Water birth

Water birth is a method of childbirth in which the woman is in water, and the entire process of childbirth takes place there.

Traditional childbirth has long ceased to be the only way to bring a child into the world. Traditional – in the sense in which they were accustomed to seeing them in the twentieth century, when the practice of giving birth in a medical institution was established – in a specially prepared room, equipped with all the necessary medical equipment and in the presence of qualified specialists. What until recently seemed like a remarkable achievement of modern medicine, saving the lives and health of many women and their children, now often does not cause the same enthusiasm in expectant mothers. They are looking for other options, including more natural ones, in their opinion. One of them is water birth.

[ 1 ]

Benefits of Water Birth

According to their supporters, the benefits of water birth are enormous. Since the beneficial effects of warm water on humans are well known, this practice arose at one time. Water birth is used to reduce pain, make the birth process more comfortable for the woman, and alleviate the birth stress of the newborn due to the fact that when the child is born, he finds himself in a familiar aquatic environment. It is also believed that thanks to water birth, the baby does not suffer from a sharp change in temperature, is not exposed to the unpleasant effects of blinding light, deafening noise, unfamiliar smells, too sharp, according to the adherents of this practice, for the child.

In addition, it is claimed that water birth is more gentle, compared to traditional birth, for both the woman and the child. Thus, the risk of birth injuries for the newborn is reduced, and its placental nutrition during childbirth is improved. Water acts as a painkiller, relaxing and facilitating the birth process. Moreover, to get rid of tension during water birth, it is enough to simply take a comfortable position in the bath. The main thing is that its volume allows it.

Also, the advantages of water birth, as the mothers themselves, who dared to try this experiment, include the absence of excessive medical intervention and a significant reduction in the duration of contractions. In addition, most often water births occur without tears.

All these advantages have not gone unnoticed. And yet, there is still no clear opinion on the question of how great the benefits of water birth are. Moreover, in many countries of the world, such a practice is not approved or is directly prohibited.

[ 2 ], [ 3 ]

The harm of water birth

What could be the harm of water birth? The problem is that there have never been large-scale studies devoted to the topic of water birth, and all discussions on this issue are usually devoid of a scientific basis. Moreover, one can often come across the opinion that the interest in water birth is based only on modern fashion trends.

What do doctors think about the harm and benefits of water birth? First of all, any specialist will say that childbirth in principle can be accompanied by many risks, and water birth - even more so. Tap water can get into the baby's lungs. In addition, if non-sterile water gets into the birth canal, it can cause an infection. Warm water also increases the risk of bleeding and, by slowing down labor, creates a danger for the mother and child. All this leads to extremely unpleasant and very serious consequences.

Of course, water birth cannot be considered unnatural, because the fetus is in the watery environment of the amniotic sac during the entire pregnancy. But the baby's first breath is an extremely important stage in its development, when the lung tissues straighten out. And there is no physiological expediency in artificially slowing it down, which is what happens during water birth.

As for the aspect of painlessness of water birth, it is appropriate, for example, to mention at least “partner” births, which have no less a positive effect on a woman’s well-being.

There are also strict contraindications against water birth:

• heart disease;
• excessively narrow pelvis and large fetus;
• gestosis;
• diabetes mellitus;
• placenta previa;
• risk of developing fetal hypoxia.

And even if there are no such health problems, you still can’t be careless at such a crucial moment. Therefore, it is very important to entrust water birth to an experienced midwife, and it would be even better to go to give birth in a maternity hospital with a specially equipped pool.

Home birth in water

In the event that a decision is made to have a home birth in water, it is extremely important to follow several rules. First of all, it is necessary to ensure that the water birth is carried out by a qualified midwife with extensive experience in this type of work. In addition, the mother in labor should be provided with comfortable conditions - a comfortable bath, at least 60 cm deep and 2.2 m wide, with warm (not lower than 37 degrees) water, which would be equally suitable for both the mother and the child. The water must be changed repeatedly - at least three to four times to avoid the bloom of E. coli, so it is necessary to monitor cleanliness very carefully. Do not add anything to the water (neither medicines nor other means), so that the child does not accidentally swallow it.

As mentioned above, the first stage of water birth is less painful than normal birth, and contractions generally last shorter. By the way, many women endure the contraction stage in water, and the birth itself takes place outside the pool.

In home water births, mothers often squat across the tub and hold on to the edge of the tub during pushing. Since a certain amount of blood is released before the baby comes out, the water may become cloudy, so the midwife or assistant should play it safe and keep her hands close to the baby's emerging head. If the newborn is found to be wrapped in the umbilical cord, the procedure should be the same as in a normal birth, that is, gently unwind it. A wet baby should be handled as carefully as possible so that it does not slip out of your hands. After everything is over, the mother can get out of the water and lie down on the bed.

It is important to remember that home births are not always without complications, but, unlike in a maternity hospital, you cannot get immediate medical care at home, and sometimes every minute counts.

Giving birth in water with dolphins

However, water births are no longer something original. So how about water births with dolphins? According to the proponents of such births, dolphins produce a special sound that has a relaxing and calming effect and allows a woman to give birth easily and without pain. Moreover, a child born this way will be more gifted and smarter than his peers, expectant mothers believe, and his intelligence will be no less than 150.

Dolphins pay all their attention to the mother and the baby and are very friendly to both of them. But you need to prepare for such births in advance - no later than the fourth month of pregnancy, the woman needs to start swimming with dolphins. This is done so that the expectant mother gets used to communicating with them and does not feel afraid of them. The idea of giving birth in the water with dolphins is that swimming has a positive effect on the fetus, which, in turn, helps the expectant mother relax and get rid of the fear of childbirth.

Of course, when giving birth in water with dolphins, the woman is assisted by specialists, but she herself should feel calm.

And yet, I would like to remind you that water birth with dolphins and the expected results have no scientific basis. In addition, all contraindications that prohibit women from giving birth in water also apply to water birth with dolphins.

Water birth in Ukraine

Water births in Ukraine have not yet ceased to be a novelty. And although the idea of such births originated in the 60s of the last century and in the 80s even began to be implemented in practice in Soviet hospitals, for many mothers it is still exotic.

True, water births are gradually starting to find their supporters in Ukraine. Quite often you can come across stories on the Internet or television of mothers who dared to give birth on their own. And it is not always about adherents of closeness to nature.

Although this cannot be compared with the popularity of such a practice in European countries. There, water births have literally become fashionable. For example, in the UK, special tanks are installed in eighty clinics. There is even a maternity hospital where each room has a pool for water births. A small bathtub designed for home births can even be rented in the UK.

In Ukraine, water births are perceived more as a type of home birth. Future mothers prefer them because the home atmosphere and the presence of loved ones help them relax and overcome their fear of childbirth better than in a maternity hospital.

However, it should be known that home births are not allowed in Ukraine. Any kind of obstetric services can only be provided in specialized state and private clinics. There, most often, this method is used only at the stage of contractions as a painkiller, while the birth itself occurs naturally.

[ 4 ]

Water birth in Kharkov

In general, Kharkov has little to offer to supporters of water birth, which can be easily found out by reading women's forums. There are quite a few clubs for young mothers or just specialized courses at clinics, which offer a variety of programs to prepare women for childbirth, including exercises for pregnant women in the pool. And much less often you can find an offer for courses to prepare for childbirth in water.

In fact, full-fledged water birth in Kharkov is possible only as an option for home birth. Memories of staying in a regular hospital often leave much to be desired, so there are many cases when mothers, giving birth, say, to a second child, refuse to go to a maternity hospital and give birth on their own, surrounded by loved ones. However, such a practice is fraught with serious troubles, because the likelihood of complications during childbirth is high, and since home births are not allowed in the country, the problem of finding an experienced midwife arises.

As for maternity hospitals, only one of them (Maternity Hospital No. 6) offers water birth to expectant mothers, but the Jacuzzi is used only in the first stage of labor as a means of pain relief. From then on, labor is traditional.

[ 5 ], [ 6 ]

Reviews of water births

It is interesting to know what women in labor themselves think about water birth. The assessments, in fact, vary and sometimes greatly: some, after a negative experience of traditional birth, see no alternative but to give birth on their own in a bathtub, others express doubts about the advisability of such a decision and fear complications due to the lack of timely qualified medical care.

"Of all my three children, the one I gave birth to in water was the healthiest and smartest. A wonderful child! And the birth was painless, just a pulling sensation in my lower back."

"I gave birth in water, at home, in the bathtub. Everything went great. And anyway, if a person is 70% water, then isn't it most natural to give birth in water?"

"Those doctors who do not approve of water births have hardly seen many children born in water. And they are indeed born healthier, I speak from my own experience - I gave birth to my second in a bathtub."

"Microbes in the water? As if everything in the maternity hospital is sterile! There are even more microbes there, and even mutated ones! And you can order clean, spring water."

"I gave birth in a bathtub, with my husband and a midwife. There were no problems. This is my second birth, the first was normal, in the hospital, and it was the most terrible day of my life."

Interestingly, women who have dared to give birth in water often categorically support this practice, based solely on personal experience and dismissing doctors' arguments against it. Those women who listen to doctors' opinions most often prefer normal births.

[ 7 ], [ 8 ], [ 9 ]