Water laboring?

SweetPeaK26 · July 2013

I tried this with my first and it did absolutely nothing to make me me comfortable. I would like to try it again, because so many women swear by it, but I'm wondering if maybe I didn't do it 'right'. Dh filled the tub, and it was only lukewarm, and it was only deep enough to cover half of my stomach.

I'm sure depth makes a difference, what about temp? Should I be laying down on my back or side? Should I e sitting?

I realize this may all seem silly and like I know nothing, and I guess I don't! But, id like to try to make it work better for me this time!

aylafsu88 · July 2013

l labored in the tub at home and at the hospital. The water did not cover my entire belly. The water was warm but not hot. The big thing was my position. I tried sitting in the tub, laying in the tub, and being on my side in the tub but none of them were comfortable. For me I had to be on hands and knees with my belly hanging in the water and my H/doula pouring warm water over my back. Once I figured out this position was the best pain wise for me to labor in I was able to deal with contractions. I would suggest you try several positions in the water and see which one makes you feel the most comfortable.

barnwife · July 2013

We had a birth tub available when I was in labor with J. It sounded like torture, so I never got in.

With A., they couldn't fill the thing fast enough. The water was definitely pretty warm. I don't remember the temp., although I know my MW monitors it. We used a fishy kiddie pool that my MW recommended. She prefers that whatever you use is at least 22" deep (I think it's 22").

A normal bathtub would neither have been deep enough nor spacious enough for me to get comfortable.

As for position, do what is comfortable. I was actually mostly reclining back against the side between contractions and kind of side lying during contractions.

I fully plan to have the tub ready to go for this LO in case I want it.

erb82 · July 2013

I loved the tub for laboring with my first. I needed the water to be very hot, and dh kept adding hot water. My tub also had whirlpool jets that felt amazing. A lot of women also like the shower because it's easy to try different positions and you can direct the water flow wherever it works best. Keep your options open, but remember that every birth us completely different you can't necessarily tell what you'll like ahead of time.

SweetPeaK26 · July 2013

Definitely going to go gotten and deeper this time! And use the jets! I will be delivering at a hospital, no water birth, but can labor any way I want right up until push time.

I think part of my problem the first time was I was so self concious. I felt really weird having other people see me in a bathtub.

utlawgirl · July 2013

The tub did nothing for me last time, either. I wanted to be on hands and knees and reclining felt awful. Getting in the shower once we got to the hospital, sitting on a shower chair with the warm water aimed at the small of my back (DH's job) was perfect, though. The midwife called that a "drug-free epidural."

OSibyl · July 2013

I was in a Jacuzzi style tub and was only really comfortable on my hands and knees. I actually ended up standing up when I was pushing as it felt the best for me. I don't think I would have been comfortable laboring in the tub had it not been big enough for me to get on my hands and knees. When I first started having contractions (they were pretty "weak" and several minutes apart) I took a shower and it felt great. the water wasn't super hot, just warm enough to be comfortable.

choppinbroccoli22 · July 2013

My experience was that the size of the tub really mattered. I needed to be on all fours, low low low with my knees wide open, rocking back and forth in a full, sweeping motion. In between contractions, I moved off my hands and knees to a resting position, and it was easy to move because of the depth of the water. Not deep enough to drown me in my low pose, but deep enough to unweight my arms and legs and make laboring and moving around easier. When I was checked in bed and had my water broken before going back into the tub, I needed to be log-rolled by a couple people to change my position.

SuperTreesa · July 2013

I labored at home in the tub for a while. We have a tiny tub and I'm a plus sized 5'6" woman. But the tub was great.

I used a wet handtowel on my belly. We kept pouring water over the towel to keep it warm. Otherwise my belly was barely in the water. I kept the water on and the drain open so the water never got cold.

I loved the water. I would love to attempt a water birth this time. But my midwife only delivers at one hospital, and that hospital doesn't do water deliveries. The trade off is that I LOVE my midwife and the hospital is 100% supportive of every other facet of the natural births that I want.

Arielle27 · July 2013

I haven't done the tub thing, but with my first, I was able to spend most of the first few hours of active labor in a shower. It helped reduce the pain so much that I literally thought I had stopped labor! To my disbelief, I got out and found I was 7 cm and rapidly transitioning...

ssemovsk · July 2013

Our hospital had a tub with jets. I filled it up so that it was borderline hot and it was filled up pretty high. I labored in there for a good 23 hours. I had extreme back labor so it helped me deal with that because I felt weightless