Create A Birth Plan
Printable Version Personal Details First Name: Surname: Partners Name: Primary Healthcare provider: Hospital / Birth Center: Due Date: Labor I would prefer to avoid an enema and/or shaving of pubic hair I would like to be free to walk around during labor I wish to be able to move around and change position all throughout labor I would like to be able to have fluids by mouth throughout the first stage of labor I will be bringing my own music to play during labor I would like the environment to be kept as quiet as possible I would like the…
10 Steps to getting healthy before pregnancy
The physical health of the mother and father before pregnancy will affect the health of their future baby. There are specific things you can do to help your baby even before you're pregnant. Take folic acid: Take a multivitamin with 400mcg of folic acid every day before pregnancy and during early pregnancy when the baby's brain and spinal cord are developing. Look on the label of the vitamin bottle to see if it contains the necessary amount of folic acid. Get a pre-pregnancy checkup: Your healthcare provider can help you stay as healthy as possible. He/she can explain how pregnancy…
Breech Birth
A breech birth is when your baby is presenting with his/her legs flexed at the hips and extended at the knees, or when one or both knees are flexed and not extended. What can cause your baby to be breech? You have had more than one pregnancy You are carrying multiples (Twins or Triplets) To much or too little amniotic fluid Abnormal uterus shape Suffering from placenta previa Your baby has hydrocephalus (an abnormally large amount of fluid in the skull) Delivering a breech baby Most doctors nowadays believe that the safest way to deliver a breech baby is by…
Premature labor
Premature Labor - How To Tell If You Are At Risk In most cases pregnancy is a time of anticipation and happiness, but as most of you probably already know it can also be a time of complete uncertainty and confusion. Most women will be primarily concerned with the development of their baby – is everything alright; is baby developing in time with what is expected; will I be a good parent – these are some of the more common questions and concerns. During most of their pregnancy few women worry about going into labor early, even though we know…
Ruptured Membranes
Ruptured Membranes - What It Means & What You Should Do If you are leaking fluid, it can often be very difficult to tell if you are leaking urine or amniotic fluid as a result of having ruptured membranes. In most cases you will probably be leaking urine, and only 3 percent of pregnant women will go into premature labor (before 37 weeks) as a result of ruptured membranes. There are many different ways to tell the difference, but none are a definite answer. The main way of would be to tell would be to smell it - of course…
overdue
How To Deal With Being Overdue A group of Danish researchers who studied pregnant women from 1980 to 1994 suggested that the cause for babies to be born past their due date may be the father's genes, or at least that they play a major part. "We believe this is a new observation. This result suggests that the timing of birth may, in part, be determined by parental genes." However, there are a group of British experts who say other factors could have influenced the study's findings, such as pre-eclampsia. Either way, what we are aware of is that there…
Stages Of Labor And Childbirth
We have broken the different stages of labor up into 3 separate stages, each having their own experiences. For first time pregnancies the average duration of pregnancy is around 37 weeks and labor lasts for around 17 hours, although it may be closer to 20 hours. This is very different for women who have had previous children though as the average labor is then around 8 hours. First stage: Early labor Once you start experiencing contractions at regular intervals and your cervix begins to dilate and efface (thinning), then we can say that labor has started and that you are…