One of the most exciting parts of pregnancy is planning for when your baby arrives, but before you get to meet your little one, you’ll need to think about the labour.
The birth plan
Writing a birth plan is an essential part of the labour process and helps the medical team be aware of your likes and dislikes, but creating this document can be daunting for pregnant women if they’re not sure what to expect during their delivery.
Below are some things you’ll need to think about when constructing a birth plan. It’s important to list out anything that you feel strongly about, such as:
- What kind of birth would you like? Waterbirths are popular but not suitable for everyone, if this is something you are keen on, discuss it well in advance with your midwife.
- Who is going to be your birth partner? Do you have a back-up in case your 1st choice doesn’t make it in time? What authority do they have to make decisions for you?
- What kind of pain relief would you prefer? Are you against any certain types? Try to have a few options in case the pain is worse than you imagined.
- Do you want your baby passed to you immediately after the birth or after they are cleaned?
- Have you chosen to breastfeed or bottlefeed?
- Are you willing to have students in the room whilst you are in labour?
You can also include some additional information for remaining comfortable and confident during your labour and making the experience more special. These can include:
- Would you like music playing – this can be good as a distraction and some women like to remember the song that was playing when their child was born.
- Being able to walk around and keep moving can help with the pain and is important to some mums-to-be. If it is to you, be sure to include it in your birth plan.
- Mention any position preferences for giving birth, such as using gravity to help.
- Does your partner want to cut the cord?
The important thing to remember with any birth plan is to be flexible. Whilst you may be imagining the perfect birth, labour rarely follows a schedule or turns out as you planned, so try to stay as open minded as possible. Whilst you should be clear on anything you really don’t want, remember that when you’re in labour you may feel very differently.
Also it’s important to follow the advice of the medical team, if there are complications you may not be able to stick rigidly to some of the things in your birth plan, remember that your birth partner and midwife are there to support you and help you find answers to anything you’re unsure of.
Preparing for the labour
You’ll also need to think about preparations at home. Such as:
- Do you have transportation to and from the hospital?
- Is the car-seat ready?
- Is your hospital bag packed and in an easily accessible place?
- Is your birth partner on hand and ready to be called upon when your labour starts?
- Is there someone to look after any other children you have? Or pets that may need feeding or walking?
Returning home with your newborn
It’s also worth thinking ahead about when you return home with your newborn baby. If you’ve had a cesarean section then you’ll need a lot of help for the first few weeks and even though this may not be planned for you, there are some cases when the decision for a c-section is made last minute. Even if you have a normal birth you’ll still probably appreciate some support initially, so make sure you have family and friends on hand to help out.
