The Importance of Preparing for Birth
Introduction
It’s of the utmost importance that every mother (and father) prepare well for the arrival of his or her new blessing. Depending on the resources where you live, you may not have access to birth classes. If you do have them, do everything possible to attend them, but if not, here you’ll find basic advice that can prepare you for labor and help you begin breastfeeding without complications.
To locate birth classes in San Antonio, TX, please visit our Birth Classes link.
Create a Birth Plan
A birth plan is a page that communicates to your health providers what’s important to you during your labor, birth, and stay at the hospital or birthing center. Generally, your obstetrician, midwife, pediatrician, or nurses will look over your plan and include a copy in your medical record to be shared with whoever attends the birth.
Make a written birth plan with your partner (preferably prior to your 7th month of pregnancy). Your plan should include preferences regarding important things. Ask your self whether or not you'll want…
The labor:
The birth, ask yourself whether or not you'll want:
During the postpartum period (after the birth), ask yourself whether or not you'll want:
Example: Excellent birth plan samples here
Interventions
Anything used during the labor or the birth of a baby that is not typically needed during a vaginal, unmedicated birth is considered a medical intervention. For example, epidurals or being induced into labor are interventions. Although many women prefer to receive medical interventions, it is possible for pain interventions to create labor complications or to lead to Cesarean births.
Pain medication passes through the mother’s placenta and to the baby, possibly causing the baby to be born less alert or with impaired breastfeeding instincts than other babies, which can impact initial breastfeeding. Although the epidural (given in the spine) doesn’t cross the placenta, it affects what the mother feels and can cause delays in labor which can also lead to a Caesarean birth.
Even though sometimes interventions are necessary, the idea is to do everything possible for your baby to be born vaginally and only resort to a surgical birth in case of an emergency in which the life or well-being of the baby or mother are at risk.
Doula
Using the services of a doula or birth companion is proven to lower the rate of Cesarean births. To learn more and find one in North America, please visit www.DONA.org. To find one in San Antonio, TX, please visit BH's Doula Directory.
Homework:
It’s of the utmost importance that every mother (and father) prepare well for the arrival of his or her new blessing. Depending on the resources where you live, you may not have access to birth classes. If you do have them, do everything possible to attend them, but if not, here you’ll find basic advice that can prepare you for labor and help you begin breastfeeding without complications.
To locate birth classes in San Antonio, TX, please visit our Birth Classes link.
Create a Birth Plan
A birth plan is a page that communicates to your health providers what’s important to you during your labor, birth, and stay at the hospital or birthing center. Generally, your obstetrician, midwife, pediatrician, or nurses will look over your plan and include a copy in your medical record to be shared with whoever attends the birth.
Make a written birth plan with your partner (preferably prior to your 7th month of pregnancy). Your plan should include preferences regarding important things. Ask your self whether or not you'll want…
The labor:
- To have your own support team, other than your partner (your doula, family members, Friends, etc.)
- To have pain medications such as an epidural to be administered to you
- To eat in the room during your labor (many hospitals don’t allow eating during labor)
- To walk/move around while you are having contractions (many hospitals don’t allow mobility after an IV is administered)
- Anything else that’s important to you
The birth, ask yourself whether or not you'll want:
- A private birth (without family, etc.)
- To wait until the umbilical cord to your baby stops beating before cutting it (and who will cut the cord?)
- To hold your baby as soon as it’s born in order to place it skin-to-skin at your breast
- Your baby to be vaccinated when they are born, and/or which vaccines you’ll allow
During the postpartum period (after the birth), ask yourself whether or not you'll want:
- Help with breastfeeding, or if you'll at least want lactation consultants or nurses who understand breastfeeding well to be available to you
- Your partner will be able to accompany your baby to the nursery
- The nurses will bathe your baby or if they will allow you to bathe your baby at home
- To have a plan in the event of an emergency or in case you or your baby are transported to intensive care
- If it’s a boy, whether you’ll want to have him circumcised. (If so, it’s recommended that this be done after breastfeeding becomes routine for you and your baby. Circumcision distracts babies and can affect their level of alertness for learning to feed)
Example: Excellent birth plan samples here
Interventions
Anything used during the labor or the birth of a baby that is not typically needed during a vaginal, unmedicated birth is considered a medical intervention. For example, epidurals or being induced into labor are interventions. Although many women prefer to receive medical interventions, it is possible for pain interventions to create labor complications or to lead to Cesarean births.
Pain medication passes through the mother’s placenta and to the baby, possibly causing the baby to be born less alert or with impaired breastfeeding instincts than other babies, which can impact initial breastfeeding. Although the epidural (given in the spine) doesn’t cross the placenta, it affects what the mother feels and can cause delays in labor which can also lead to a Caesarean birth.
Even though sometimes interventions are necessary, the idea is to do everything possible for your baby to be born vaginally and only resort to a surgical birth in case of an emergency in which the life or well-being of the baby or mother are at risk.
Doula
Using the services of a doula or birth companion is proven to lower the rate of Cesarean births. To learn more and find one in North America, please visit www.DONA.org. To find one in San Antonio, TX, please visit BH's Doula Directory.
Homework:
- Find out about your local birth support resources. Many hospitals offer them.
- Look into doula services in your community. Find out if there are community programs in your area to help with the cost of hiring a doula.
- Read books about birth. Ask your Friends what books they’ve read that helped them understand the birth process.
- Use the Internet to familiarize yourself with topics that are important to you, such as vaccinations, circumcision, and breastfeeding, etc.
- Share this page with your partner and with the people who will support you during labor
Use of this class by non-parents: This class has been written for parents, and while birth and breastfeeding professionals may share it with their clients, it must be shared as a web-links or printed directly from this site. This class or any portion of it cannot be used a class outline for another breastfeeding professionals' breastfeeding class, nor can any portion of it be copied or pasted. Any dissemination of this class must be in its entire original form (weblink or printed pages) and must cite Breastfeeding Housecalls and Laura Gruber, IBCLC as its author and owner.
