I read many different articles on whether or not I should write a birthing plan. Many stated they were a waste of time and you should just verbally tell your healthy care provider what your wishes were. Others expounded on the benefits of having one and the dangers of not writing every wish down. This is definitely a personal preference. I am somewhat controlling, so I decided a birthing plan would be helpful and make sure even I knew what I wanted on that big day. Doing the research really opened my eyes on all of the options and decisions that would have to be made before the baby comes, during the contractions and after they are delivered.
With that being said, birthing plans can be scary. There are templates available that list EVERY single eventuality. While these templates are certainly helpful, I recommend writing out your own plan with your specifics. It can be very short, only covering the most important aspects or it can encompass labor, delivery, c-sections, newborn care and post-baby. If this is your first baby, this is somewhat of a guessing game. You really don’t know what to expect or how you will really react. If it’s a consecutive child, you have a much better idea of how things will go and what your wishes will be.
Make your birthing plan a few months in advance for two reasons. Reason one, in case you go into labor early you are ready. Obviously, if your labor begins extremely early that might throw the birthing plan out anyway. Reason two, this gives you time to discuss with your doctor everything on your list and verify that they and the hospital are willing to accommodate your wishes. Some things are the law or are to protect you. It’s better you know what is allowed and what is not before your contractions start.
Understand that this is a plan and plans can change. Babies do not follow any rules. It’s a very good idea to include both natural delivery options and Cesarean requests, as you don’t know how you will have to deliver. It’s also a good idea to include “I would like unless” statements. This way you can state what you would primarily like but still state your wishes if a complication arises. Your plan can include newborn procedures as well, such as vaccinations refusals or cord cutting options. Make sure to include pain management options. This is probably the biggest area of difference between deliveries and most women are adamant about one or the other. It’s best if both parents can write the plan together. While the father isn’t giving birth themselves, they are usually present and it’s great if they know the mothers wishes and have input as to what happens with the baby after they are born. In worst case scenarios where the mother is unable to make a decision, the father doesn’t have to guess during such a stressful situation.
My entire birthing plan was based on a having an unmedicated natural delivery, as a c-section was only for absolute emergencies. Lo and behold, my pelvis was too narrow for my big baby and a c-section became necessary. Many of the items on my list that I was so concerned about, didn’t even make a difference in the long run since my labor was less than 3 hours long. I didn’t have time to worry about walking or eating. I didn’t verify everything on my list with the hospital, so I was required to have an IV instead of just a lock. Since I ended up having a c-section anyway, it was such a big deal. I held strong and didn’t have any pain medication until my Spinal Block moments before my c-section.
The most important part of my birthing plan ended up being our wishes for our baby. We were refusing the Hepatitis B vaccine, wanted her to be washed in our room, and in the event that we were separated my husband was to follow our baby. The last meant he left me in the OR but that was a choice we wanted. Our hospital was very pro-breastfeeding so we didn’t need to state we did not want any artificial nipples or sugar-water but this may not be the case for every hospital.
I recommend keeping your birthing plan to one typed page. Make extra copies once it gets the thumbs up from the doctor and hospital if necessary. Your doctor will probably keep one with your record but it’s best to have them with you at the hospital in case there is an issue. I’m going to include the links to the three birthing plans here here & here I used to eventually create my own. All three include everything you could possibly list. Even if you don’t have a preference on some of the options, it’s helpful to know what route your doctor does or will take. Do they use forceps or a vacuum and do you want that? What is intermittent monitoring versus continual and what does the hospital require? The more prepared you can be, the less stressful the big day will be for everyone.
Did you make a birthing plan? Did you get to stick to it?
Mommy Outside The Box 