I have been aware of water births since my first pregnancy in 1992. The idea of birthing in water always fascinated and appealed to me, but because of my Rh sensitization (untreatable), I had high risk pregnancies and was ineligible for midwife assisted delivery and home birth, and therefore water birthing appeared to be out of the question.

When I became pregnant with my fourth child, my husband David and I enrolled in a childbirth class taught by my doula and friend of nine years, Patti Ramos. Imagine my pleasant surprise when she informed the class that the hospital where I was planning to deliver now permits water births at the hospital! Patti not only is experienced in providing doula service for water birthing moms, but she rents the tubs as well. David and I already planned to hire Patti to photograph and attend our birth, and so we arranged to rent a tub. We were very excited, but cautious about who we shared our decision with due to fearful and critical reactions some uninformed people have to the notion of water birth.

In addition to the joyful anticipation and excitement, I felt quite a bit of fear as well leading up to the delivery. My first two children were delivered on a hospital bed and I had had epidurals (I miscarried my third baby). The second birth in particular was very hard and upsetting, as I experienced a "window" of pain just where I needed relief the most. Panic set in and I was fairly uncooperative in pushing my son out. The idea of "natural" labor and delivery, though attractive for a variety of reasons, was very scary. After reading all the water birth stories on a waterbirth website and praying about it, I was encouraged that I could do it, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't still a bit afraid of the unknown.

I ended up10 days past my due date. Several times on previous days I had experienced mild contractions that never yielded anything, so when I went to bed March 12th with some contractions, I was hopeful but not convinced that I was in labor. When I awoke the next morning and they were still there, I started thinking that maybe "this is it."

I got my sons ready for school and it was decided that David should go into work for a while and keep his cell phone nearby at all times. By the time I dropped the kids off at school, I was certain I would be delivering within 24 hours. I called my doula and then David, suggesting he not rush, but that he come home. "I'm having the baby today," I told him.

To pass the time and stock the house to last a while, I went grocery shopping. It was fun talking with employees and customers who inquired and telling them I was going home after my shopping trip and having the baby. "You mean you're having contractions right now?" they'd ask incredulously. I was taking note of the time of each contraction in the margin on my grocery list.

When I got home, my husband and I scarfed down a quick lunch and drove to the hospital. My contractions were getting uncomfortable by then. The first check revealed I was dilated to a six.

My doctor was not on-call that day, so Kathleen (a midwife) assisted me, along with Patti (my doula), David, and a close friend and her daughter. It was nice and intimate. My pass-out-at-the-sight-of-needles-and-blood husband not only attended and assisted the whole birth, but he helped deliver Tyler, put him on my chest, AND cut the cord. He even ate a snack in the middle of the whole thing. Go figure!

I guess both David and I learned what we were really made of during this delivery.

I had arrived at the hospital at 1:00 and delivered less than 4 hours later, so I was very pleased with that. In fact, Patti had ordered me to lie on the bed with my legs closed in the beginning because the birthing tub hadn't been ready for me yet.

Still, labor and delivery was very, very hard. This was my first natural birth. It was both totally cool and totally horrifying to experience all the sensations that I had previously missed due to epidurals. I am truly grateful for and awed by the experience...but I don't ever want to do it again! (hee hee!) I felt a bit like a caged animal before Tyler came out, and ran the whole gamut of emotions--anxiety, fear, doubt, anger, rage, despair, desperation, peace, expectancy, hopefulness, exhilaration, excitement, joy, etc. Everyone was very respectful and responsive to my needs. Just when it seemed to me that the baby would never come out, Kathleen broke my water for me. This really kicked things into high gear. The contractions were so strong they nearly took my breath away. I finally got to experience that "urge to push" that people talk about. I never felt that during previous deliveries because of the epidurals. But instead of it being an "urge", it was more like my body was going to push whether I wanted to or not! Thank God for that, because I was afraid of the pain. The lights were dimmed and the room became very still and quiet. It turned out my preference was to work through the contractions quietly, and so the absence of audio and visual distractions helped tremendously with my concentration. During contractions, I needed to be with just me, God, and my baby--hated being touched or talked to. Between contractions I rested and waited in my own internal world. My contact with the" outside" was selective awareness and silent gratitude for the cool rags Patti and David put to my burning face and an occasional sip of water.

As Tyler crowned, I felt the need to yell through the pushes and thought I would surely die, but once his little head came out and I saw it (and some of the pressure was relieved) I was instantly SO SO SO VERY glad that I had made the choice I made. When my baby's body came out there was a rush of peace and joy and love that completely filled me, and it was instantly all more than worth it. As I lay there in the warm water with my new little person lying on my chest, I just couldn't believe it. He didn't cry or anything. Just made a lot of faces and a few soft noises as he started slowly using his lungs for the first time. We let him stay in the water with me, with only his head and shoulders above the water, for about 10 minutes while we waited for the cord to quit pulsing. That part was just awesome. He did finally cry when wrapped in wet blankets and lifted out of the tub into the cold air. Still, overall I can't imagine a more peaceful birth from the baby's perspective.

In the days that followed he continued to be a very quiet, peaceful baby...rarely crying. He even lay quietly or slept during procedures like having his foot poked for blood.

When discussing childbirth, most people only consider what the mother endures and very few talk about or try to imagine what the baby experiences through it all. Water birth is an extraordinary way to bring a new person into the world, and I recommend it to anyone who strongly desires a natural (medication-free, non-invasive) labor and delivery and who is concerned about the baby's experience. I am sure that being born was still stressful for Tyler, but the comfort of transitioning from water inside to water outside allowed him to relax enough that he could focus on all the other aspects of being born--like the sight of his parents' faces, the feel of his mother's skin, the touch of his father, and the sound of excited whispers.

While laboring and birthing in water did not eliminate for me what I can only term "pain", I do believe immersion in warm water made pain more manageable during contractions and pushing, and definitely facilitated calming and relaxation between contractions. In particular, the water was very beneficial right after Tyler came out, easing after birth pains, keeping baby and me warm and cozy, and providing a soothing and tranquil environment for mother, father, and baby to bond in those first important minutes following delivery.

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