Making a Birth Plan - Topics to Consider

Making a birth plan is one of the most important things you can do to prepare for the birth of your baby. When your care provider and your doula know exactly what you'd like, decision making during labour and birth becomes smoother, giving you more time to focus the task at hand. It also allows your doula to advocate for you if she sees that your preferences aren't being met. However, it is also important to consider how you might feel if things don't go entirely as planned. Will this affect the way you see your birth as a whole? If so, what can you do to make it feel better for you? Working with your birth team to make your birth a positive experience can set your postpartum days off to a healthy start!

To get you started, I've compiled a list of items to carefully consider. I encourage you to do research on any items you are not sure about, and talk it out with your partner, care provider and your doula.

General:

~ Who will be at the birth?

~ Plans for siblings?

~ When your midwife will come to your home (Your midwife will guide you in this)

~ When will you go to the hospital?

~ When will your doctor try to be there?