The Principle Behind Water Birthing - Natural childbirth is the term used for a woman who gives birth without the aid of pain medication enabling the mother to remain in control of her labor and delivery. Without medication a woman is able to stay fully alert during this very natural process, but pain becomes a key factor when no epidural or pain medication is used. There are many ways that women can effectively control this pain naturally, such as breathing techniques, acupressure, aromatherapy, massage, music, loving and encouraging words from partner, visualization, and gas and air. All these relaxation  techniques are set up to create a relaxing environment, so that the expecting mother can relax, let her instincts take over and let nature take it's course. All these techniques can be effective, but none as effective as we have seen with water *. If you have been ever been involved in sports, do you remember what one of the first things they recommended for many sports injuries? Soaking it in water or the Jacuzzi. Or when you have had a long day at work and get home with aching feet. What's the best relief? Soaking your feet in water. It's basically a simple technique that has been proven in other areas of our life that now used in labor and delivery makes so much sense. 

Why Water Is So Effective In Natural Birthing - Water supports your body weight in a gravity reduced environment and makes it easier to hold or change a natural and comfortable birthing position. The reduction in pressure significantly reduces the possibility of fetal distress and provides for more complete relaxation between contractions. A Woman's body instinctively knows how to give birth. When labor occurs in a calm, comfortable and private environment, an expecting mother is more relaxed and the natural release of the hormone oxytocin enables her contractions to become more effective. This is especially true for a woman who enjoy the sensation of being in water.  Stimulus on the superficial nerve endings in the skin can override the sensation of pain being transmitted by deeper nerves. In water birthing, the warm water on the lower back (which is the area of the spinal chord that receives the nerves from the lower abdominal region) can reduce labor pain. A woman who enjoys the sensation of being in water may release the necessary hormones needed for labor. The process of labor and childbirth is controlled by different hormones, and endorphin production is possibly the key to both pain relief and good progress in labor. Endorphins are the body's natural analgesics; they produce an opiate-like sensation and regulate the production of other hormones including oxytocin. Any person who enjoys the sensation of immersion in warm water will find that their endorphin levels rise automatically, whether or not they are a woman in labor. Evidence has shown that immersion in warm water can lower blood pressure during labor, assist in controlling that the laboring mother does not become overheated and create a distress factor for the mother and baby, provide for pain relief by the combination of many factors including feeling safe, supported and in control, lower anxiety and fear which all attribute to the reduction in the psychological impact of pain. All of these reported benefits with water birthing are important so that a woman in labor you can work with her pain instead of against it.

Water Birthing Provides Many Benefits For Your Baby Too - There are also reported benefits of choosing water birthing for the fetus. To the baby, the benefits may be more profound; The changes that take place in the baby's body when it is born are quite dramatic. Out of a dark, tight fitting, warm, noisy, wet place where life support arrives through the umbilical cord to a different environment. Immediate changes include the temperature, air, gravity and the loss of their comfortable made-to-fit quarters. Also new is the way the blood circulates through their body. The baby heart now has that job to do all by itself. The umbilical cord which supplied blood to the growing fetus from the mother, shuts down and the umbilical arteries which returned blood to the mother for cleaning close. Suddenly there is a need for oxygen, to breathe. The baby will then gasp and cry, the lungs which were like flattened sponges now expand. The eyes open and totally new visual images enter the brain. In water, it is possible that these extraordinary changes can occur relatively slowly and distinctly from each other making it more gentle for the baby.  For example, in water, the cord remains soft and continues to pulse after the baby is delivered, so he/she does not need to breathe until after the cord is cut.  It has been demonstrated that newborns automatically inhibit their breathing underwater through what is called the "dive reflex". A baby born without distress into water will not receive the stimulus to breathe. Breathing is only stimulated by a drop in temperature lower than 37degrees or receiving some distress during delivery. Separating the chain of events until the baby is taken out of the water.

You Can Use Other Forms of Pain relief In Water - Because there are no side effects connected to the use of water as pain relief, it does not preclude any other form of analgesia that may be appropriate at a later time. For instance, you could decide later to have an epidural (in hospital, of course), although you could not reverse the order and use water after an epidural. Other forms of pain relief include massage, acupressure, music, aromatherapy, loving and encouraging words from midwife and partner, breathing, visualization, and gas and air. The point here is that using water for pain relief is just part of your "tool kit of pain relief options". Which will include many of the above and others unique to you. Using water as pain relief can help you get further down the road of labor without closing doors on other options.