Preparing for Birth: Birth Plans

Welcome to the 6th week in our 10 week series on Preparing for Birth! This week’s focus is on Birth Plans. A birth plan can be a great tool for you and your provider to be on the same page as to your desires for your birth. It can also be a good exercise to go through to flesh out all of the choices and what you really want.

I’ve shared my birth plan before on another blog for my birth center birth. And later this week I’ll share some thoughts on creating your own.

Along with my thoughts, here are some other posts you can read about birth plans!

• Melissa at Vibrant Wanderings shares her Naval Hospital Birth Plan.
• Julie at Inexplicable Ways has some helpful information to consider when writing your birth plan.
• When you are trying to decide what type of interventions you are comfortable with – and which you’d rather stay away from – check out some of the research Dionna at Code Name: Mama compiled on inductions and electronic fetal monitoring, internal exams and epidurals, cesarean sections, birthing on our backs, and a few more.
• Some moms planning a home birth don’t make birth plans at all, but Lactating Girl saw it as an opportunity to remind her midwives of their little quirks, along with deciding what was the most important for them in the case of an emergency transfer.
• Luschka at Diary of a First Child has a whole series of birth plan related posts you can check out. The first in the series explains how to write a birth plan and why you should. Next she gives tips on the basics of a birth plan: the who, the what and the documentation. Pain relief methods and positions for labor and childbirth are also discussed along with making a decision on the Vitamin K shot.
• Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama discusses the importance of a birth plan as well as the basic tenants of one. In addition, she offers a sample birth plan for vaginal delivery. For those mamas electing to have a cesarean, or who fear an emergency or unscheduled one, she has a sample birth plan for a cesarean birth as well.
• Kellie at Mindful Life shares her birth plan for a natural birth.
• Authentic Parenting shares the secret to a successful birth plan and a natural mama’s birth and postpartum kit.

Want to participate? Learn more in my Call for Submissions post.