All of the birth plans on this list are printable! What’s the Difference Between a Birth Plan Template and Birth Plan Generator The shot provides the best protection, however you can also opt for oral drops. If that’s the case, your baby will need to have one dose at birth and 2 more doses in the following weeks. Become educated on your options. Even if your plan was to be left behind on the big day, the knowledge you gain by weighing your options and discovering your preferences will stay with you. As per what I have written above, keep this one in your natural birth template if you want someone to help during the last stage of labor.

Most hospitals and birth centers provide a birth plan template or brochure to explain their policies and philosophy of childbirth, and to let you know what birth options are available to you. That information can be helpful in guiding you and your provider in a discussion about your labor and delivery preferences. Do I need to have a birth plan? On the surface, a birth plan tells your birth team what you want and don’t want to happen during your labor and delivery. You focus on you. Everyone will know what you want without having to ask you. Even if a new nurse or midwife joins late in labor, it only takes a minute to get up to speed.

Hi there. I’m Liesel!

I honestly could not believe this when I learnt it in one of my birthing classes, but did you know that the classical birthing position that you see in movies, with a woman lying down on a table and legs up in the air, is actually the worst birthing position you can possibly choose to give birth to a baby naturally!? So don’t let any medical staff tell you how to sit or lay down during labor! Some doctors like to give Pitocin after delivery to speed up the delivery of the placenta. However, unless there is a medical reason for it (if you are bleeding heavily for example), there is absolutely no rush and no point. Since every new mom has different needs for their birth plan, we’ll tell you if each plan fits specific needs. Remember that every year around the world hundreds of thousands of women give birth by VBAC. Your body still remembers how to [...] give birth. Your baby–like all babies, if given the opportunity–will start the [pressure waves], working in harmony with the hormones that instigate and maintain [birth]. " - Diana Korte

I am also grateful that she gave me a sample template that I could use, so I am hoping to do the same for you here, and help you achieve a positive birth experience.Wiping down babies straight after delivery used to be common practice in the past and, while things have changed lately, there are still some nurses that might do it automatically unless they are advised not to. So, make sure to have this information in your birth plan. Try your best to let it be flexible! It’s impossible to know how your unique birth will progress. Setting yourself up with a rigid birth plan and then having things go differently can set you up for disappointment and a more difficult birth to process mentally. Birth plans are a way to have your voice heard prior to and during birth so that we (your labor and delivery team) can help you have the best birth possible! When should I make my birth plan? This birth plan, that can be personalized with your details and unique preferences, is the perfect tool to make communicating your birth wishes and advocating for yourself easy. This last point is particularly important if you’re going to give birth at a teaching hospital. If that is the case, you may have students or inters observing your birth or even performing medical procedures.

Provides your partner and other members of your birth team with a source for advocacy on your behalf Visualization and breathing techniques can both be very powerful when giving birth and can really help achieve a natural and unmedicated birth. While visualization techniques can really create acceptance, belief and confidence in achieving the birth that you’ve always imagined, proper breathing during labor allows your body to relax and send more oxygen down your uterus. Of course, ask for your baby to be given to you as soon as possible! When my wife gave birth via c-section to our first daugther, she was placed straight away on her chest until they finished stitching her up. She was then given to me for a while.A birth plan is a way for mom to organize her own wishes and preferences and to communicate them with her partner and healthcare providers. Looking at birth plan examples can also open the conversation between you and your doctor or midwife about the options that are available. When do I bring up my birth plan with my doctor, nurses, or midwives?

Ready to dive into the ins and outs of creating a birth plan, different types of birth plans, and things to consider as you create yours? Let’s go! The caveat to birth plans Here’s my free natural birth plan template, including a printable word document and pdf. You can either modify the word document before printing it, or you can cross things out from the pdf. That said, there are several natural ways to induce labor that are not invasive at all and, usually, the worst that can happen is that they don’t work and you just keep waiting for the signs that labor is going to start soon. So, you might want to give these a try!

Example Plans

Personally, I think the visual birth plan is best for 3 reasons. 1.It’s visual for our visual husbands