Birthing in the pool

I have just spent the weekend having two of the most amazing gentle pool births that you could ever imagine. I love it. Working on the birth centre at North Manchester General Hospital is just the perfect job for any midwife.
Both the women that I have cared for over the weekend said they coped so much better after entering our lovely birthing pools and are going to recommend them to their friends. Giving birth in nice warm water is a more natural way to birth for baby, she is already used to an aquatic environment. Heat is a universal source of comfort for all ages and being surrounded by warm water whilst giving birth seems to cocoon women in a security blanket that most do not want to leave after the birth.
Birth centres cater for low risk women, ask your community midwife if you are low risk and if so ask her to book you in at your local birth centre. Normal labour wards can still have birthing pools, though they do not get used as much. Even if you have risk factors, ask the labour ward where you are booked if you can use the pool. Always remember that you are the boss. All maternity care is offered as a service, with you as the client. When you go to the hairdressers and ask for a certain style, you would not be happy if they said that style was not available and you could only have a crew cut instead. Well, not unless you like that sort of thing. Write your birth plan before you are in labour. Have someone calm and confident with you so they can fight your corner if necessary, leaving you to focus on your relaxing. Stay upright untill you are in the pool, the water will then negate the pull of gravity and you can adopt whatever position is comfortable for you at the time. Floating has been the mode of choice this weekend. Love it.

Is this unethical practice by British midwives?

At the dentist last week I was thinking of all the things I would rather be doing instead of having my face compressed and my mouth stretched and my pain threshold tested to extreams by my dentist's torture equipment. The receptionist was very nice and calm and friendly, which helped a little to put me at ease. While I was waiting to be seen I asked the receptionist if she would ever mention the word PAIN when greeting a patient due for treatment. She looked at me horrified. "That would be highly unethical behaviour" she replied. "We try to make people feel welcome and at ease, any mention of the P word would just make them anxious, don't you think?" I readily agreed and explained that the only reason that I asked was that I was researching how other care professionals approach the tricky subject of language when talking to clients who may face a potentially painful procedure.
So, are midwives acting unethically when they call uterine contractions PAINS? Is this an issue for the Nursing and Midwifery Council? Let me know what you think. Are midwives adding to the propaganda spread by society that smooth muscle is designed to cause the sensation of pain when contracting under normal conditions?
Oh dear. Having just eaten I can feel the smooth muscle in my stomach contracting. I think I need an epidural, good job it was only a vegan sausage.

Birth Centres

Having just worked for 3 months at a wonderful birth centre, I am more awestruck that ever at how wonderful women are. They have been taught that childbirth will be very painful, by the society that they live in, and yet they still get pregnant and they still come back for more. Awesome. While working on the birth centre I have met some lovely people and have helped them to have a pain free first stage of labour for most. It is very difficult to teach women relaxation techniques in the middle of their labours. Relaxation really must be practised during the pregnancy as outlined in other posts on this blog. However, I have found that some women are capable of taking a step back from their pain and discomfort and trying the methods that I teach. Once they are upright on a chair or ball and in a more relaxed and controlled state of mind they look up at me and say "Why has no one ever told me it can be this way before?" That is a very good question. I have now been told that I have to leave the birth centre and move to another ward. They knock me down, but I get up again. I have an article to be published in Midwifery Matters in the Spring issue that aims to teach midwives how to help women labour. Please help spread the word. Thank you.