My birthing plan is to not have one. What’ s the adage? Plans are made to be broken? That being said, I do have some strong opinions that will not change. I do not want to be given an epidural. I do not want to be induced, artificially with Pitocen. I want an active labor, not tied down with tubes and monitors. I do not want to attempt to birth laying on my back. I want Adam to be by my side, as involved as he wants to be. I want to use natural, time tested methods; a birthing stool, chair, squatting, kneeling, walking about, a birthing chair, ball, and tub. I will expound on these thoughts in my next post.
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4 replies on “The Plan”
So often it seems in shows that involve hospitals and such, doctors don’t even CARE about birthing plans. It seems to be one of the “requirements” with birth-prep classes and such, but if the doctors who deliver don’t care, and don’t want to follow it, especially in our world where they just want to push for a c-section anyways, it makes you wonder.
I think what I will have is a birthing plan that reviews the yeses and nos. Like what you have here, Yes to Adam, No to drugs and inducements. I think the plan should actually include more about outside the birthing room. Who is going to call the grandparents, and who will walk the dog and bring the husband food, or a break, etc etc.
As someone who has no real idea about anything, that is my birthing plan 🙂
I also wanted to say, I would be really interested, in either a post here, or an email of my own, or maybe just a chat! to hear what your doctor/midwife history has been with the baby. finding a midwife/doctor here in this more rural area, and what your plans are for the actual birth. So please, do expound!!
Thank you for your feedback, Jenny. I will write about my experiences in tonight’s post.
Hi Charlotte! Leslie just sent us a link to the blog — i love it! I am very happy to know that you, baby, and Adam are all doing well. I am also glad that you have seen the Business of Being Born and are on the birth-power bandwagon. Birth is truly an amazing experience!
As for the no-plan plan, here’s my two-cents worth: If you will be giving birth in a hospital, i think it is worth writing down the basic desires you outlined in your blog and giving it to the hospital ahead of time. I did this, and it resulted in me having a very natural-birth friendly nurse assigned to my room. And while everything did not, of course, go according to my plan, I was extremely greatful to have a sympathetic nurse doing everything she could to help me have the kind of birth i hoped to have. I also had a midwife, but she was not there for the whole labor. And I had a doula, who was there throughout and who was wonderful. And, of course, Jed, who was also wonderful (and appreciated having the doula there to help him understand what was going on at different stages of the process). Anyhoo — my plan was pretty similar to what you outlined in your blog. If you want to see it, i’d be happy to email it to you. (I don’t want to be a pushy aunt, but i do get all fired up about this birth business; sounds like you do too!)