Not sure what to expect from labor? Prepare yourself with this birth plan advice and handy questionnaire

By Emily Lovely

Like Kegel exercises and reading the final chapters in that massive pregnancy manual beside your bed, writing a birth plan is worth the effort pre-delivery—and it can also help ease your anxiety about labor.

Of course, you can’t control how your bundle of joy makes his grand entrance, so a birth plan isn’t actually a plan. Instead, think of it as a short list of requests for anyone helping to welcome your baby, including your partner. In a page or less, a birth plan typically includes your choices for pain management, your opinions about interventions, and details about who’s cutting the cord.

Before penning your preferences, you’ll need to know your options, because much of your delivery will be dictated by where you give birth and who’s assisting you. For example, many hospitals require an IV and constant fetal monitoring, meaning you’re obliged to deliver in bed, stirrups and all, so it would be futile to write that you wish to labor in a bathtub or pacing the halls. Talk through potential scenarios in advance with your care provider, such as what might lead to a C-section, keeping in mind that birth plans are a new concept: Before presenting your written delivery desires, it’s best to get on the same page—literally!

Birth plans may also include specifics such as who is welcome to witness the birth and if you’d like to see the baby crown. Busy nurses don’t have time to read three pages, so be succinct (one page or less), and emphasize what’s most important to you.

It’s also important to stay flexible. A birth plan isn’t a contract, so feel free to say “yes” to an epidural even if you wrote “no pain medication,” and be prepared that your ob/gyn might suggest a procedure that isn’t on paper. You might need a plan B, and possibly even a plan C—as in, C-section. The priority is a healthy delivery!