How did you come up with a birth plan?

[mrsdee1982]

We're meeting with a prospective Douala next weekend.  She wants us to email her our "Hearts Desires" list for our birthing experience.


We've never done this before.  I don't know what we want and what we don't want.  How did you come up with something if you've never done this before?   

[mrskblack11]

I have been researching all the scenarios so I am informed of all the possible options and outcomes. I will not create a formal birth plan. My OB told me at my last appointment that some of her patients will have them but it all depends on what the baby is doing. She said as much as she would like to think she has control of how things play out, it is all up to how the baby is positioned and how he doing during labor.

[theBeeMama]

I use this app called Pregnancy + (the app is pink and has a fetus on it, I think if you just search "pregnancy" in your App Store it should be one of the first choices)

Anyway it has some really helpful tools (baby names, hospital bag check list, etc.) and one of my favorite things about it is that it has a whole section to help you create your birth plan. It gave me at least somewhere to start, then I googled other things I was curious about. If you need more info on finding the app I'll try to assist. It REALLY helped me.

[sugarbean17]

I am a doula ans this is what I like from clients when talking about birth plans. Look up different positions for pain management and pushing, if there are any of those you think would be nice to try or know you would hate those are great things to have written down to help your doula. Also if you would be up for trying a shower or a bath (if available). Who you want in the room at different points through out labor especially when it's time to push. Most importantly anything you feel very strongly about... episiotomy, epidural, iv pain meds, pictures of what and when.

[billyhorrible]

I didn't have a birth plan, but I went in knowing what I wanted/didn't want.

I knew I wanted to avoid a C-section if possible, partially because I didn't really want surgery and partially because the recovery would be longer and I had signed up for a half marathon 3 months later.

As far as pain medication, I was totally at odds. I didn't want an epidural because of my needle phobia, but I also didn't really want to be in pain for hours depending on how labor went. My good friend's husband is an anesthesiologist, so he and I had a heart to heart where we discussed all possible options, what my best bets were, when to ask for what, etc.

My birth class was the best at helping me decide on some birth options. We went over everything the hospital had to offer, which is when I first learned about the squatting bar and I was sold. So that went on my list as what I'd like to use for the actual delivery.

Everything else really came with being informed about the entire birth process, complications, causes, effects, etc. So when I knew I'd be on pitocin, that helped me decide on an epidural. And when they broke my water, I knew I wanted to limit any internal interventions/checks that could introduce or increase my risk of infection.

[Deleted]

I don't have a birth plan. I'm a major control freak and I would be devastated if I had an entire birth plan worked out and nothing went the way I wanted it to. Giving birth is one of the situations where I'm pretty much leaving it up to the medical professionals to do whatever they feel is necessary to make sure my baby makes a safe arrival. All I know is that I would like to avoid a c-section and I definitely want the epidural. I also told my DH that if god-forbid we had to make the choice between saving me or the baby, I want him to save our baby.

[laurenlou83]

I talked to my OB about this at my last appointment and I told her my birth plan was 'to have a healthy baby'. She kind of laughed and said 'good, because that's my plan, too!'. I'm a planner and control freak, but with labor, I know I have to throw most of that out the window. I know I want an epidural, only DH in the room and to avoid a c section if possible. Other than that, I'm putting faith in my doctor and nurses to do what's best for me and this little guy!

[wifedeangel]

Last time, I googled birth plan and found a form that had Every conceivable option. I didn't fill out every section, but it was a great starting point. I'm mobile and can't linky well, or I would find it for you again.

[Bluedaisy]

Sorry I'm no help I'm not going to do a birth plan.

[tiffbot]

We didn't and don't this time. I delivered med free last time so it would be kind of cool if I could do it again, but we'll see what happens.

[Deleted]

Feb 22, 2015 8:25:22 GMT -5 @littlebee said:

I don't have a birth plan. I'm a major control freak and I would be devastated if I had an entire birth plan worked out and nothing went the way I wanted it to. Giving birth is one of the situations where I'm pretty much leaving it up to the medical professionals to do whatever they feel is necessary to make sure my baby makes a safe arrival. All I know is that I would like to avoid a c-section and I definitely want the epidural. I also told my DH that if god-forbid we had to make the choice between saving me or the baby, I want him to save our baby.

This is exactly how I feel. I want to go in open minded so if there is a curveball I won't be upset.

[noeliav]

Our practice required a birth plan.

I would start with whatever you do know no matter how small/obvious/insignificant you may think it is (I know I want a vaginal birth, I know I want to labor in a tub, etc) and then look into what you don't know (I don't know if I'm okay with vaginal exams as a way to check "progress," I don't know if I want delayed cord clamping or not, etc).

[alayne926]

My hospital had a "birth plan template" on their website that I could print off an fill in. I will see if I can find it and link it here. It helped me and DH talk about what I wanted and didn't want since he was the only one in the room with me and I knew that he'd have to be my advocate if something happened.

[laurenlou83]

My hospital does provide this "template" on their website that my OB did suggest reading over. It is pretty basic, but makes you think about the big things in certain situations. It also helped me explain to DH about what I wanted/didn't want.

www.spectrumhealth.org/documents/MyBirthPreferences.pdf

[wink568]

My hospital has an online birth plan you can fill out. www.rushcopley.com/services/pregnancy/online-birth-plan/

I plan on printing it out and talking to my OB about it, but I really intend to be flexible. Also, they have a lot of if statements, which is good and keeps it open ended. All I know is that I'd like to try without an epidural so I can be flexible with positions and take a shower if I'm feeling up to it, I'd like my husband and mom in the room, and I don't want to have anything to do with the kid crowning (mirror to look at it or touch it) because it grosses me out.

[wegrowsheep]

With our first, I think we had a birth plan, and it was pretty simple. I think we had a handout from the OB to work from. For the second, I showed up to the hospital just about ready to push.
My advice would be to communicate with your partner what you need/want both before labor and during. That way you have a voice when you can't think past the pain.

[dmoney]

I don't have a Birth Plan...unless you count wanting pain meds (I have a bad back so while I can handle a lot, I'm not willing to put my self in so much pain that I cant function. And I want a healthy baby to be delivered. If I can have her vaginally great, if not then a c-section it is. Though just because I personally can be a bitch at times I am aiming to have a Vaginal Birth because my sister flat out told me that If I am able to have a natural birth she is going to be jealous of me. When she was pregnant she compared our pregnancies and made everything into a competition. So if I am able to have it naturally its kind of like a F you in the face to her. I know I'm horrible, but the fact that she made our pregnancies into a competition has really pissed me off since the day I told her I was pregnant.