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Pros and cons of waterbirth

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What are the pros of labouring in water?

Relaxation 
The relaxing effect of water, with its support and warmth, can help you through your labour. Your contractions may lose their rhythm if you become tense. This means your labour may stop and start without moving on. Being bathed in water is likely to help you go with your contractions, so that they are less stressful for you and your baby. 

Being relaxed also helps you to breath calmly. It means you're less likely to take short, shallow breaths, which can make the pain of contractions worse. 

Privacy and control 
Once you're immersed in the warm waters of the pool, you're in your own world and can labour undisturbed. If the lights are dimmed and the room is quiet, the effect will be heightened. It may help you to feel more in control of your body. 

Buoyancy 
The water buoys you up and makes you feel lighter. It's easy for you to move about, so you can make yourself comfortable. The best position for you is likely to be one that helps your baby move most easily through your pelvis. A useful rule of thumb is to keep your knees lower than your hips. 

Coping with pain 
Being in warm water can make it easier for you to cope with the  pain  of contractions. It's just the same as having a bath to soothe a tummy ache or backache. If you want strong pain relief, such as pethidine or an epidural, you'll have to leave the pool. It is possible to use gas & air (a mild pain reliever) while you are in the water, however this option is not available in Singapore. The vast majority of maternity hospitals pump "gas and air" to all of their delivery rooms via a central supply. 

Having a doula with you 
Ideally, there should be one-to-one nursing when a mother is in labour. In many places around the world including Singapore, this is not possible and your midwife or nurse midwife is usually attending to several women in labour. 

If you wish to use a birthing pool, you will usually be given your space and privacy to labour peacefully. Some hospitals in Singapore require that you have a doula present if you intend to use a birthing pool. 

Satisfaction with your labour 
Using a birth pool for labour is often such a positive experience that many women want to use one again when they have their next baby.

 

 

 

What are the pros of a waterbirth?

Working with gravity 
Getting into a comfortable upright position may be easier if you are using a birth pool, particularly if you have a physical disability. Being upright gives you the advantage of working with gravity as your baby is born. 

It may be easier to push your baby out  in the water than in air. You'll be supported by the water and can use the sides of the pool for extra support. 

Peaceful birth for your baby 
Champions of waterbirth  believe that the transition to the outside world is less traumatic for babies who are born in water. There is, however, little research to support this. 

The idea is that the warm waters of the pool will feel like the waters of your uterus (womb) to your baby. Babies born in water are often calm, and cry less than babies born in air. 

Satisfaction with the birth 
Women who have waterbirths generally say they have had a positive experience. They say a waterbirth is particularly helpful when it comes to the pushing stage. 


What are the cons of labouring in water? Infection 
There may be a risk of infection in a birth pool. As you push out your baby, you may open your bowels. This is entirely normal, and debris will be quickly cleaned out by your midwife or doula. But it does introduce the risk of infection. However, birth on dry land is not sterile either and most babies will take on organisms from their mother's bowel during birth. 

Research hasn't found any difference in rates of infection between women who give birth in water or on land . Hospitals have strict rules about cleaning pools after each waterbirth. They do regular checks to ensure that the pool is left hygienic after each use. 

Unpleasant environment 
You may feel uncomfortable about accidentally opening your bowels as your baby enters the world. The idea of the midwife having to sieve debris out of the water to keep it clean may be unpleasant to you. But remember that midwives are quite used to this. You need not worry on their account. If you're concerned about an "accident", go to the toilet several times to try to empty your bowels before getting into the birth pool. 

Disappointment with pain relief 
You may find that being in a birth pool does not make contractions less painful. If your plan was to spend most of your labour in water, it could be demoralising to have to get out so that you can have drugs, such as an epidural, for pain relief. 

Monitoring and emergencies 
You may have to stay out of the pool if your labour develops complications. Having to get out of the water and change the course of your labour may be upsetting for you. You will be asked to leave the pool if:
  • monitoring your baby's heartbeat shows that there is a problem
  • your labour is progressing very slowly
  • you start bleeding during labour
  • your blood pressure goes up
  • your baby's first poo (meconium) is detected in your waters
  • the pool water gets very dirty
  • you feel faint or drowsy

If you are having your waterbirth in hospital, you may find there are restrictions on how you can use the pool. See our article on planning your waterbirth for more information. 

Most waterbirths go smoothly, but if an emergency does arise, it may take time to get you out of the pool. Even so, doctors and midwives are trained to deal with emergencies. They'll have ways of getting you out as quickly as possible, and getting you the help you need. 
 

 

 

What are the cons of a waterbirth?

Baby starting to breathe under water 
You may be worried that your baby will inhale water with his first breath if he is born in a birth pool. However, healthy babies have way of protecting themselves, called a "dive reflex". They instinctively close their airway, stopping them from breathing in water. It is important to maintain the water temperature in the birth pool, as close to body temperature as possible, to avoid stimulating the baby to inhale soon after delivery. 

Your midwife will also monitor your baby during your labour to make sure he's getting enough oxygen. There is no evidence that babies born in water suffer from breathing problems any more than babies born in air. 

Experts believe that babies are only at risk of inhaling water if:

  • they are startled during the birth so that they try to breathe air
  • their heads are brought to the surface before the rest of their bodies are born, overriding their dive reflex
  • their oxygen supply via the placenta is affected in some way

Your doctor will know she needs to be "hands off" as your baby is being born, so that she doesn't interfere with his dive reflex. She'll guide you to make sure you don't bring your baby's head to the surface before the rest of his body is born. 

Risk to the umbilical cord 
The way waterbirths happen means your baby will be brought quickly to the surface, head first. This will enable him to start breathing as soon as possible. Because of this swift movement, there have been a few cases where the umbilical cord has snapped. 

A snapped cord is not a life-threatening emergency for a doctor. But doctors, midwives and mothers are advised to take care not to pull on the cord as they gently lift the baby from the water, just in case the cord is shorter than normal. 

http://www.babycenter.com.sg/a542015/pros-and-cons-of-waterbirth#ixzz2OckeXaBO

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