Verbal Intent has been quiet over the holidays, so what better way to spark things up than to fill you in on my birth plan! I know, I know, I’ve got this all settled months in advance, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say that my birth plan was figured out, signed, sealed and delivered before I was even willing to tell Matt a year ago that I was maybe interested in trying for a baby. I’m so petrified of medical intervention that I give myself a pep talk on a daily basis saying, “This baby has to come out one way or another, and we don’t want it to come out the other way, so PULL IT TOGETHER, LADY!”

I am tremendously blessed to have a partner who is 100% OK with all of my labor and delivery preferences and wants to see me succeed in the same way that I myself want to succeed. I might be scared of the whole process, but I am put at ease when I realize what a great sidekick I’ll have throughout it all. So, thanks in advance, Matt. I know you’re going to be great.

You already know that I chose to use midwives, and every appointment that I go to I am more and more pleased with their care. Both of my sisters have used midwives for all of their children which was my great introduction to midwifery. My midwives are unlike any doctor I have ever been to. They calmly talk me through procedures, they never once questioned when Matt and I determined we didn’t want to have genetic testing done, and they hugged me and held my hand while breaking the news to me that I had lost my first baby. When I call them up to ask a question, they refer to me as “Sweetie” and tell me over and over again that I don’t have to do anything I don’t want to do. They are amazing.

I’m choosing to have a hospital birth although the midwives also perform home births. I personally will feel better knowing that I’m in a facility that can tackle any immediate emergencies that might arise, and that a competent doctor would be available in the case that I might need a C-section. I have yet to take my hospital tour, but I’m excited to hear that they have labor pools!

I would like very much to have a completely natural birth without any intervention or pain medication. Because the worst nightmare I can think of would be abdominal surgery while I am awake, for me it’s important to resist intervention, unless necessary for the Little Friend’s health. Intervention begets more intervention, and I am hoping to avoid a C-section at all costs. Luckily, my midwives have a very low rate of C-sections among their patients, and will work with me to come up with natural pain management.

This is not to say that I’m not open to an epidural or induction if necessary, but I’m going in with my mind set that I will only take that course if Little Friend is in distress and needs to come out. I’m also trying very hard to do what I can now to prevent a C-section. I’m being careful with the food I eat so as not to grow an enormous baby, and I’m trying to hit the gym a few times a week to keep in worthy shape for a long and arduous labor.

Because I plan to go natural and because the women in my family have a history of long labors with their first children, often including back labor, I’m starting to really mentally prepare myself for a lengthy and painful experience. And Matt is starting to prepare himself for days without sleep and fighting off nurses who want to speed up the process. It’s important to me that those around me are supportive of my desire to let nature take its course, even if it completely wears us all out in the process. I’m confident that my midwives are also of that mindset and will do everything in their power to allow the birth to proceed with minimal intervention.

There are a few other specifics such as my desire for intermittent fetal monitoring instead of continuous, not having an IV so I am free to move about, and spending lots of time in the shower and labor pool. Matt would like to catch Little Friend and cut the umbilical cord, and I would like to hold the baby immediately instead of having it whisked away. I’d like to share the room with our wee one instead of having it hang out in the nursery, and I want lots of Led Zeppelin playing the whole time!

But most of all, I am praying for a healthy little baby, and I know that at any moment I’ll be able to suck up my fears and do anything it needs. In the words of that old cheesy ballad, “I don’t care how you get here, just get here if you can.”

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 5th, 2010 at 3:41 pm and is filed under Babies!, Little Friend, Opinionatrix. You can subscribe to any responses to this entry through the RSS feed. Don't be shy! Go ahead and leave a response, or trackback from your own site.