When first out of college I interned in Boulder, Colorado during the height of the hippie era. The establishment was increasingly being viewed with cynicism and the back-to-nature theme was coming of age. While there, friends of mine wanted to have their second baby at home because of a bad experience in the hospital with their first child. They were worried about the dangers and asked if I would help. I agreed.
 
It turned out to be an uneventful and beautiful experience for them and a remarkable and moving one for me as well. I was hesitant at first, nervous about all of the possible things that could go wrong, and aware of my potential liability. But after everything worked out, and considering the sheer wonder and beauty of the event, it seemed like the right thing to have done.
 
Word got out and within a couple of years I delivered two more babies for friends who wanted to birth at home. Later, I delivered two of my girls as well. All of these experiences were without problems. Yes, they could have been disasters, but the odds were way on my side.
 
I'm not sure I would volunteer to do this again other than in an emergency. Although the risks of home delivery may be statistically small, the legal threat to an attendant is enormous.¹
 
Nevertheless, over 80% of all the babies in the world are delivered either by women alone, a family member, or midwives. World population obviously does not suffer. Our high-tech obstetrical suites, fetal monitors screwed into scalps, drugs, and cesarean sections only seem necessary to us now because we are used to medical intrusion. As for whether that intrusion is necessary, or even very smart other than in high-risk situations, consider that the United States ranks between 16th and 22nd in the world in terms of newborn deaths.²

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We've been brainwashed to believe that giving birth is a disease to be treated, rather than a natural process to be watched. Although Caesarean sections account for about 40% of all births in the U.S., researchers argue that most of these are unnecessary and that fewer than 6% of births need be Caesarean sections.
 
You may wish to consider having a baby at home with an experienced midwife or at a birthing center. Now I know I have no uterus and arguably no valid opinion on this matter, but consider that there are 30% fewer deaths and 31% fewer low birth weight babies with midwife assisted births.³⁻⁷ Being as close to all aspects of the birth as possible is an experience that is one of life's most remarkable treasures. Husbands, and even children, should be a part.
 
Two more baby pearls. First, give your baby the food it was meant to have, breast milk, from a mom who is eating right. (See previous section.) The evidence now in hand demon­strating that feeding pro­cessed formula (arguably junk food) to new­borns is inferior to breast milk is significant enough that formula feeding should be banned unless there is simply no other option.⁸ Breast feeding is one of the few opportunities in our modern world that a person gets to have the true, raw, natural food that he or she is genetically designed to have. The rewards are increased intelligence, decreased likelihood of degenerative diseases in later life, proper body development, enhanced immunity, and decreased likelihood of allergies and autoimmune diseases.

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Secondly, sleep with your baby. That is what it wants and what will make it happiest, most secure, and healthiest. This is the way families have always slept until the new modern ways.⁹ A baby will even synchronize its heart to the mom's when cuddled at night.¹⁰ It also makes breastfeeding through the night convenient for both mom and child. Keep them in the family bed until they decide to leave.¹¹ You will never regret it—and no, the parent's sex life does not have to end. Where there is a will, a way can be found. As you will learn from the experience of sleeping with your children, it is the way things were meant to be.
 
Having a child is a rare life and love experience not duplicated by any other. The experience is healthiest and safest for all involved if intelligence is interjected. That means trusting and respecting nature.