Water Birth— What Is It Exactly?

What are there benefits to giving birth in water? Are there any risks? What about if you are considering a VBAC? Why has there been so much controversy around waterbirth, and what does the evidence say? Barbara Harper tells us more. Check it out.

What we talked about:

• The many transitions of waterbirth since 1987
• Benefits of waterbirth, for both mom and babies
• Are there any risks?
• Why newborns don’t breathe in while underwater
• Does the water temperature matter?
• What should moms be aware of when having a waterbirth
• Not just for birth: the benefits of prenatal aqua-yoga
• Water as the best non-medicated comfort measure
• Waterbirths and VBACS
• How to get waterbirths into your hospital

Related resources*:

• Waterbirth International website
• The Evidence on: Waterbirth, Evidence Based Birth
• Immersion in Water During Labor and Delivery committee opinion, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
• Why Pediatricians Fear Waterbirth – Barbara Harper Reviews the Research on Waterbirth Safety, Science and Sensibility blog
• Birth, Bath, and Beyond: The Science and Safety of Water Immersion During Labor and Birth, by Barbara Harper for the Journal of Perinatal Education
• Fetus ejection reflex and the art of midwifery, by Michel Odent
• Incredible moment Lisa Marie Sanchez Oxenham Baby Birth (a video of waterbirth that went viral)
• Gentle Birth Choices, by Barbara Harper
• Birth without Violence, by Frédérick Leboyer M.D.
• Magical Child (Plume), by Joseph Chilton Pearce
• The Orgasmic Birth website from Debra Pascali Bonaro
• Bliss Born website, all about hypnosis for childbirth

Image courtesy of Barbara Harper

About Barbara Harper

Barbara Harper is an internationally recognized expert on waterbirth and Gentle Birth who has dedicated her life to changing the way we welcome babies into the world. Barbara founded Waterbirth International in 1988, to ensure that waterbirth is an “available option” for all women.

Over the past four decades, Barbara has worked in many areas of nursing (including OB and pediatrics), has been a home birth midwife, midwifery instructor, doula and doula trainer, and childbirth instructor. She has taught unique seminars within hospitals, midwifery, nursing and medical schools and community groups in over 60 countries. She provides certification training programs for hospitals, so they can integrate water immersion for labor and birth into their maternity units. She has permanent consulting contracts with large hospital corporations in China and India.

Barbara has authored many journal articles and the highly acclaimed book and DVD, Gentle Birth Choices. Her next book “Birth, Bath & Beyond: The Science, Safety and Spirit of Birth in Water”, will be published next year.  She lives in Boca Raton, Florida, where she is active in her community as a volunteer, a midwifery and doula mentor, and teacher.

Connect with Barbara on her website!