To some, a birth plan may seem as sensical as planning a rain shower. Birth is a natural process that women have been successfully experiencing since…well…since we’ve walked on two legs, right? Why write a plan for something that cannot really be controlled?
A birth plan can be compared to a business plan-it is an outline of how you would like things to go. Writing either of these things requires research into what choices are available before you can then consider what choice is right for you. The plan itself is not an inflexible document of how events WILL proceed.
The process of a birth plan and a business plan are the same: gather the information, consider your options, and write the plan.
Gather the Information:
This can be done by taking a childbirth class, talking to friends and relatives, reading books, and asking your provider. Cast the net wide. Spend a few minutes looking at ALL options even if you think you are not likely to pursue them. You may need to back up and look at the big picture. Maybe you’ve been quite comfortable with the gynecologist you’ve seen for years, but now that you are expecting your needs are different. Perhaps you’d like to give birth at a particular hospital, but your provider doesn’t go there.
Much of what is on a birth plan, however, does not require taking such a big picture look or major decisions. Such things include what you would like your partner to do, for example, cutting the cord or his/her presence at a cesarean birth. Another example is how you would like the birth atmosphere to be, such as dim lights, quiet music, and for caregivers to knock before entering your room.
Consider Your Options:
Once you have compiled your list of potential options, cross off the options that you know you are not interested in or ones that you don’t really care about. Perhaps your partner has no interest in cutting the cord, or perhaps you’re not interested in the hospital’s water birth facilities.
Next, find out what the norms are for your provider and your chosen birth hospital. Some internet based birth plan templates have drop down menus that offer choices rarely seen anymore-enemas and pubic shaving, for example. Don’t take up space on your birth plan detailing something you don’t want that isn’t done anymore anyway.
At the other end of the spectrum, for items that are very important to you, ask your provider what his/her rates of those items are. If you would very much like to avoid an induction without a medical indication, ask your provider how many of his/her clients are induced. Some providers have a more than 50 percent induction rate; others are 10 percent or less. You have presumably hired your provider for his/her medical knowledge and expertise, and most providers will say, “I will only do an induction if medically necessary.” You need to find out if YOUR provider thinks that 10 percent or more than half of his/her patients require a medically necessary induction. If a provider’s induction rate is less than 10 percent, you can be confident that if YOU are induced that the reason is compelling to your provider.
It is equally important to tour the hospital where you plan to deliver. If you’d like to avoid an epidural, you may want to think twice about delivering at a hospital that has a 98 percent epidural rate.
Write the Plan:
Generally, the finished product will read, “I would prefer….” and “I would like to avoid…”. It is also very wise to include how you would like things to be handled if the unexpected occurs: “In the event of a c section, I would like….”.
After the plan is written, share it with your provider. Since you have ideally already discussed some of the details with him/her, giving a copy of your birth plan will be for review and for inclusion in your chart in case another provider is on call.
Bring one to the hospital for the nurses to include in your chart. While in the throes of labor is when you least want to be clarifying the details of your birth plan.
How often does birth proceed exactly according to plan? Probably about as often as a business grows exactly according to its plan. Some have a few minor changes, others look completely different from the way it was envisioned.
The most important benefit of a birth plan is educating yourself in the process of writing it. The second most important benefit is opening dialogue between you and your provider. By the time you, your birth partner, and your birth plan go to your hospital, the process will begin to take on a life of its own. You can labor knowing that you most important wishes are in writing for all of your caregivers to see.