Birth plan
We're only just getting around to writing our official birth plan, and I was wondering how the rest of you with upcoming due dates are hoping to give birth. Obviously I know that this is all based on best-case scenarios, but here goes mine:
If Karen had also been keen on the idea then I would have considered a home birth with a hired/purchased birthing pool, but we were both a bit unsure, seeing as it's all such an unknown quantity first time around, so we feel happy with going the hospital route for a first baby. We're already talking about homebirth for subsequent child/ren though!
I'm really hoping that we get to use the birthing pool at the hospital when I go into labour. There's only 1 amongst the 8 delivery suites at our hospital, but a lot of women aren't interested, so they save that suite until last when allocating them, unless they are really busy. I've just finished Janet Balaskas' book on waterbirth, and it's been fascinating. It sounds like such a lovely way to give birth, and to welcome your baby into the world calmly. I enjoy being in water anyway, and very much like the idea that while the water won't make the pain go away (and can make the contractions more intense), it also enables you to move around a lot more easily as you are supported by the buoyancy. So I hope that it's free when we ring up the hospital saying that labour has started!
However, if it's not, then we'll clearly have to manage without (although I'll probably try and take advantage of a regular bath if that's all that's available). I feel reasonably prepared for the birth, having done lots of reading (hypnobirthing, gentle birth method etc.), plus my antenatal yoga, which has all helped me to feel that I have plenty of "tools" to cope. The yoga in particular has made me feel very relaxed about it, so I'm not fearful of labour (although I'm sure that I will still panic a bit when it actually starts!). I still haven't actually started practicing the hypnobirthing stuff - just not sufficiently dedicated I guess, but I'm planning to use the breathing techniques that they recommend, which I have been practicing to some extent. I've also got a birth kit (and a post-natal kit) from my homeopath, full of remedies to use in different circumstances.
All in all, we're hoping for as natural a birth as possible, but if the pain gets really bad/labour too long/intense or I'm just not coping very well, then I will use some form of stronger pain relief if I think it's going to get me through. I am not planning on being a martyr wedded to the cause of natural birth! I really don't care much at all for the idea of pethidine/meptid, especially with the breastfeeding issues that can arise; and we'd both rather avoid me having epidural if possible. But if we do take the epidural route, then we'll make sure that I stay in upright positions to get gravity to help for second stage. The statistics in our area for interventions following an epidural are scarily high!
In an ideal scenario though, I'll hopefully labour at home until around 5cm dilated, using a hired Tens machine and my yoga positions/breathing stuff to help with contractions. Having our community midwife team who come and check your progress at home, and accompany us to hospital/stay with us for the delivery is very reassuring - it feels like having a team of free doulas on call! Then on to the hospital when they advise it, and hopefully the birthing pool; if not, I want to try and remain as mobile/upright as possible, using the birthing ball/leaning on the bed etc. May try gas and air if I feel I need it/it helps.
I find it really bizarre that all the books recommend you state what kind of position you want to deliver your baby in - how on earth can you know what's going to feel right in advance?! All I know is, not on my back thanks very much. When the baby is actually delivered, I really want Karen to be the first one to hold the baby and to pass him/her to my chest, discovering the gender together. We're quite happy for the baby to have vitamin K via injection, while we're holding him/her, and we want as many of the examinations as possible to be carried out while we hold the baby, although obviously some weighing/measuring needs to be done. Karen will cut the cord (when it's finished pulsating), and I want to deliver the placenta naturally if possible (although if it doesn't happen within 30 mins or so, then I'll consider the injection). We don't plan on taking the placenta home ;o) And obviously I want to try and breastfeed ASAP after delivery.
Of course we are aware that this is all if everything goes according to plan - if things take a turn for the dramatic, we'll do whatever we're advised to by the medical team (we have confidence that our midwives won't push us in the direction of anything we don't want to do unless strictly necessary). I just hope that we don't end up going through a really long hard labour that ends up with an emergency C-section as so many of my friends have in the last year or two.
It seems quite extraordinary to imagine that some or all the above will happen within a matter of days. Somehow it still doesn't feel quite real.
We're only just getting around to writing our official birth plan, and I was wondering how the rest of you with upcoming due dates are hoping to give birth. Obviously I know that this is all based on best-case scenarios, but here goes mine:
If Karen had also been keen on the idea then I would have considered a home birth with a hired/purchased birthing pool, but we were both a bit unsure, seeing as it's all such an unknown quantity first time around, so we feel happy with going the hospital route for a first baby. We're already talking about homebirth for subsequent child/ren though!
I'm really hoping that we get to use the birthing pool at the hospital when I go into labour. There's only 1 amongst the 8 delivery suites at our hospital, but a lot of women aren't interested, so they save that suite until last when allocating them, unless they are really busy. I've just finished Janet Balaskas' book on waterbirth, and it's been fascinating. It sounds like such a lovely way to give birth, and to welcome your baby into the world calmly. I enjoy being in water anyway, and very much like the idea that while the water won't make the pain go away (and can make the contractions more intense), it also enables you to move around a lot more easily as you are supported by the buoyancy. So I hope that it's free when we ring up the hospital saying that labour has started!
However, if it's not, then we'll clearly have to manage without (although I'll probably try and take advantage of a regular bath if that's all that's available). I feel reasonably prepared for the birth, having done lots of reading (hypnobirthing, gentle birth method etc.), plus my antenatal yoga, which has all helped me to feel that I have plenty of "tools" to cope. The yoga in particular has made me feel very relaxed about it, so I'm not fearful of labour (although I'm sure that I will still panic a bit when it actually starts!). I still haven't actually started practicing the hypnobirthing stuff - just not sufficiently dedicated I guess, but I'm planning to use the breathing techniques that they recommend, which I have been practicing to some extent. I've also got a birth kit (and a post-natal kit) from my homeopath, full of remedies to use in different circumstances.
All in all, we're hoping for as natural a birth as possible, but if the pain gets really bad/labour too long/intense or I'm just not coping very well, then I will use some form of stronger pain relief if I think it's going to get me through. I am not planning on being a martyr wedded to the cause of natural birth! I really don't care much at all for the idea of pethidine/meptid, especially with the breastfeeding issues that can arise; and we'd both rather avoid me having epidural if possible. But if we do take the epidural route, then we'll make sure that I stay in upright positions to get gravity to help for second stage. The statistics in our area for interventions following an epidural are scarily high!
In an ideal scenario though, I'll hopefully labour at home until around 5cm dilated, using a hired Tens machine and my yoga positions/breathing stuff to help with contractions. Having our community midwife team who come and check your progress at home, and accompany us to hospital/stay with us for the delivery is very reassuring - it feels like having a team of free doulas on call! Then on to the hospital when they advise it, and hopefully the birthing pool; if not, I want to try and remain as mobile/upright as possible, using the birthing ball/leaning on the bed etc. May try gas and air if I feel I need it/it helps.
I find it really bizarre that all the books recommend you state what kind of position you want to deliver your baby in - how on earth can you know what's going to feel right in advance?! All I know is, not on my back thanks very much. When the baby is actually delivered, I really want Karen to be the first one to hold the baby and to pass him/her to my chest, discovering the gender together. We're quite happy for the baby to have vitamin K via injection, while we're holding him/her, and we want as many of the examinations as possible to be carried out while we hold the baby, although obviously some weighing/measuring needs to be done. Karen will cut the cord (when it's finished pulsating), and I want to deliver the placenta naturally if possible (although if it doesn't happen within 30 mins or so, then I'll consider the injection). We don't plan on taking the placenta home ;o) And obviously I want to try and breastfeed ASAP after delivery.
Of course we are aware that this is all if everything goes according to plan - if things take a turn for the dramatic, we'll do whatever we're advised to by the medical team (we have confidence that our midwives won't push us in the direction of anything we don't want to do unless strictly necessary). I just hope that we don't end up going through a really long hard labour that ends up with an emergency C-section as so many of my friends have in the last year or two.
It seems quite extraordinary to imagine that some or all the above will happen within a matter of days. Somehow it still doesn't feel quite real.
posted by Tamsin at 7:40 pm
4 Comments:
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