The Oral History of Women's Experience of Water Birth

• Main Authors: You, Chung-Ning, 游中寧
• Other Authors: Kuo, Su-Chen
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2011
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/45843193627658002596

碩士 === 國立臺北護理健康大學 === 護理助產研究所 === 99 === This study aims to investigate women's experience and feelings of water birth using oral history and in-depth interview methodology. In this study, thirteen women are interviewed. All of them used water during labor and birth and three among them are multipara. A worth-mentioning fact is that nine out of the thirteen interviewees attend the same yoga class, and they were all deeply influenced by the yoga teacher’s philosophy of the gentle birth. Each woman had been interviewed two to three times, each interview took approximately 1.5-3 hours and was transcribed and analyzed afterward. The interview process was guided by the guideline to facilitate the interviewees to share their experiences about the aspiration to pursue water birth, and the feeling of the whole maternity process. The study finds out that women are feared by the negative impression of the birth process, and unsatisfied with the current status of health care environment. Therefore they begin to search for solutions through pregnancy yoga classes, Internet, books, etc. for the knowledge of birth, and get determined to the pursuit of natural delivery by physical exercising. During the pursuit and practice of gentle birth, professional information, advice and assistance are necessary. Also, women need to apply strategies such as the birth plan to communicate with the hospital care team. During the process of giving birth, women strongly feel that the water release the physical pain bring about the relaxation effects. Also, the husband’s support is very crucial. In all, women expect more alternative ways of birth-giving beyond the traditional maternity care system. In retrospect, the women in this study have a strong sense of body, and gain more confidence from the water birth experience. To sum up, the results of this study prove women’s alternative demand, to provoke different ways of thinking and reflection for the clinical practitioners. Also, women look forward to more diversified clinical care approaches as well as the water birth one provided by the maternity care system.