waterbirth

My notes say I was in for EIGHT minutes. Averages out at about £20 a minute. And worth every sodding penny

The hospital where DS1 was born had a birthpool which happened to be free at the time. I had no plans to use a birthing pool, but just fancied having a nice warm bath as I had back-ache.

Like Motherinferior, once in - it was fab, although I only ended up being in the pool for about 15 mins as DS1 decided to put in an appearance then

PS don't know about the logistics of taking it in, though, that was a home birth.

BBB, your hospital may have a pool or it may not (mine, weirdly, has one but it isn't plumbed in). If it has one - and the pool is free - you can labour in it. And indeed deliver (some hospitals are a bit weird about 'letting' you deliver in water).

If you want to guarantee a pool, I think you would have to hire one and take it in. The one I hired for my second birth was from Splashdown, and was inflatable - you're not supposed to use it for first labours but you might want a chat with them about it (I rang to ask because in fact it's not recommended for second births after long first labours, and boy was my first one long).

I think they're fab. Didn't know whether I'd want to deliver in water or not, but in practice I got in, pushed three times and dd2 shot out like a champagne cork.

You can just labour in water, don't have to give birth there. That's how I did it, I think being in water was the most effective pain relief I had, but I couldn't position myself properly in the water so got out for the actual birth.