By Fiona Jacobs
A sense of control, less pain medication, shorter first stage of labor and an overall positive birth experience are all key reasons that people choose water births.
In 1805, a French woman was placed in a hot bath to relieve the stress of labour and right there was the first documented water birth in history.
Over time, doctors worldwide would provide this practice to every difficult labour proving it was the most effective, quick and calming delivery for women, eventually becoming an official practice that benefits women physically, mentally and spiritually.
Kimberly Jacobs is a midwife and nurse who has seen childbirth through water first hand and all the contributing factors that go along with it.
For those who don’t know exactly what water births are, it’s a labouring practice where women give birth at home or in a hospital while they lay in a body of water and deliver the child underwater. The baby is then delicately brought up to the surface and placed on the mother’s chest.
Why do water births help the mother?
Evidence has shown that water births can greatly enhance the experience for the mother. They increase her comfort level and decrease stress because water is a natural form of relaxation.
The process is known to take the pressure off the lower abdomen, helps back pain, and reduces chances of a C-section and long labours.
Jacobs said the biggest advantage to water births for mothers is that the area called the perineum (between the posterior limit of the vulvar orifice and the anus) can stretch really well if it’s been in warm water. Therefore, there’s an immediate decline in the chances of tearing, an extreme loss of blood and anaesthesia.
There’s an overall feeling of emotional wellbeing, comfort and serenity in the water rather than out.
Every woman during pregnancy releases hormones like oxytocin, adrenaline, endorphins and prolactin. Improved circulation due to the warm water helps the mother reduce the level of adrenaline which could cause the mother to lock up and prevent the baby moving down through the pelvis smoothly.
It can also be more of an intimate connection for the woman’s partner who can be in the water as well.
How do water births help the baby?
The baby is already familiar with warm and wet surroundings, so by transitioning into the world in an environment they’re used to, it can decrease the baby’s stress levels.
Jacobs said temperature control is a huge benefit due to the warm water, that it helps them settle on to the mother’s chest and data has shown that the babies can adapt to the breast quicker and can breast feed for longer.
Featured image: Water births provide a warm welcome for babies. Photo: Ideabug/iStock by Getty
