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Ruth's Guide to Water Births

Ruth Weston runs Aquabirths with her husband David, and has used Aquabirths pools for her own chidren's births. Here, Ruth answers some of your common questions about water births, home births, and Aquabirths.

Why have a water birth?

Water provides a natural aid to the body's pain relieving systems and many women have enjoyed natural and drug free births in our pools. An Aquabirths pool is large and deep, insulated and padded, offering women and their partner maximum space to move around, and comfort for resting during labour and birth. The pool provides a calm and safe environment where a mother can have privacy and control over her labour and birth. As parents of four waterbabies out of five children, we would recommend an Aquabirths pool. It is simply a beautiful place to give birth!

Do we hire inflatable pools?

No. Over the last 15 years we've thought about using them for the sake of ease of posting and cost to customer. To get a pool of a quality that we were happy to hire or sell would cost the same as a rigid pool. The cut-price inflatables in vogue are children's pools and are not intended for use indoors. We can fully understand why people would want to use a less expensive option: water births should be available on the NHS and we deplore the gross variation in provision. Aquabirths is partly a social enterprise - if cost is an obstruction, please do contact us!! We will leave the last words to a woman who was, until recently, an agent for a birth pool company selling inflatable (paddling) pools -

" I want a proper pool for my second birth. Whenever I leant on the sides I was never sure."

With an Aquabirths pool you get safety and assurance, and you also get a service that looks after you.

How big is the pool?

The pool is circular, 1.5m (5 feet) in diameter and 0.73 m (2' 6") high. It comes in four sturdy, insulated fibreglass arcs which can be quickly and easily bolted together. Two liners (a thick one and a sanitised one) are stretched over this frame to hold the water. The size of the pool gives plenty of space for a large pregnant body to move about in or for a partner or midwife to get in. Everything you need comes with it.

Is it easy to assemble?

The assembly of the pool is simple, taking about 10 minutes if you know what you're doing, and 20 minutes if you don't. For practical reasons it is easier if there are two people stretching the liners over the frame.

Can I only use it once?

Do I use it just for the birth? Absolutely not! Its therapeutic benefits are not limited to labour itself - many women find it very helpful for pelvic and lower back pain in late pregnancy. And it is a great pleasure to luxuriate in a large padded pool. So bathe on your own, with your partner or all the family at once. Invite friends and neighbours and have a pool party! Other siblings will love the pool and no doubt wish to have a turn (in shallower water). However, for safety's sake, never leave children in the pool alone or alone in a room with a full pool.

Cleaning the pool. After each use we recommend the liner is sprayed with a sanitizing detergent we supply, rinsed down with cold water and then bailed out using a jug, or roughly mopped with a clean towel. If you have filled (or part-filled) a pool in readiness for the birth, after more than 24 hours it will need emptying, sanitizing and rinsing before being refilled.

Have a practise run. At the very least use it once, as a practise for the big day because labour is not the time to be trying to follow instructions for the first time. And using the pool will give you the opportunity to arrange it to your liking for when the big day comes.

How does the water stay warm?

Aquabirths pools are designed not to need water heaters in most household settings. The sides of the pool are insulated and the pool is supplied with an insulating cover. This insulation is very effective in keeping the water warm. The pools have enough depth to allow them to be topped up with hot water as needed. If you find you need a heater, we can hire these as well.

Won't it be too heavy for the floor?

Whilst the pool contains under a ton of water, it is well spread out. Leeds University Maths Dept calculated that the floor pressure is minimal - 1.09 psi. We've used a pool on the second floors of an old terraced house and a modern house, both with wooden floors, and had not the slightest problem. Our experience over the last 15 or so years is that weight is rarely a problem. On one occasion, a woman living in a timber home asked the advice of a surveyor. The surveyor suggested using the ground floor - which she did, and it was fine. If you are concerned, get a local builder to check it out, and position the pool in a corner or close to a wall.

How do I fill and empty it?

The pool is filled with a hosepipe fitted to your tap (we cater for nearly every shape and size of tap). Please tell us how far your taps will be from the pool so that we can supply the right length of hosing. It is important to keep this pipe clean, and we will show you how to do this with the sanitiser we provide. It is easiest to fill a pool if you have continuous hot water via a combi boiler and takes around 1½ hours (depending on water pressure and how full you want the pool).

Emptying the pool takes only a few minutes with the electric pump we supply. The reinforced pipe is attached to the pump and can be put down the U-bend of the loo, out into the back garden, down an outside drain or into a bath (but keep an eye on it as it can pump it into the bath quicker than it can go down the plug-hole). See tips and ideas

It is perfectly possible to fill a pool via an immersion heater, though it will take longer to fill. Please talk to us about this there are some useful tactics and tips. All pools can be supplied with extra insulating covers. In an insulated pool with such a large body of water, heat loss is so slow it won't lose much heat whilst you wait for the immersion heater to warm another tank of water. The water needs to be around body temperature and comfortable for the mother - usually 34-38 degreesC, which isn't that hot. And we can also hire you a heater too.

How much does it cost? How long do I hire it for?

The pricing has been restructured and details are given in Current pricing . The difference between Aquabirths and most other pool hire companies is that the price is inclusive - all equipment and delivery and collection and an extra long hire period are in the price.

What do I get for my money?

The personal service we offer, and most of the equipment which we provide as standard, appears to be 'additional extras' for others. The pool is simple to use, comfortable, roomy and robust. It is usually the case that we deliver the pool to you, set it up and show you how to use it - you will not have a load of equipment dumped on you!

The delivery and collection of the pool after the birth is included in the price because we know you will have more important things to do!

Instructions?

When we deliver a pool, we will set it up and give full instructions (there aren't that many) and show you what you need to do. It takes about 10 minutes to put up if you know what you are doing, and 20 minutes if you do not. If you have any questions, we are available by phone, e-mail and (possibly) in person. We also give full written instructions.

Where we cannot deliver the pool and have to use a courier, there are full written instructions and we are available by e-mail or telephone. The assembly of the pool is simple enough but for practical reasons it is easier if there are two people stretching the liners over the frame.

Can I have a birthing pool in hospital?

You can have your pool at home or hospital, Aquabirths commonly hire and supply pools to women and NHS Trusts. Some maternity units allow you to take your pool into hospital - you need to negotiate this with your Trust. As you can elect to have your baby at any hospital, you may wish to ring round.

How do I book the pool?

Hiring an Aquabirths' pool. We hire out our pools as a package because we feel that you have more important things to bother about and want to do all we can for you. So our hire fee includes all equipment, delivery, collection and pool set up. The cost of the pool hire is reduced if you choose to collect and return the pool to an agent or us. We also offer a Standing Order service to spread the cost of hire over several months. We have discounts for midwives and subsequent hires so do tell us! We do not want cost to be an impediment to you having the birth you want so do talk to us if this is an issue. You can book online, by phone or by post or you can e-mail us.

How soon before the birth do I need to book?

Basically, the sooner you book the more likely it is that you can hire the pool for the period you want particularly if your baby is due in September or Spring. However, so far we have managed to get a pool to everyone who has booked with us - including a few who booked with the words 'my waters have just gone'!

What if I can't use the pool? Do I get a refund?

If you cancel before we deliver the pool then all the hire fee but the deposit is returned. When the pool is delivered, however, hiring a pool is like hiring a car and you pay for the hire whether you use it or leave it parked on the drive. So, the best thing to do is use the pool as much as possible so there is no disappointment if your plans have to change. The pool is not just for the labour and birth. It can be used repeatedly in the weeks up to the birth to help relaxation.

Further Information on waterbirths

There is a lot of independent and high quality research that supports waterbirth and many waterbirth stories. We would recommend you look at our website for more information and weblinks. Excellent websites for information on homebirths and waterbirths are www.homebirth.org.uk and www.aims.org.uk. To do a medical literature search use the search engine at midwivesonline.com. If you have any problems obtaining a waterbirth or a homebirth then AIMS (Association for Improvements for Maternity Services) is an excellent organization for information and support. Their helpline number is 0870 765 1433 and their website is www.aims.org.uk.

Ruth Weston