How To Create A Birth Plan
If you’ve spent any time googling pregnancy or childbirth related topics online, you’ve probably come across the phrase “birth plan” more than just a couple times. To some, it might seem contradictory - how could you possibly plan for birth? Pregnancy is already so unpredictable on its own, what’s the point in making a plan for how the delivery will pan out? The fact is, birth is unpredictable. There are so many variables - for example, health of mom, health of baby, and access to prenatal healthcare - that can affect pregnancy, the progress of labor or outcome of a birth. Even a low-risk person could develop complications or labor progress could be stalled for one reason or another. In these situations, what would YOU do? It can be overwhelming to think about, but preparing a birth plan ahead of time can help you and your partner decide ahead of time what your ideal birth would look like, and how you will navigate unexpected circumstances should they come along. A birth plan is not a checklist of “things that must happen for the birth to be a success” - but rather, a collection of preferences that you and your partner have thought about in advance, that can serve as a point of reference for you, your medical staff and support people.
Creating Your Birth Plan
There is technically no right or wrong way to create a birth plan. As long as it includes all of the important information, it doesn’t matter what format or medium you use to create it. Ideally, it should be something that you can easily take with you to doctors appointments, meetings with your doula or midwife, and to the hospital or birthing center where you’ll be delivering. You may want to hand write it in a notebook, type it up on the computer or have it saved on your phone. Regardless of the format, your birth plan should include basic details regarding your preferences for labor and birth.
What To Include On Your Birth Plan
First, you may want to include basic details about yourself and your care provider, such as your name, telephone number, address, and the name, address and phone number of your care provider. You may also want to include the name and address of where you are planning to deliver, as well as your estimated due date. You may also want to include the name and phone number for your baby’s pediatrician, your support people, and/or your doula.
Next, you can write out or list your preferences for interventive measures that may be typical for your birth setting. For example, if you plan to give birth in a hospital but would rather have intermittent instead of continuous fetal monitoring, this is something you’d want to note on your birth plan. You can also do the same thing for IV fluids, cervical checks, or whether you want or do not want an episiotomy.
After that, you can specify other things you’d prefer to do to stay comfortable during labor and delivery. You can add your preferences on movement during labor, whether you want the lights on or off/dim, whether you want music playing, use hot or cold therapy, aromatherapy or essential oils, whether you’d like to wear the hospital gown or your own clothes, or whether you’d like to have a shower or tub available for labor. Anything you can think of that will make this personal and intimate experience more comfortable and enjoyable for you, add it to your birth plan!
Next, you should write out your preferences for pain management. If you are planning to receive an epidural or nitrous oxide, note it on your birth plan. Conversely, if you’d rather no one ask you about pain medication at all, write that instead!! Understand your options for pain management and make sure your medical staff and support people are all on the same page.
After that, you can list any preferences you have for pushing. Again, understand your options! If you’d rather be told when to push or directed on how to push, specify that in the birth plan. You may want to note that if you’re able to, you’d like to switch positions while pushing. You may also want to wait until your feel the urge to push. Also, do you want to touch the baby’s head as it crowns? Do you want a mirror so you can see the baby emerge?
Then, list your preferences for the immediate after-birth stage, such as whether or not you’d like the baby placed directly onto your chest, whether you want to delay cord clamping and for how long (and who will cut the cord), and whether you want to initiate breastfeeding as soon as possible, or prefer to formula-feed instead.
What About A Cesarean Birth?
If you’re expecting to have a cesarean birth or already have one scheduled, creating a birth plan can still be beneficial! Although the operating room has a different set of rules and procedures than a typical labor and delivery room, it may still be possible to incorporate certain personal preferences or comfort measures to make sure that you have a positive feeling about the whole experience. If you do need to deliver via cesarean, you may want to look into what’s called a “gentle” or “family centered” cesarean. Traditionally, since a cesarean is a surgical procedure, the birthing mom and partner can sometimes be left feeling disconnected from the experience and disconnected from the baby if they are seperated for a long period of time. But if mom and baby are both in good health and there is time for some decision making or sharing of preferences ahead of time, it may be helpful to ask for your cesarean birth to be more “family-centered”. A few things you may want to consider are a clear drape so you can see the baby emerge, immediate or as-soon-as-possible skin-to-skin and breastfeeding, requesting your personal playlist or favorite musical genre be played in the operating room, or even suggesting the medical staff keep conversation light and/or focused on the birth and the baby. If you’re expecting to have a cesarean, talk to your support people and care providers about whether or not anything mentioned here may be an option for you!
Writing down your birth plan and preferences can be a really fun and enjoyable part of your pregnancy. Imagining the moments leading up to meeting your baby can help you feel excited about the whole experience, and having a plan in place may help you feel more confident and calm going into it. Of course it’s important to be flexible, and to understand that everything may not go according to plan - like many things in life! You won’t regret ironing out your preferences ahead of time in order to ensure you have the most positive and most satisfying experience and memories of the birth. Your doula, if you’ve hired one, can help you formulate your birth plan and also advocate for you throughout your pregnancy and delivery to be sure that your care providers and any other support people are aware of your preferences and their importance to you.