After nine active and drug-free hospital births with deliveries by midwives, I found myself having a water birth with my 10th baby. This was, I would say, an accident as it hadn’t even entered my mind to have a waterbirth.

Well 4 days past my due date I went and had a massage and Michael the masseuse did my pressure points and I nearly hit the roof, I had had 2 previous acupuncture appointments with no luck and as I’m 44 the option of being induced with this baby didn’t sit well with me.  After leaving Michael I definitely felt like I was going to burst, but went to the supermarket to get a few things before heading home to deal with my 4yr old and 2 1/2yr old.

After getting them some lunch I plopped myself down on the lounge until I couldn’t stand feeling uncomfortable and got up and headed off to our bed, to have a nap, needless to say halfway down the hallway with kids in tow, my waters burst and I was asked why I had done wees on the floor!  My husband came racing home in unheard-of time and we packed the car and headed to the hospital, a scenic coastal drive, this takes at least an hour, if there are no road works! Well, we hit the jackpot, no road works and the way my husband was driving everyone got out of his way and it took us a mere 40 min with me constantly reminding him that we did want to get there in one piece.

Jumping out of the car and waddling across the main road, towel between my legs, was another highlight of this labour, as was the midwife question she put to us once we got to the birthing suites “now where on earth are we going to put you” hmmm, a room was found, and in popped one of the midwives that I had met in my midwife based antenatal care, “oh you were wanting a waterbirth weren’t you?, um well no, but yes, I’ll give that a go was my answer, so the “bath” was filled and in I went.

Forty-five minutes and 10 contractions later, with 2 pushes out popped our 4020gm baby boy, with husbands hands still intact! Tarique is now 4 months and has settled into our busy, noisy house and I’m sorry that it took me so long to experience a waterbirth. Even though my other births had no intervention etc I feel that it was an amazing experience, and would love to have that experience again.

Revised on 9th December 2021