GTKY: What's your birth plan?

[TnT10]

Ha, I know birth plan.  I know this is a little early, but I'm interested to see what everyone is planning on for their birth.  If everything went the way that you wanted it to, what are your preferences?  I might have forgotten some options too, so sorry if I did!  

[TnT10]

I'm planning on a hospital birth with an epidural. Hopefully things go as smoothly as they did the first time!

[katelou]

I had a hospital birth with an Epi last time and I couldn't have asked for a better experience. I will hopefully have the same this time.

[TheTuna15]

I had a vaginal hospital birth with an epi. 16 hours of labor mostly with pitocin and 15 minutes of pushing later I got DD. Cholestasis has a really high reoccurrence rate with no known factors that cause it. So I'll probably get induced again at 37. I'm just hoping this time around labor will be shorter so I can hang without the epidural.

[TnT10]

Jan 27, 2016 16:30:41 GMT -5 TheTuna15 said:

I had a vaginal hospital birth with an epi. 16 hours of labor mostly with pitocin and 15 minutes of pushing later I got DD. Cholestasis has a really high reoccurrence rate with no known factors that cause it. So I'll probably get induced again at 37. I'm just hoping this time around labor will be shorter so I can hang without the epidural.

I had pitocin too to get my contractions closer together, I forgot about that!  Is there a way to tell if you have that again at a certain point?  Or do you find out shortly before you deliver? 

[mcktymck]

I'll be having a hospital birth, and am hoping to go unmedicated. My mom thinks I'm nuts and constantly tells me so, but I'm doing all I can to prepare and going for it.

[sarcaztic10]

This time I am planning an unmedicated hospital birth.

With DS I went to a birth center and had an unmedicated water birth. I live in a different state now and a birth center is not as close. Also, now that we know about my blood clotting disorder I do want to be in a hospital. My OB plans to induce me at 39 weeks if I don't go into labor before then.

[glaze]

My first was a hospital birth with epi. I had a bad experience with the epi so with my second I went epi/med free. My second birth went so smoothly I loved everything about it so I'm planning and hoping for the same this time around.

[tootsie]

I'm hopefully having an unmedicated hospital birth. I went med-free last time at a birthcenter with midwives, but I do not have that option this time around. I have a feeling it will be more difficult to achieve in a hospital setting, but I also know what to expect this time in terms of pain.

[sarcaztic10]

Jan 27, 2016 16:51:46 GMT -5 tootsie said:

I'm hopefully having an unmedicated hospital birth. I went med-free last time at a birthcenter with midwives, but I do not have that option this time around. I have a feeling it will be more difficult to achieve in a hospital setting, but I also know what to expect this time in terms of pain.

This is me too. I imagine it will be harder to go completely med free in a hospital setting but I am going to try. I have a huge fear of getting an epidural so that option is out for me unless it is absolutely necessary. 

I also plan to have my mom there during the birth this time around as I think she will be a better birth coach than H was last time. He completely forgot how he was supposed to help and basically just hovered around me. If I cant have my mom i might hire a doula. 

[rungirlrun]

Last time, I really wanted a hospital unmedicated birth with the midwives. Unfortunately, DS had other plans, and there were complications during labor so I had an epidural with an OB delivering using the vacuum. I was 1 push away from an emergency CS. 2+ years later, I'm still really upset with how everything went (midwife/nurses were amazing and helped prevent me from getting a CS, but I was just bummed that labor wasn't what I expected).

I've moved and am going with another hospital/midwife birth who is also super supportive of low intervention. Really hoping baby #2 cooperates so I can have a better experience this time.

tootsie and sarcaztic10 -  With DS, I gave birth in a hospital, and everyone I saw was 100% on board with it being unmedicated.  Obviously every hospital is different, but I just wanted to share my experience that it may not be as hard as you think.  Obviously things can happen as I stated above with my experience, but had there not been any complications, I could have gone unmedicated.

[rungirlrun]

Jan 27, 2016 16:56:43 GMT -5 sarcaztic10 said:

Jan 27, 2016 16:51:46 GMT -5 tootsie said:

I'm hopefully having an unmedicated hospital birth. I went med-free last time at a birthcenter with midwives, but I do not have that option this time around. I have a feeling it will be more difficult to achieve in a hospital setting, but I also know what to expect this time in terms of pain.

This is me too. I imagine it will be harder to go completely med free in a hospital setting but I am going to try. I have a huge fear of getting an epidural so that option is out for me unless it is absolutely necessary. 

I also plan to have my mom there during the birth this time around as I think she will be a better birth coach than H was last time. He completely forgot how he was supposed to help and basically just hovered around me. If I cant have my mom i might hire a doula. 

My H wasn't the best either.  I'm 90% sure I'm getting a doula this time around.

[tootsie]

Jan 27, 2016 16:58:57 GMT -5 rungirlrun said:

Last time, I really wanted a hospital unmedicated birth with the midwives. Unfortunately, DS had other plans, and there were complications during labor so I had an epidural with an OB delivering using the vacuum. I was 1 push away from an emergency CS. 2+ years later, I'm still really upset with how everything went (midwife/nurses were amazing and helped prevent me from getting a CS, but I was just bummed that labor wasn't what I expected).

I've moved and am going with another hospital/midwife birth who is also super supportive of low intervention. Really hoping baby #2 cooperates so I can have a better experience this time.

tootsie and sarcaztic10 -  With DS, I gave birth in a hospital, and everyone I saw was 100% on board with it being unmedicated.  Obviously every hospital is different, but I just wanted to share my experience that it may not be as hard as you think.  Obviously things can happen as I stated above with my experience, but had there not been any complications, I could have gone unmedicated.

I hope baby cooperates and you get the birth you want this time. I'm glad to hear your hospital was so open to it. I sort of blindly picked my OB and seem to have lucked out in that he seems very supportive of a low-intervention birth. Almost everyone I know of in my area ends with women getting induced at 38-39 weeks just because. I was so nervous my doc would have the same mentality, but apparently not. 

[TheTuna15]

Jan 27, 2016 16:38:26 GMT -5 TnT10 said:

Jan 27, 2016 16:30:41 GMT -5 TheTuna15 said:

I had a vaginal hospital birth with an epi. 16 hours of labor mostly with pitocin and 15 minutes of pushing later I got DD. Cholestasis has a really high reoccurrence rate with no known factors that cause it. So I'll probably get induced again at 37. I'm just hoping this time around labor will be shorter so I can hang without the epidural.

I had pitocin too to get my contractions closer together, I forgot about that!  Is there a way to tell if you have that again at a certain point?  Or do you find out shortly before you deliver? 

They only test you if you have symptoms. So I had horribly itchy palms and feet at night. Literally my only symptom. I called the OB line to see if I could take Benadryl (because who hasn't been pregnant and itchy?) and they made me rush into L&D. They do this specialty lab test that looks for bile levels. Basically, your body starts over producing bile, your liver stops filtering it effectively and because a baby in utero is not equipped to handle that level of bile it can cause the worst possible option for any woman 36 weeks pregnant. If it happens early, they can give you steroids and some other medications that help with the filtering, but the only "cure" is to deliver. I was 37 weeks by the time the results came back so off to L&D I went. They say it's more common in Latin American decent and there's a strong genetic predisposition, but there's no diet/medication you can start to prevent it.

[glaze]

rungirlrun I was also very bummed for awhile with how labor went with my first. I know it sounds dumb and your not suppose to expect anything but that's easier said than done. Hopefully you get the birth you're hoping for with your second. It helped me tremendously get over the experience with my first. Obviously all that matters is a healthy baby in the end but it's a pretty big experience so it's nice when it goes somewhat according to plan!

[cavewmn]

Since this time my doctor is leaning more towards me being high risk I am having baby in the hospital and unmedicated.

[mcktymck]

It's very inspiring to see those of you who have had unmedicated births before plan on trying it again! It's so discouraging to have my mom constantly telling me she doesn't think I'll be able to do it, maybe as we get closer you all can share helpful tips and tricks

[cabbagecabbage]

Hospital birth with a new OB practice that is crunchier and more supportive than the last. I want to labor longer without an epi but I might want one again. If I can manage, I'd like to go med free. I want no pitocin this time. Last time I agreed to some and my epidural failed and I had transition on pitocin without pain management and it was awful then I delivered sunny side up with no epidural again. I think if I had no pitocin and a correct presentation, I could do it med free. I know my new OB will support it without batting an eye.

[tootsie]

Jan 27, 2016 17:37:57 GMT -5 mcktymck said:

It's very inspiring to see those of you who have had unmedicated births before plan on trying it again! It's so discouraging to have my mom constantly telling me she doesn't think I'll be able to do it, maybe as we get closer you all can share helpful tips and tricks

You can do it! I think a support group later on down the road would be a great idea. I don't get why people get so gleeful about telling you how much it's going to hurt. Like, no shit. Keep your nay-saying to yourself.

[glaze]

mcktymck I'm sorry your mom is not being more supportive. You can do it! I hope your DH is at least being supportive of it?!

[comicSans]

Hospital birth - get the baby out in the safest and most expedient way.

With DD my water broke at home at 10 am. I stayed home until 4am at which point I was just worried and wanted monitoring. My contractions stopped at the hospital and after the morning shift change I started pitocin. I had nitrous, which was great to a point, but when the contractions got intense I either couldn't time it right or it just wasn't doing enough. I got an epi so I could rest since I'd been awake for more than 24 hours. 30 some hours after my water broke I got a c-section because it had been so long and dds heart rate had been decelerating with every contraction.

This time I'd like to try a vbac, but I know there are any number of things that could require rcs. If I get to try the vbac I'll go unmedicated again for as long as possible and try nitrous again.

For the first timers, I'd recommend talking through what happens with a c section with your doc. I never talked about it with my midwife because it just seemed unlikely. It was a good experience, I just wish I'd asked more questions and considered the possibility.

[rungirlrun]

Jan 27, 2016 17:37:57 GMT -5 mcktymck said:

It's very inspiring to see those of you who have had unmedicated births before plan on trying it again! It's so discouraging to have my mom constantly telling me she doesn't think I'll be able to do it, maybe as we get closer you all can share helpful tips and tricks

I'm sorry your mom isn't being supportive of your birth plan.  Have you talked to her about how upsetting it is to you?  I'm a big believer that overcoming difficult physical tasks is more mental than anything.  I unfortunately didn't get my med-free birth last time (but am going to try again), but as a marathon runner, I know intense pain and know the only thing that kept me going during those races was having people along the course cheering for me and thinking of all of the support I had in my life (once you give up mentally, it's hard to keep going).  Hopefully your mom will get on board with your choice and you have other people in your life who will be cheering for you along the way so you can stay mentally tough as well.

[mcktymck]

Jan 27, 2016 17:52:11 GMT -5 glaze said:

mcktymck I'm sorry your mom is not being more supportive. You can do it! I hope your DH is at least being supportive of it?!

He is very supportive of it! He knows that I am a planner and would never decide to do something without putting a lot of research into it, so if I say I think I can do it and want to do it, I can do it. Which is why he'll be the only one allowed in the room come delivery time

[icaughtfire]

I was induced last time, hoping to go into labor on my own this time only because waiting around the hospital was boring.

Once I get to L&D, hook me up to an epidural & lets get the show going. My delivery was smooth & quick, hopefully this one will be the same. Because of pregnancy complications, I couldn't do skin-to-skin right away because they held her up & whisked her away. I hope I'm able to do it right away this time.

ETA: also, just me & my husband in the room this time. Too many people felt they needed to be in there & I said yes to all of them. Not again.

[sarcaztic10]

Jan 27, 2016 17:52:01 GMT -5 tootsie said:

Jan 27, 2016 17:37:57 GMT -5 mcktymck said:

It's very inspiring to see those of you who have had unmedicated births before plan on trying it again! It's so discouraging to have my mom constantly telling me she doesn't think I'll be able to do it, maybe as we get closer you all can share helpful tips and tricks

You can do it! I think a support group later on down the road would be a great idea. I don't get why people get so gleeful about telling you how much it's going to hurt. Like, no shit. Keep your nay-saying to yourself.

mcktymck A lot of people will try to tell you horrifying stories or tell you that your plan is crazy. I don't get it either. Yeah, it totally hurt like hell but it was also really awesome. I loved being able to get up out of the tub and stand with DS in my arms. It was such an awesome and empowering experience.

[glaze]

Jan 27, 2016 18:05:09 GMT -5 mcktymck said:

Jan 27, 2016 17:52:11 GMT -5 glaze said:

mcktymck I'm sorry your mom is not being more supportive. You can do it! I hope your DH is at least being supportive of it?!

He is very supportive of it! He knows that I am a planner and would never decide to do something without putting a lot of research into it, so if I say I think I can do it and want to do it, I can do it. Which is why he'll be the only one allowed in the room come delivery time

Perfect! Good DH and yes no non supporters in there during delivery time!

[TheTuna15]

Jan 27, 2016 18:28:45 GMT -5 sarcaztic10 said:

Jan 27, 2016 17:52:01 GMT -5 tootsie said:

You can do it! I think a support group later on down the road would be a great idea. I don't get why people get so gleeful about telling you how much it's going to hurt. Like, no shit. Keep your nay-saying to yourself.

mcktymck A lot of people will try to tell you horrifying stories or tell you that your plan is crazy. I don't get it either. Yeah, it totally hurt like hell but it was also really awesome. I loved being able to get up out of the tub and stand with DS in my arms. It was such an awesome and empowering experience.

+1

Personally, I don't even know how anyone remembers how bad it was. I went 9 hours full pitocin before I got the epi. I remember it being painful, but it's in a theoretical kind of way. Like I know it must have sucked, but two weeks later I was ready to do it again.

[glaze]

Jan 27, 2016 18:28:45 GMT -5 sarcaztic10 said:

Jan 27, 2016 17:52:01 GMT -5 tootsie said:

You can do it! I think a support group later on down the road would be a great idea. I don't get why people get so gleeful about telling you how much it's going to hurt. Like, no shit. Keep your nay-saying to yourself.

mcktymck A lot of people will try to tell you horrifying stories or tell you that your plan is crazy. I don't get it either. Yeah, it totally hurt like hell but it was also really awesome. I loved being able to get up out of the tub and stand with DS in my arms. It was such an awesome and empowering experience.

I hate the horror stories. I always try to tell first time moms that it's not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. After that baby comes out you forget about the pain anyways, at least I did.

[prvc678]

Scheduled RCS.

[tikoberry99]

I'm going with a hospital birth and will go unmedicated if I can, if not I'm not going to beat myself up over getting an epi. I watched "The Business of Being Born" and it kind of inspired me to try unmedicated first, but we will see.