Research shows that women who labour in water tend on average to have shorter labours, less need for other forms of pain relief and their babies do well at birth in terms of breathing, heart rate and colour.
The new BIrth Suite at C and W is fantastic - they have 4 rooms with pools and well are worth a visit.
Enjoy!

Hi mumandmore,
This was my first pregnancy. I'm sure I could have gone for more pain relief or been moved to the labour ward. Its good to hear about the other positive experiences too. After finding out I was 5 cm I shouted get me in the pool!!!

I had a fantastic experience at C & W. I initially planned to use the birthing pool for pain relief and then deliver out of the pool but it felt so good in there that I didn't want to get out and made my husband get in with me. I felt that if at any stage I changed my mind re additional pain relief/ epidural that this would not have been an issue at all. From my understanding, the initial stages of labour can slow down if you get into the bath or a pool which is why they said that I could get in once I was 5cm dilated.

I had planned a water birth for our second child but the labour was so quick that it ended up being a home birth (with 2 panadol and husband as midwife). I spent the night the C&W in the new birthing unit and was very impressed - the midwives were great and it was almost like being in a hotel. I highly recommend it!

I did hypno- birthing with both labours and I felt it made a huge difference in managing the pain and also feeling more in control of the whole process.

I had two water births at C&W the first I had to get out after a couple of hours pushing as contractions slowed up and I had a choice of of drugs to speed him up or kiwi cap (like ventouse but smaller as he was practically there) I went for assisted as it was 4am and was tired. All went well and even though I didn't give birth in the water managing the contractions in there and the peace and me feeling in control was brilliant.

Second time round, it was the best. Water was fab and my daughter was out within 20mins of getting in. I was 1.5hrs from start to finish. But again I felt completely in control, midwife supported but let's get on with it and my husband was on the side rubbing my back and passing the gas and air when I needed it.

Second time round I also did hypno birthing which I felt made it so calm and smooth process. I recommend it to all. Amazing how you can manage pain so well by just breathing properly and focusing on the right things.

There was always the option if pain got too much to say I want drugs and move to labour room. I always asked that question as I was very open to pain relief if I needed it.

Good luck but I loved it.

Thank you for sharing Gingercat2. Was this with your second or first child? Do you think you could have switched to the labour ward if you wanted an epidural?

I opted for a water birth at c and w. I was well looked after and had a senior midwife for most of it. The room was nice and serene and we brought our own music.
Most of my active labour was in the water but I gave birth out of the water because things weren't progressing and i was pushing for a long time. It wasn't a problem though because I then had a choice of where to go..either a low bed/ ball/ rope swing etc.
If I can I would opt for a water birth again because most of my active labour was managed in the water with just gas and air.

I posted too quickly - I would appreciate views from anyone who has had a water birth experience

I am having my second in about a week and am undecided about whether to opt for a water birth at C&W or the labour ward. Previously I had an epidural (full not low dose) and whilst it was a relatively quick birth the epidural did slow things down a bit and the cord ended up wrapped around my daughters neck. No idea if this was relate to being on my back for almost all of active labour (I hear C&W do the low dose which is quite attractive) but given that moment was very frightening I want to give my baby the safest and quickest birth possible this time. So I am considering a water birth at C&W however I have read that this too can slow down labour in some cases. Does anyone have any experience of this happening? I seem to only hear positive things about water birth but feel I might not have a balanced view and I don't want t give up the option of a low dose epidural on the labour ward without the full picture.