Gas, air, home births etc...

Pupuce
Where did you hire your birth pool from for £150 for 5 weeks? I am based in SW11 in London and am looking for a birth pool to hire...

Just found this. I had my first at home and I wanted it that way. I had gas and air, which I didn't think did much, and pethadine which I wasn't sure whether I wanted to have. The pethadine I think just took away the major 'hurtyness' and I also felt like wickedwaterwitch, that I wasn't sober enough to 'care'. We're planning on having another next year, and if possible I will definitely do the same again!! It's just so relaxed, you can make your own drink, bath, watch telly, have music as loud as you like or even go out without anyone asking questions. Then after have a nice bath and a drink of Jack Daniels and coke!!
Good Luck!

True but you can use it in the last days before baby arrives, it is SO much better than a bath! You need to practice filling it up and emptying it at least once anyway. Emptying takes 10 minutes, filling up varies greatly on your hot water supply.... My first birth was in a different house from second baby and it probably took 45 minutes to fill in for first house and a good 2 hours for the 2nd house.

Well £120 is via our two labour wards which rent out two ABC pools for a 4 week period.
www.waterbirth.co.uk is where I rented my first one (with DS) and it was FAR cheaper then (£140)... it is still cheaper than ABC.
What about Albany? Have you asked your labour ward.... maybe they do rent one out as our does but few people know...
what about birthworks which starts at £200 for 4 weeks.
www.birthworks.co.uk/pricing.shtml

WORTH asking around....

And then there is an additional £35 or £45 for delivery! No wonder some people can't afford it.
The cheapest option (and it's not a bad one) - not with ABC- is £120 for 4 weeks.

Motherinferior - the ABC is expensive.... for a weeks hire it can come to 287£!!!! They say £107 for a week and then it's per day...

I rented mine (the oval - most expensive) for £150/5 weeks !

I know the Albany MW practice manager ... she is also a colleague doula.... maybe you could ring them and ask where/how you could rent a pool.... worth a try !
Albany has a 37% home birth rate and a 77% completely natural vaginal birth (no intervention or help!)

Where abouts in london are you - I had home water birth with the albany practice in se london, I think cost £50 for the loan of the pool and a new liner,
got in at 7cm dilated and baby born 1.5hrs later, no pain relief, wonderful....

Well 4 or 5 cm will be the perfect time to test the pain relief effect of the birthing pool! Yes ABC (but I hear they are expensive) I just did a search on google : birthing pool and got loads more....
Just so that you know.... if you get in at 5cm.... (or there about) as it is your 2nd baby.... it might only last another 1hour, 1 1/2h baby is born..... exciting isn't it???

motherinferior - I can't really comment on home births, as both of mine were in hospital, but I can say that I found gas and air to be great with my second - for some reason I was never given it with my first, as I was told it was not the right time! You may find, like me, that the second will be a lot quicker, and probably nothing like the first. I was all set for an epidural the second time around, but found that because I was managing with the gas and air, and also because my labour was so much quicker, I never needed the epidural. I did find that my jaw ached afterwards though, as I had been biting on the mouthpiece so hard!! Dh admitted to me afterwards that he kept standing over me, so that he could get a whiff of the gas and air from the vent!

As a midwife I do not take gas and air away as a routine in second stage. I have however stopped someone if they are over breathing and losing control because it then is not helping. I always kept it when I delivered my babies and used it effectively.

Sorry - the pethidine bit might have been a bit confusing.

Pethidine does nothing for me - it neither removed the pain nor stopped the labour and next time it will be all over my notes that I don't want it simply because I don't see the need for that drug if its not going to do anything.

sis - I know what you mean. I had my gas and air taken away from me but then there was a shift change and the next midwife on gave it back to me.

I had a pethidine injection at the end of day one of being induced to bring the labour to a stop so that they could "put me to bed". Unfortunately (for them that is), my body decided not to play ball and refused. I felt furious because I was not given the option of refusing the injection - they simply gave it to me. More importantly for this discussion I'm definitely one of those people that it didn't work for. Not that I'm saying don't use it - more that it can't be counted upon.

HTH

WWW, Thanks for the sympathy, the thing is, I only realised a few weeks ago that they don't always take away the gas and air for the final stage - this knowledge made me mad all over again!

Hi Mother inferior. I had pethidine in my first hospital labour and found it very disorietning and nauseating. I lost the plot after the jab and never really got back on track. Ended up in stirrups wiht ventouse.I would ask around as I have heard really mixed results for pethidine and I'm a big believer inthe intervention spiral. 2nd labour at home very fast and comfy gas and air came to late but found home very relaxing and superb midwife (still in love wiht her) only 2 pushes no stitches etc etc. 3rd labour also home but big baby and posterior so long and hard work. Found the rythmic breathing of the gas and air really helpful and got sort of meditational wiht the in out sound of the machine when you breathe. Felt a bit woozy but still able to make all my decisions for me felt really strong and good.

Wish you the very very best and hope you get the birth you want and hope for.

sis, what ba***s! They tried to do the same to me but saw the look in my eyes and so I had it right til the end. Not fair at all!

Personally, I think that instead of child benefit ,we should get a weekly allowance of gas and air for when it gets really tough.