Advantages To Giving Birth Naturally In Water

Laboring and birthing in water is becoming a popular choice for many moms. In Europe, it is often offered as a routine option, and now many U.S. hospitals are offering this choice to their patients. For the low risk to mom and baby, water births can offer many advantages.

Pain Relief

One of the greatest advantages to laboring and birthing in water is the pain relief that it offers to the mother. It is often called the "midwife's epidural" because the relief it provides is so dramatic. When a mother chooses to deliver without pain medications, she can find relief from uterine contractions, back labor, leg cramps and pelvic pressure in the water. When mothers are asked to rate their pain during labor, most give labor pains out of the water a score of 7 to 10 on a 10-point scale. When these same women are asked to rate their pain after entering the water, the response averages only a 2 to 4 out of ten.

Facilitates Relaxation

Relaxation is the key to any medication-free delivery, and water helps to achieve relaxation through the relief of pain, the support of the woman's body and the freedom of movement it offers. Women who are at full term in their pregnancy often have trouble with balance, flexibility and comfort. The support and weightlessness of water gives the laboring mother freedom and ability to choose positions that are most comfortable and beneficial for labor.

Shorter Labor

The relaxation and support that water provides lay the groundwork for a shorter labor. According to Barbara Harper, RN and water birth expert, the relaxation and positioning in water allow for greater blood distribution, thus providing for a natural increase in the labor hormones vasopressin and oxytocin. When these hormones are at their optimum levels, uterine contractions are at their most efficient and dilation happens faster.

Less Tearing and Episiotomies

Birthing in water supports not only a laboring mother's body, but her delicate perineal tissues as well. As she relaxes into the warmth of the birthing tub, her perineal tissues relax and stretch to accommodate her baby's head. In the tub, she is also in control of the position and timing of her pushes. This makes them more effective and easier on her body. The result of these effects is that there is less tearing of the perineal tissues and a nearly zero episiotomy rate.