The power of a well planned birth

Congratulations! You are pregnant and is probably giving birth soon!

How does one take charge of their birth? Do I have to take charge of MY birth? You mean to say, I have OPTIONS? I have RIGHTS and a say in how I birth my baby?

For some women, they have specific birth wishes, dreams, preferences and goals on how they want to birth their baby. For others, they prefer leaving it to the doctor to make the decisions for her. Whatever your decision is, it is your given right to choose!

It is YOUR birth, YOUR baby. YOU make the choices.

The decisions during pregnancy, labor, birth, postpartum and baby care are YOURS.

Some women will explore writing a birth plan to communicate with their medical provider on what kind of birth they want to have.

Writing a birth plan allows us to experience the transformational experience inherent in every birth. A well-written plan will allow your baby's birth and early days of postpartum to be magical and not traumatic. It DOES NOT guarantee you your dream birth, but it can help you to fully understand all of your options.

What is a birth plan?

A birth plan can be a great communication and educational tool for expecting parents. They can use it to communicate their birth wishes, preferences, and dislikes with their chosen medical professional. It is a simple and non-confrontational tool used to ensure that everyone is on the same page as the birthing mother and her partner.

“The power of a birth plan isn’t the actual plan, it’s the process of becoming educated about your options!” Jen McLellan

Why write a birth plan?

Writing a birth plan can help you to understand all decisions made in advance of the BIG DAY so when the day comes, you can surrender into the birthing process with confidence and trust. And because your husband is well informed too, he will be more prepared to support you.

While the birth plan sounds like a promising tool, do take note that it is NOT a binding contract. It is flexible and allows the freedom to change upon circumstances.

When writing a birth plan, it is important that you have a clear understanding of what your birth principle is. Birth principle is termed by Jessie Harrold. It is based on your personal values and deepest beliefs about yourself and about birth. Recognising them allow you to realise your desires for birth in which can help you to make certain decisions for your birth.

7 Tips to write a birth plan...

1) Be educated! Know your options!

2) Vision your birth. Have a clear understanding of what you want your birth to look like (work on your birth principle - Claim the free workbook from Jessie Harrold https://www.jessieharrold.com/the-birth-principles-workbook/)

3) Be realistic.

Understand that there are some limitations when giving birth at hospitals.

4) Use the BRAIN acronym when making any decisions

Benefits - What are the benefits?

Risk- What are the risks involved?

Alternative - Are there any alternatives?

Intuition - What does your gut feeling say?

Nothing - What happens if you do nothing at all?

5) Have a Plan B for things that you don't expect. eg. unplanned cesarean section, epidural, baby goes to NICU, emergency C-section, epidural, separation at birth etc

6) Know yourself!! Know your principles on birth. Have an open conversation with your husband, doula and medical provider

7) Keep it Clear, Simple & Concise!

“If you don’t know your options, you don’t have any!” D. Korte

An example of a birth plan.

What happens next?

Once your doctor has consented and agreed to your birth plan, it should be signed by your doctor and yourself. The original document will be placed in the mother's medical record. Make a couple of extra copies to pack in your hospital bag so you can show it to the nurse looking after you when you do go in on the big day.

What happens if my birth doesn't go the way I planned?

My birth plan went down the drain..

My 20 pages birth plan was a waste of time..

Don't bother writing down a birth plan.. birth is unpredictable and unexpected

Heard them before?

This is why understanding your birth principles, speaking to your gynae about the hard stuff (unexpected outcomes), and knowing your options are important in formulating your birth plan. In my experience as a Doula, for mothers who wrote their birth plan with the flexibility that it may change due to circumstances, still result with a positive birth experience outcome. Yes, they may have not gotten their ducks in a row but they came out of their birth fully informed, satisfied, and positive.

Welcoming your new baby deserves to be treated with patience, gentleness and love as he or she emerges from the womb into our world. What could be more important than how your new baby transitions out of the womb and into your arms?

Birth plan is not only for mothers who want to have a natural birth. It is for moms who are going for C section too! (Yes, you have options too Csect mamas =) ) Having clearly defined goals and boundaries can protect you from experiencing a traumatic childbirth experience.

As July is a special month for us, we are offering a complimentary one on one 45 mins Birth Plan Consultation (worth $75) via ZOOM!

Email sha@happyoffspringdoula.com

your name, EDD, mobile number, preferred date & time

Offer is valid till Aug 30th 2020

yours truly,

Shaheeraa