Waterbirth Attire

[kylieeee]

Hiya,

Thinking a water birth is going to be my chosen plan, although not guaranteed of course as I know they often go out the window!

Anyway... if I am able to have a water birth, I wondered if anyone had suggestions on what to wear if you don't want to wear a bikini/bra. I want to feel as comfortable as possible and especially in pregnancy I like to be covered (not sure why, it's just how I'm comfy), so I was thinking of wearing a baggy tee, but midwife said I'd have to take it off anyway to have skin to skin with the baby.

I know at the time I won't care whether I'm in a Victoria secret bikini or if I'm in my birthday suit! But I really want to be at my comfiest during birth just to give myself some sort of comfort and feel like I can really give it my all without feeling self conscious etc.

Does anyone have any suggestions/can relate?

Thank you x

I just wore my maternity crop top style bra. The thought of a wet tshirt clinging to me in labour would thoroughly piss me off!

I felt really supported during my birth and covering my body up didn't really occur to me at the time, although I'd spent a lot of time planning what to wear to feel comfortable. And after, around DH and the midwives I could have stayed without clothes on - they seemed so irrelevant in relation to what had just happened!

If not a soft crop top bra, even a vest top would be slightly less irritating than a wet t-shirt weighing you down. But honestly, the less the better. “You won’t care,” doesn’t adequately sum up how little you will even be aware of not being covered. It won’t even register as something to think about. All the best!

Honestly, you won't think twice about what you're wearing!

I was in the pool for most of my labour and just wore a crop top comfy sports bra type thing and little black pants for the first half or so, after I started getting irritated having to take my pants off for every check, I just left them off and stayed in the crop top. I don't think anyone could see much anyway with my massive bump and with how I was sitting.

Naked! I had no pants on as the midwife had just examined me. I walked into the room as they were filling the pool and took my dress off and thought I might as well take my bra off too as I was baking.

My original plan was to wear a tankini but I just didn't want anything on in the end. I'm a very private person so it's a bit shocking looking back.

When it came time to get out of the pool, I think someone wrapped a towel around my shoulders and I walked to the bed in the next room and they put a sheet on me.

I took a bikini top and a stretchy strappy camisole top, thinking I'd use one of those in the pool as I'd be self conscious. When it came to it I just wanted everything off! I really didn't care. Be prepared with something comfy and not too heavy but don't be surprised if it doesn't get worn!

I wore nothing. It was very comfortable.

I arrived at the hospital 10cm dilated and contracting every 3 mins and I still asked my hubby to pass me the bikini top out of the bag so I could put it on. I wanted it just to be covered up for an after birth photo, which the midwife took and I love it! Wouldn’t be the same with my boobs out All the people that say ‘you won’t care’... yes, it’s true that its really not embarrassing to be naked at the time, however I was still very aware and in control of myself which surprised me, so you never know if you will feel like putting something on. I’d take a bikini/crop top, and possibly a strappy vest and just decide on the day what you fancy! Good luck! My water birth was really good btw, really helped with the pain!

I was naked. Clothes are so annoying in labour! Self-consciousness has no place in labour - the midwife will be looking at your most intimate parts, and all manner of stuff will be coming out of you. There's a good chance you will poo yourself while pushing. Whether or not your breasts and visible will seem quite unimportant at the time.
Also the pool is very warm, so you definitely won't want anything like a big t-shirt covering you up. A soft crop top just about sounds bearable! Anything baggy will also get in the way of midwife monitoring, as has been mentioned!

I'm really self-conscious and am generally very covered up. When it came to the water birth it was everything off.

I was naked in the birth pool, i felt more exposed when they did the checks before i got in the water, when i had clothes on. As soon as i was in the water, i felt covered by it, even when they were looking up there. However, i know that the planning stages are very important and a crop top/tankini would give you coverage without having a loose t-shirt billowing around in the water. As a pp said, your bump more or less covers your pubic area by then, so there's not a lot to see.

a wet tshirt clinging to me in labour would thoroughly piss me off!

This! Plus it'll make you cold and will need to be taken off before baby is born if you want skin to skin.

Take a few options, but if you want to be covered, a waterbirth probably isn't for you.

I wore a sports bra.

I got in the bath in hospital (lasted 5 mins and needed to push) and I wore a vest top, whipped it off when I realised I needed to push and was on hands and knees on the floor 🤦🏼‍♀️ literally my worst nightmare but it just happened!
You won't care one bit what you're wearing.

I wore a tankini top. I got in the pool fairly early on in labour, around 3-4cm dilated, so still felt like I wanted something on me. Everything below that was under the water anyway so I felt pretty covered really.

I wore a tankini top. It wasn’t about my breasts being “visible” - they were huge in pregnancy and would have been very annoying floating and flapping about in the pool. Vest shape gave plenty of bare skin for skin to skin and easy to pull down to bf.

I had a swim dress with a halter neck tie, not one with in-built pants, so the plan was to not to wear any as I'd be covered by the dress but accessible. Of course, I didn't get a water birth but hey ho!

I was naked and I wasn't even in a pool. Have something you'll be comfy in but you very well might not care.

I wore a sports bra. Still the one I wear now, sometimes I tell people I gave birth in it 🤣

I know many people say you won’t care but I actually did and was glad I had a tankini top. Although I didn’t give birth in the pool - it might well have been different by that point! Most importantly though for me was a nice warm dressing gown and a few dry T-shirt’s for getting out of the pool (I got in and out a few times for loo etc)

I’m really not someone who is comfortable feeling exposed but during my labour I did not care I was so hot I stripped off to just my bra and that wasn’t even a water birth unfortunately. Try not to worry to much a bra or bikini top will be enough and I would think you may feel less exposed being in the water than stuck lied on a bed like I was