What is it about Water birth? Narrative and Reflection on a Retrospective Study
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Keywords
Dr. Josie Conte, Water birth, Birthing center, Maine Birthing Center , Ballard House
Abstract
This paper brings together current information on water birth practices in the United States with a personal narrative from my first experience attending a water birth as a doula. It briefly reviews the history, prevalence, and clinical considerations of water birth in the U.S., including ongoing debates around safety, access, and regulation. Interwoven with this overview is a firsthand account of witnessing a water birth for the first time, reflecting on the sensory, emotional, and relational aspects of the experience. By combining research-based context with lived experience, this paper aims to highlight both the evidence and the human meaning of water birth, and to explore how embodied birth experiences shape perspectives on care, autonomy, and physiologic birth.
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Dr. Josie Conte, DO
Dr. Conte spent a decade in medical education, serving as faculty with the Central Maine Medical Center Family Medicine Residency in Lewiston, Maine, and later returning to Maine-Dartmouth Family Medicine in Augusta to work with the ONMM3 residency. She currently serves as President-Elect of the Maine Osteopathic Association and sits on the Governing Council of the Coyote Institute.
She recently opened 5 Elements Osteopathy for Family Wellness in Hallowell, Maine, a practice rooted in holistic care that supports the mind, body, and spirit through movement, nutrition, healthy living, and self-care.