WATER BIRTH
Possible benefits of giving birth in Water
Women who have labored or given birth in water say they had less pain and a greater sense of control
Some studies show that first stage of labor may be shorter
Floating in water can be soothing because muscles don’t have to work as hard to support your body. You can change position more easily. Being relaxed lowers stress hormones. This can give you a sense of reduced pain.
Soaking in warm water up to your shoulders can reduce your blood pressure.
Better blood flow may protect your baby against stress during labor.
Being in water heated to your body temperature can help keep you from becoming chilled or overheated.
A few things to know about water birth:
Staying well hydrated during labor is important and it can be less obvious that you’re getting dehydrated when you’re in the tub. Be sure to drink 8 oz of clear fluids per hour.
To ensure baby is doing well, we will listen to your baby every 15-30 minutes with the doppler.
Baby’s birth needs to be under the water entirely or above the water entirely. We will coach you to ensure the safest birth for your baby.
Bleeding is very difficult to evaluate when in a birth tub, so if we are concerned, we will ask you to get out of the tub to evaluate more carefully.
where to BUY a birth tub:
You can purchase a tub to use during your birth. Recommendations:
Get get a liner
Turn up your hot water heater as high as it goes when you are in early labor to ensure you have enough hot water for your birth.
Below are a few websites to explore for options:
In His Hands has a variety of affordable options
Amazon sells a Birth Pool in a Box, several inflatable lounge pools and liners for bathtubs