need help with women's views - mears

[mears]

As you know I am completing an assignment and I suddenly realised you are the folks who can help with women's views (don't ask why it took so long).

I am evaluating the use of the pool and want to know what complaints some of you might have.
Such as
told you were not allowed,
midwives not trained.
Not allowed in pool if considered high risk
Allowed pool but not allowed to deliver in the water.
Get the idea?

Complain away

Any good points would be useful too.

Anyone who hadn't considered the pool but the midwife suggested it and found it to be fantastic

Any positive stories too/

NEED IT BY TOMORROW

Have never used one myself as I never wanted to and had 3 sections. However a friend of mine had her heart set on it but then found that she hated it because she didn't feel stable enough, and kept slipping all over the place.

I hadn't even contemplated a water birth with my first but once the labour started and got to the painful point of 'oh god can't take anymore' i decided that i really wanted to climb into the birthing pool to ease my back and feel more relaxed. I was 36 weeks and 5 days and was told that i couldn't use it because i wasn't 37 weeks. I was told that i could have a bath though which i found a little strange - what really was the difference? I was distressed enough as it was and found it even more intolerable that i was being told 'no' to what i believed to have been my labour done in the way i chose to do it. I was in the labour suite with the pool right beside me but i guess the hospital insurance etc doesn't cover it. It just made me feel that i had lost control of the situation because i was being dictated to as opposed to doing things the way i felt would benefit me physically and emotionally.

Used the pool the second time round for labour. Loved it, but since the water-resistent monitor was broken (!), had to keep standing up in the water for the midwife to monitor the baby's heartbeat. Wanted to give birth in the pool, but the gas and air in the pool room was broken (!!), so had to get out. Really wish I hadn't got out since I was coping with the pain in the pool without any drugs, but went to pieces when I got out and had some g-and-a.

No personal experience unfortunately.

One friend had never considered it until she arrived at the hospital in labour with her ds2. Midwife practically demanded she used the pool. Friend was too knackered to protest, got in and absolutely loved it. Fantastic and relaxing birth and placid baby (more so than her first (conventional birth) in her opinion).

Another friend however, really wanted a water birth (and did get one) but found the pool uncomfortable because she was too short and kept slipping underwater.

Where I linve now there is one pool to cater for 5 or 6 towns with a population of 80,000 plus each - do the maths.....

I really really wanted a waterbirth, but the hospital didn't have enough trained midwives. I was disappointed and want one even more next time! It was such a shame as it wasn't a busy night on the ward and there were plenty of midwives, just not ones trained in waterbirths.

My cousin could not have a water birth cause she had some kind of infection thing - she was really upset and actually ended up have a C section - I too scared and wanted the works with drugs so justr had a bath at home before going in!!

I really wanted a waterbirth but had meconium in waters so wasn't allowed.
Was really disappointed and actually ended up having lots of intervention - drips, epidural, ventouse delivery.

Thanks - I knew you wouldn't let me down. Keep them coming

Doing an assignment? I thought you were committing a pornographic act with a creme egg....

Do you wnat comments re use of pools at home, or just in hospital?

We were told from the start at Mayday Hospital, Croydon, that although they had a birthing pool at the hospital we would not be allowed to use it for birth as no midwives were trained (this was almost three years ago now though).

Also, they'd rather stupidly designed the room so the gas & air cable from the cylinders wouldn't reach to the pool, so even if you wanted to use it to ease contractions, you wouldn't be able to able to have access to gas & air at the same time.

youa sked us this before M!!
I wnatd too but dh reckoned (!) he had heard sories of babies not breathing etc

I reckoned it wa his baby too and if he wasnt happy I wouldnt be, BUT I would have LOved it. My eldest two born at Good Hope in Sutton Coldfield which at the time awas alleged to have had the highest rate int he uk

I wasn't allowed because I have epilepsy although is fully controlled by medication and anyway have only ever had seizures in my sleep so hardly likely during childbirth. And have only ever had 5 seizures in total anyway (2 during late pregnancy which is predictable as blood volume of medication changes so dose was increased). And actually no, I didn't have a seizure so THERE bloody hospital. Had to argue my way onto midwife-led unit as they were going to make me use the hospital side instead.

Couldn't use it even if I'd wanted to as someone else was in there at the time.

When I went to have ds I was in the right room to use the pool that had only been used a handful of times but the last person had been too something (rough maybe) and put a hole in the bottom of it.

The thought of sitting in all that yukie water didn't appeal tbh anyway

hth

I wanted a water birth both times, and didn't make it both times! First time was because I was progressing so slowly that I was exhausted before I had dilated sufficiently, so ended up with epidural. Second time was because they were cleaning it up after another woman had used it, and I progressed so quickly that when they came to tell me it was clean and ready I had my new dd in my arms! But for the second labour I was using the bath at home before going to the hospital and it was sheer bliss. I could not believe the relief I got from pouring hot water over my belly and back during a contraction - it was the most effective pain-relief, even better, I think, than the epidural had been (only r side worked). To be honest, I hadn't quite believed the hype about birthing pools, and it's only because I love being in water and find it very soothing in any case, that I had planned for a water birth. If I have another child I would seriously consider a home birth, if only to guarantee access to a pool.

Not quite what you're looking for, but hope it's of use anyway.

All experiences are greatfully received.

Thanks coddy for reminding me to look at the last time I posted about waterbirth here

I forgot that I would probably have answers on there that applied to this one.

Can you tell that I am frustrated about pool use or reasons for lack of it

Oh you can call me Nelly the elephahnt

Pool-at-Home for planned homebirth comments:
MW's were really helpful and supportive, encouraged the idea. Would have been happy for delivery in water, too, if we hadn't had to transfer to hospital by then! Seemed confident and competent about everything to do with me being in the pool. I was irritated when I had to stand up for foetal heart monitoring, BUT MW's were raising money for underwater listening thingy. Use of pool was absolutely fantastic from my point of view, and enabled me to get from 7cms until well into 2nd stage with no drugs at all.

PROBLEM: By the time I got into pool, it was 36 hrs since my waters had broken, AND the swab which they later took showed that I was Strep B positive. I now see from the RCM website that in either case, I should not have been in the pool? DS ended up on IV anti-biotics. They didn't seem to be aware of these factors.

Thought about waterbirth -never happened 'cos induced in the end...however, was told that could only happen if:
Pregnancy had been normal (no high blood pressure etc.)
Babe was right way round (another mother was keen but babe was in breech...)
No internal monitoring required..
AND the community midwife (only one trained..) was available and not assisting a home birth!]

Looked like a great idea, except the room was bl**dy bright!

My hospital were quite keen on encouraging it...

Blu - women who are StrepB positive can use the pool after they have had their IV antibiotics where I work.
Was your baby OK until strep B was diagnosed on your swab?

I wanted use it at least for pain relief/early stages, and possibly to deliver, but was told i couldn't because had to have artificial rupture of membranes - seems daft as I was allowed to use the bath in the delivery suite

Didn't really fancy it and hated the bath I had in labour which has put me off although Pupuce assures me it is totally different. Am planning a home birth this time and will consider going in shower in early stages - SusanMT (I think) recommended this.

I would have loved to use the pool - perhaps not for delivery, but definitely for pain relief, I adore being in water. Might have been allowed having ds (had independent m/w with me) but things were going v. fast, and I was already pushing when I got there so no chance. With dd couldn't afford ind. m/w and went for vbac at St Thomas - they were wonderful but refused to let me into midwife-led unit where pools are due to vbac/splenectomy as a child/inherited thrombophilia gene. Gutted. Have subsequently discovered that none of the above should have made me a significantly higher risk during childbirth as long as pregnancy has been okay, which is was. Maybe a birth pool next time...

Not my experience but a fellow NCT member's in the NE of Scotland. She wanted a home waterbirth (4th baby) but was refused the w/b bit as none of the community MW's were trained in w/births. Friend persisted and the Health Board eventually paid for four community MW's to be trained. Everything went well at the birth, except that friend felt a bit crowded as all four mw's turned up to see their first waterbirth!!