There's no birth like home!

MORE mums-to-be should opt for home births when deciding where to have their baby, according to the health watchdog.

NICE, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, would like to see more women give birth with only midwives present, away from labour wards where doctors are in charge.

Midwives should advise mothers-to-be who already have at least one child and whose latest pregnancy appears to be low risk to opt for a home birth or midwife led unit (MLU) when deciding where to have their baby, they urge.

The 40% of women giving birth, who are first-time mothers, should also be advised to choose either location, NICE is recommending in draft guidelines to the NHS in England and Wales released yesterday.

Both groups of women should select either location "because the rate of interventions is lower and the outcome for the baby is no different compared with an obstetric unit", NICE says.

If the NHS follows the new advice, it could lead to a huge shift in where women choose to give birth, with thousands more women choosing to give birth at home. Currently just 2% of the 800,000 births a year in the UK take place at home.

One in four hospital births ends in a caesarean-section delivery and a further one in eight involves the use of either forceps or ventouse.

NICE said it had revised its advice on place of birth, which had been in force since 2007, in the light of fresh evidence about the safety of delivery at home and MLU' s. The only stipulation it included, was that midwives should tell first-time mothers that "if they plan to birth at home there is a small increase in the risk of an adverse outcome for the baby".

The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) and the National Childbirth Trust (NCT),both welcomed the proposals. However, maternity doctors voiced some concerns.

The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG), which represents the 10,000 maternity doctors inthe UK, said it did not object to more women with low-risk pregnancies having a home birth. But it warned that transport had to be available to take such women to hospital at short notice if they developed complications or needed pain relief.

The RCOG urged women at risk of complications to avoid freestanding birthing centres, which are not located at hospitals, and use MLU units instead, where those whose labour becomes problematic can get almost immediate help from doctors. It added that assessments as to which pregnancies are low-risk are not always accurate.

Professor Cathy Warwick, the RCM's chief executive, said: "The evidence shows that for low-risk women, giving birth in a midwife-led unit or at home is safe; indeed may be safer than hospital." Women who birthed there usually had higher satisfaction rates and a better birth experience than in hospitals, she added.

NICE said local NHS organisations should ensure that women in their area could choose between all locations to give birth. She urged for more investment in home births and midwife-led care.

NCT chief executive Belinda Phipps said NICE's guidelines "are evidence-based and confirm what we have been saying for decades – that birth in a midwife-led unit or at home is a safe choice, especially for those expecting a second or later baby." But more midwives were needed to turn NICE's proposals into reality, she added.

Re-Birth: A beautiful way to heal emotional scars when a birth doesn't go to plan!

This beautiful idea came from my customers Edita, Lisa and Xavier. It is shared with their permission in the hope that it can help others. This is their story:

Lisa was heartbroken when baby Xavier was born by c-section. But her partner Edita came up with a brilliant idea. As Xavier hadn't been welcomed into the world as planned she would welcome them home into the birth environment they wanted. 

So before setting off to the hospital to collect Lisa and baby Xavier, she placed tea lights around the room, inflated the birthing pool, filled it with water and added a few petals and essentials oils. 

Lisa loved the surprise and got straight into the birthing pool with baby Xavier. She said she found the experience very healing.

There is very little on the Internet about rebirth ceremonies but I did manage to find these photos by Spring Photography.  

The benefits of Water Birth: Gentle Birth, Calm Baby.

Water Birth is becoming an increasing popular choice for women in labour. The reason water birth is so highly sought after include:

Gentle Birth, Calm Baby.

A Water Birth can be the gentlest way to welcome your baby into the world. Champions of Water Birth believe that the transition to the outside world is less traumatic for babies who are born in water. The idea is that the warm water in the birthing pool will feel like the waters of your womb to your baby.

Babies who are born in water are often calm, and cry less than babies born in air.

Relaxation.
Water has often been used to relax. A nice warm bath is often suggested after a long or stressful day or just to relax aching muscles. The water has exactly the same effect during childbirth. Relaxation is a good thing in childbirth. By being relaxed you will breathe more calmly and are less likely to take short, shallow breaths, which can make the pain of contractions worse. 

Reduced tearing.

Because of the ability to relax and to have a gentler birth, mothers who have a water birth have fewer tears and require fewer stitches than those who give birth on dry land.

Privacy and control.
A birthing pool will provide you with your own space. It may help you to feel more in control of your body. 

Increased Movement.
It is easier to move around during labour and establish a greater range of positions because of the increased buoyancy you get in water. It becomes easier to move your legs, squat, circle your hips, all of which can help baby move down further into the pelvis and speed up labour.

Pain relief.
Water can be very effective at reducing pain. Guidelines written by the Health Watchdog, NICE, indicate that Water Birth is the most effective form of pain relief during labour.

http://waterbabybirthingpoolhire.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/its-official-water-birth-is-most.html

Positive birth.
Using a birth pool for labour is often such a positive experience that many women want to use one again when they have their next baby.

Water Baby Birthing Pool Hire has helped thousands of women have a water birth and we regularly hear our customers say: "I wouldn't ever give birth any other way!"

It's official: Water Birth is the most effective form of pain relief!

Water Birth is the most effective form of pain relief during labour, the health watchdog has said.

And the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) wants to see birthing pools made more widely available.

They believe that childbirth could be improved for thousands of women by expanding the use of birthing pools instead of pain relieving drugs.

"There is a perception that water is just nice," said Dr Julia Sanders, a consultant midwife and member of the group which drew up the guidance.

"But it is the most effective form of pain relief barring an epidural in labour. I would like to see more women using water and fewer women using the types of pain relief that are less effective."

The rules say that midwives and doctors should only intervene if there are problems with the birth and all women should be offered the choice of having their baby at home.

Once in established labour, she should receive supportive one-to-one care.

Women should be told that first labours last on average eight hours, and second labours last on average five hours.

Even if dilation is less than a centimetre an hour, this will not be viewed as problematic unless the women is in great pain and feels the process needs to be speeded up.

Whilst the guidance could mean longer labours for some it should mean fewer medical interventions, which can result in more painful and complicated labours.

Dr Sanders added: "Continuous, supportive, one-to-one care and emotional support during labour is what women want and expect.

"We know that this level of care during labour reduces the number of caesarean section or instrumental birth - such as forceps."

Andrea Sutcliffe, Nice's deputy chief executive, said the aim of the guidelines is to improve childbirth across the UK.

She said: "We want to make sure that every woman's experience of birth is as good as it can be and have used the best available evidence to set a national standard on how midwives and doctors can make labour a positive experience for women.

"Currently the care of women in labour may be varied across the country - these guidelines set the standards of care that every woman should receive."

The beginning....

My first cuddle with my beautiful baby girl moments after giving birth to her in March 2009.

I chose to have a water birth because I was nervous about how I would cope with the birth of my first child at home until I read about the pain relieving properties of water during labour.

I had an amazing pain-free birth without the need for medical intervention or drugs. My labour was over quickly in just 3 hours and 33 minutes and my daughter was gently pushed out in the water calmly and slowly. I felt so relaxed and I needed no stitches.

Bobbie was such a happy, contented baby and I strongly believe this is because of her gentle and gradual entrance into the world.

After the birth, I began wondering what to do with my birthing pool. I had had such a fantastic experience in it but it had cost me quite a lot of money. Perhaps if I loaned it out a couple of times near my home then I could make some friends with other new mums, share the cost of buying the pool amongst us (along with a brand new sealed liner for each of us to give birth in) and then throw the pool away.

I placed a small ad online and within the coming days I received three requests from ladies, all due to give birth over the next few weeks, wanting to use my pool - two in my home county of Hertfordshire and one in Suffolk. I was going to need more birthing pools.

From there my idea snowballed and almost 4 years later I have helped thousands of women have a beautiful water birth just like mine. 

I love hearing the amazing stories from the couples who choose Water Baby Birthing Pool Hire and seeing photos of their first precious moments with their beautiful babies born inside our pools.

Love,

Emma x