Hi today's video is all about water birth so I'm going to be discussing the main pros and
cons of having a water birth so that you can decide whether it's the right option for you :)
Water birth is becoming increasingly popular because lots of women around the world are
learning about the benefits. I gave birth to my daughter at home, in a birth pool, a few years ago
and it was a really relaxing and positive experience! My name is Anja and I'm an antenatal
class teacher specialising in hypnobirthing. If you like this video, please subscribe to my channel and
click the bell icon so you'll get notified when I upload more videos. There's new ones every single
week :) Let me talk about the main advantages... First of all, being immersed in warm water during
labour and birth can make it easier for you to manage the discomfort of your contractions as they
get longer, more frequent and more intense. Feeling the warmth of the water all around your lower body
can relax and comfort you, helping you to release tension and go with the flow
of your contractions without getting panicky or stressed by the sensations. The buoyancy of water
helps take weight off the front of your body. Your baby bump can feel so heavy when you're labouring
and birthing on dry land but being immersed in water helps your body and belly to feel lighter.
Also, it's very easy to move about in water and get into positions that feel really comfortable
for you. When you're in a bath or birth pool in labour, you have space to yourself so no-one will
get in and invade your space unless, for example, you want your partner to be in the water with you.
I especially liked being surrounded by water in labour. It was like having my own protected
little sanctuary away from the outside world. Babies who are birthed in water are usually very calm
and this could be because they leave their mother's warm bodies and go directly into another
warm place: the warm water of a birth pool. Babies will often cry more when they're born on dry land
and this is thought to be because the air can feel cold to a naked baby who has spent months
being all warm and cozy in the womb. The air can feel like a bit of a shock to them!
The majority of women who give birth in water say that their experiences were
very positive and empowering. The births have usually been very smooth and straightforward
and these women say that they're likely to opt for a water birth again in the future
if they decide to have more children. Now let's move on to the main disadvantages
of water birth. It's easier to guarantee a water birth if you choose to give birth at home
because you can buy or borrow an inflatable birth pool and you know it's solely for your own usage.
If you're giving birth away from home, in a hospital or birth centre, there'll only be a
certain number of birth pools available and when you arrive there all of the pools may be taken by
other women. You'll have to wait, potentially, for one to be cleaned and free for you to use.
Whilst birthing pools are free to use in hospitals and birth centres, if you want to use one at home
you may have to buy one unless you can borrow one for free from a midwife friend or relative.
Whilst warm water can definitely ease contraction pain and discomfort, sometimes it's not enough and
this can depend on your pain tolerance levels. Some women may ask for chemical pain relief such as an
epidural or an injection of diamorphine. If this is the case, you'll have to exit the pool to get the
injections and you'll probably have to give birth on dry land for safety and monitoring purposes. If
you're classified as a high risk pregnancy, meaning you/your baby have a health concern, water birth
may not be an option for you as you may need to be attached to a monitoring system during labour.
Also, if any unexpected circumstances arise while you're in a birth pool (perhaps your baby becomes
distressed, you experience some bleeding or your blood pressure goes up) you may not get
the chance to give birth in water. You'll need to check with your maternity care provider to
see if you meet their list of criteria for a water birth. Usually women with no health issues, who have
had a straightforward pregnancy and grow their babies to full term are fine to have water births.
I do think this is unfair towards women who really want to water birth and are considered
to be high risk but hospitals have protocols in place to protect their patients and their staff.
Do communicate with your care team and ask questions about water birth
and, if you don't meet all of their list of criteria, see if there's any extra safety
measures that they can put into place to make a water birth possible for you. Please let me know
in the comments section beneath this video what your thoughts and feelings are about water birth
now that you've watched this video. Let me know how far along you are in your pregnancy :)
Thank you so much for supporting my channel and thank you so much for watching this video today!
If you've got any questions or queries please do ask me because I LOVE to connect with all of
the people that follow me on YouTube. Take care of yourself and see you again in the next video, bye! :)