# Water birth with skin to skin contact and delayed cord clamping



## MidnightSun

I have been wondering how this will all work?

I am hoping to have a water birth using Natal Hypnotherapy. I would also like skin to skin contact with my baby for around an hour after she's delivered (although I have since been told this is standard practice now where I live, unless you are very against it) I am also wanting delayed cord clamping/cutting so that my baby gets the best amount of blood and oxygen from her placenta after the birth and that I will deliver her placenta naturally (I hope!)

My question is obviously baby will still be attached to her placenta whilst we are enjoying skin to skin contact, will they let me deliver the placenta in the pool so that I don't have to let go of her? If they won't how am I going to get out whilst still attached to baby and still having my hour long skin to skin that they advise?!

I was also told at antenatal that if I wanted to deliver her placenta physiologically that they would wait a certain amount of time, but that if we waited and it didn't come I couldn't then have the injection - is this true?


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## Bournefree

Hi Midnight - Whether you are planning to have your baby at home, or a stand alone birth centre, or a MW lead unit in a main hospital, or even an obstetric unit - you can have skin to skin while you wait for 3rd stage to be completed and the placenta is delivered. This goes for in a pool or out of a pool. 

It certainly isn't a case of allowed to, it is your decision (it can boil my blood to have the words physiological and allowed in the same sentence.. after all it is what your body wants to do and will do without interference) - It might be recommended by your health team to cut the cord or deliver the placenta on land.. but this shouldn't be routine "policy" You shouldn't be assisted by a MW who is inexperienced in water births, as an experienced water birth MW should be able to asses any blood loss in the pool in the same way as on land. However if blood loss does become a concern, you might feel more controlled getting out of the pool with baby still attached, if someone (MW or partner) to closely take baby from you for the moment of getting out and pass baby back to you. If you feel better not giving the baby to anyone, then don't.
Getting out shouldn't mean that you have to clamp or cut the cord. The umbilical cord is surprisingly long! and it need to be, so baby can reach the breasts whilst still being attached - it is one of the wonderful designs of nature.
Not only will having baby still attached at the cord make sure you get your skin to skin, it will also aid your 3rd stage, esp if you start breast feeding in the first 30mins after birth.

You can still have the injection to help deliver the placenta well over an hour later - however, some would argue that at this upper limit it is less effective. I don't see how these synthetic hormones can go off.. and BE less effective, (they are not, but if your uterus has already started to contract down on its own, then less of the hormone can penetrate the muscle of the uterus to cause the uterus to contract with the synthetic hormones - which if you are contracting down already, you won't need it anyway!?)
... but it prob has more to do with making the judgement of whether your 3rd stage is just being naturally slower than others, or deciding that the placenta is retained. It can be difficult to decide, as having the injection directly after birth, there is a greater number of reported retained placentas in women than a physiological 3rd stage.

My personal view is that if you have let things take there own course in labour and birth, why would you then want to head for the injection straight away? It isn&#8217;t as though you need to be going anywhere, just enjoy time with baby. Most women don&#8217;t even notice the contractions of delivering the placenta. 

Hope this helps and hasn't muddied it up for you more! ;-) Stick to what you want, and you will get what you want. 
Xxx


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## MidnightSun

What a wonderful post, thank you so much!

I just have quite firm views as to how I would like my birthing experience to be, and I don't want hurried MW's to make me stray from that as for all I know I may only ever do this once and I want it to be how I have planned it for my baby.

I'll make sure that I write it in my birth plan about the aftercare etc.

Thanks hun :flower:


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## Mummytofour

I had my last two LO's in the pool and stayed in there for probably 40 minutes still attached.:thumbup:

I did get out to cut the cord and deliver the placenta, purely because the water was getting a bit chilly! So it can be done no problems. Just make sure you have ALL your wishes written in your case notes and someone to back you up in labour.

My DH has always been given strict instructions on not allowing them to do certain things if I'm not capable of making a decision.:winkwink:


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## NaturalMomma

If they don't let you deliver the placenta in the pool then you can still be attatched and hold onto baby as you're moved. You will have helpers once you move from the pool to the bed. While the placenta is still inside the baby will be by your abdomen because that is usually how far the cord will go. Once the placenta is out you can wrap it into a chux pad.


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## Emmea12uk

Great question and answer! Thank you!


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## madasa

I have heard of people doing 3rd stage in the pool.... I think if the cord is very short then the logistics of it can be tricky.... For ex, it could be hard to bring bubs up to your chest for the skin to skin and s/he'd have to "wallow" in the warm water to keep warm until the cord stops pulsing and/or until you are ready to have it cut. And THEN have skin to skin, once it is cut. Does that make sense?

I had a WB and I held my baby to my chest straight away and someone put a couple of towels over her (not between us though). After a bit, we cut the cord and got out for the 3rd stage, with more skin to skin. Looking back I would rather have waited even longer before cutting, but we live and learn :)


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## Greta Chick

Hi

My DD1 was born in the pool and we stayed in there for about an hour having skin to skin. The cord stopped pulsating so DH cut the cord then I got out to deliver the placenta while he had cuddles (I was getting cool by then so wanted to get out and get dry). The placenta took ages to come, I breastfed twice and the mw had to pull it while I pushed really hard (it was massive when it came out and rock hard, it felt as hard to push that out as it had getting DD out!)

With DD2 I had a natural delivery of the placenta but it had moved right down and I could feel it wanting to come out within about 10 minutes of delivery. I was breastfeeding at the time and gave a little push and out it came, much smaller and softer than DD1's.

xx


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## moomin_troll

zane was on my chest when i delievered the placenta....well i say delievered the mw just pulled it out, it felt so weird. 

our skin to skin wasnt very long so this time im going to get as much as i can. i love skin to skin with zane even now.


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## lynnikins

i had an out of water birth with EJ but delivery the placenta naturally about 40 min after he was born, the cord was easily long enough to allow him to nurse and he did till i had delivered the placenta then DH got him to cuddle and dress while i got stiches :(


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