Prep for home water birth-any tips?

[BlueC2]

Currently 35 weeks and back on with plans for a home water birth now that transverse baby is head down :)

SO what are your best tips for things I need to get sorted?

FYI We're hiring a pool though I am a bit nervous about our hot water tank capacity for filling it! I also have a 2 yr old DS who in an ideal world will sleep through the whole thing as it will happen overnight, though we obviously have Childcare in place for other eventualities.

As soon as you get the pool, inflate and fill it to temperature and time yourself. Mine took approx 70 minutes from flat to full and I'm so glad we did practice because we got the temp far too low the first time and couldn't raise it enough for birthing. It's far easier to cool a
Slightly too hot pool than heat a cold one.

Get a couple of extra kettles in and have them on the to as well

At least one shower curtain for putting down around the pool and lots of old towels

I assume you got a submersible pump for emptying the pool?

Cheap colander

Hand mirror

The pool hire kit comes with a pump for emptying the pool. I wasn't planning on getting a spare liner as it's an extra £25 which seemed a lot just to do a test run. Is it worth getting a heat retention cover though? Good advice re the temperature though, thanks.

Have a couple of old shower curtains available and currently hunting out old towels.

One other slight concern is that we will have the pool downstairs but the only toilet is upstairs. I don't remember going to the loo when in labour with DS (well, past 4cm anyway) though so maybe it will be fine.

If you have a hot water tank/immersion heater type set up then definitely do a dry run and time it.

We had the same plans for the birth of dc 2 (had to go to hospital in the event as district midwives were short staffed).

We inflated and started filling to pool before knowing we would have to go in and it would have taken 3 hours minimum with out hot water system to fill it high enough with warm enough water. Heat retention was excellent though, we put the lid on and the water was still pretty much warm enough when we got home from the hospital with dc2 8 or 10hrs later.

Dc3 was a dry home birth, by that time I figured it would be unlikely we would have time to fill a pool anyway.

Reasonable point about loo now you mention it, midwives made me go (some muttering about being able to see my bladder was full?!) and dc3 could so easily have been born on the landing on the way back to the bedroom.

Heat retention cover yes. Much easier to keep it to temp while you fill it and if you have to get out for any length of time.

I didn't use the loo at all but I did poo in the pool

On another note. Have a bag packed just in case. I had a small pph and needed transfer to hospital a few hours after the birth and the last thing your partner needs is to be running around looking for spare knickers and banygros and clothes for you like poor dh had to

Make sure that the hose actuality fits to the tap you'llbe filling it up from.

Pump it up before you need it.

Install a combi boiler.

I didn't do any of these things and ended up sacking off the pool and going for a bath instead. Gave birth on the bathroom floor bastards wouldn't let me give birth on the toilet still a great experience tho

Seriously tho, a dry run is a very sensible idea!

Right...looking as though the extra liner might be a must have as yes, we have hot water tank and immersion heater set up. Will also look into the cover. I have hospital bag all packed and ready to go already- bizarrely more organised about that than the pool/home birth arrangements! Part of the reason for going for the home birth option is so I can use the pool so do need to make that's work if I can!

ihateparties with DS the MW was convinced my bladder was full when I was in the middle of pushing and suddenly decided she wanted me to roll onto my back! I was on my knees, so that she could out a catheter in...last contraction/push before I rolled over and DS came flying out, she only just caught him!!

You do need to keep weeing otherwise your bladder can get in the way when you get to the pushing stage. There was a sign on the door at the birth centre reminding you to have a wee so must be important. Could you wee in the pool if you don't want to go upstairs?

I didn't use an extra liner to practice, I did milton it all over once the practice water was drained. Then the new liner on top of that when I actually needed it for real.

How about a potty/shewee/bucket and loo roll set up somewhere discreet? No need to waddle upstairs then. You probably could wee in the pool though. By the time baby is born you will likely have done the other anyway.

We hired a solid pool with pump to avoid all this! Expensive but well worth it after stressful pumping and filling the time before ! The water can stay in for 7 days at a time.

quiet and juniper as you say by the time baby comes out there's gonna be all sorts of bodily fluids in there (lovely!) so a bit of urine which is sterile anyway probably won't make much difference :) I genuinely have no idea whether I weed in the pool last time or not. I think my waters went when I was in there which was an I'd sensation, and then I remember thinking I needed to poo, but think that was when I was in transition and actually needed to push... And also when they made me get out of the pool which was 'fun' at that point!

juniper we're hiring a pool so they're v structure about no water in there unless there's a liner in place.

The other option you could try is find out how many litres your bath is, then fill it, empty it, fill it etc til you've used the right amount of water to the right temperature, then add all the times together.

As for whats in the water, the midwife knew I had chilli the night before. Who knew undigested kidney beans float?

juniper yes that had crossed my mind too. As for the kidney beans :) I read somewhere on MN of a lady needing to transfer to hospital from her home birth and happily walked out of the house to the ambulance with no clothes on at all her MW and DH running behind her to try and cover her up!! Think we all just go into a different zone when in labour so who knows what could happen! That said I think I will avoid kidney beans, though DH keen on me eating them to help maintain iron levels!!

Bucket for bodily fluids (I'd got one for wee or vom but ended up delivering the placenta into it).

Drinks - I had lots of ice in the freezer and drank iced water through a straw.

Honey is a really good snack if you can't face chewing or swallowing but need a bit more energy.

My MW suggested I had an old duvet to hand (or a new cheap one) to deliver on if the pool isn't up in time or you don't fancy the pool - it is comfy and protects surfaces. I ended up sitting wrapped up in/on the old duvet on the sofa holding my snuffly newborn.

Make sure your tap connectors fit!

The duvet idea is a good one! And the bucket too! Thanks katamari

The duvet is also good for lying on if you need any examinations before or after and the pool isn't in a room with a sofa.