital. Not try a big baby in a pool.
ReplyDeleteCongrats! That's great she wanted to give birth at home but also had a plan for a transfer if needed.
ReplyDeleteDoes their church or the people in it pressure women to have home births?
ReplyDeleteI don't think so, Michelle had hospital births. I think the girls just like home births, which is fine as long as you go to the hospital if there are any problems. Personally, I wouldn't wait 70 hours, and felt that that was very risky.
DeleteInteresting question.
DeleteMichelle was a different generation than these girls. I wonder what is going on.
DeleteIt doesn't seem as if it's a "pressure" per se but more of a leaving God's beautiful creation of the human body do as it was meant to. They are obviously aware that emergencies and changes happen, but God did a perfect job creating us to procreate. We don't often need medical help, but if we do, it's a blessing that it's available. Taking an epidural is just unnecessary and tells God you can't handle the gift He has given you. It's Eve's and Woman's burden to suffer in childbirth, and not as bad as what Jesus went through on the cross, which was inspirational. Getting a c-section in a true emergency is life-saving, which is different than an elective surgery or an elective medical anesthetic, which is not life-saving, but frivolous.
DeleteOh that spelling of "Martyn"...why???
ReplyDeleteIsn't that how Austin's middle name is spelled?
DeleteCongratulations Joy and Austin on the arrival of baby Gideon he is so cute.... sincerely Donna J from Upstate NY
ReplyDelete