Birthing Options To Have A Smooth And More Comfortable Labor

You’ve made it – right from the moment that little stick showed a wonderful positive sign, all the way to the last few months of your pregnancy, and it’s all starting to feel extremely real. You’ve started nesting, avoiding the show one born every minute, and are anticipating what’s to come – eager to meet your little one. Whether this is your first pregnancy or your third, the premise of giving birth may make you feel a little anxious. To settle the nerves, it is natural to look for other women’s experiences, although you may find some are a little more terrifying than calming. You want to avoid the panicked overdrive mode of already searching out medical negligence lawyers, and take time instead to research all of your options. You may already have a birthing plan in place, but if you are still feeling anxious, it may be worth weighing up all that is available to you to ensure that your birth plan is perfect for you. Here are some birthing plans that may help to calm you and make the experience a lot more comfortable for you and your baby.

Hospital

This is, of course, the most obvious, but this list would not be complete without it. If this is your first time, or there were complications with a previous labor, you may find that: one – this is the most responsible and safe place to have your baby, and two – the thought of giving birth anywhere else feels you with dread. At the hospital you will be surrounded by all the resources to make you feel more comfortable such as pain relief, all the ice chips you could need, and a whole building full of professionals should a complication arise. Deciding to have your baby in the hospital, however, does not need to be the end of your birthing plan. The options below of a hypno birth and water birth are still feasible options.

Hypno Birth

As HypnoBirthing explains: the technique of “hypnobirthing” challenges the common fear that labor will be excruciating, by using a unique method of relaxing the mother through self-hypnosis to let her body take the reigns and naturally perform a relaxed and a lot more enjoyable birth. This does not mean you’ll be in a trance, just in a state of deep relaxation but still fully aware and in control of your labor. It can be used with all of the options in this list and, if they are local to you, your hypnobirthing advisor may be able to attend the birth and help you through.

Home Birth

This option will need to be assessed by your midwife, however, if you have had a straightforward pregnancy and there are minimal risks involved, you may be able to opt for a home birth. Contrary to popular belief, this does not mean you and your birthing partner are left to deal with the birth alone. There will be a midwife on hand to assist with pain-relief and essential equipment that is usually used in hospital – and should you want or need to go to the hospital, the quickest route will be planned out to get you there as soon as possible. The advantages to this birth plan is having all your home comforts around you, that will help you to relax.

Water Birth

Even if a full water birth is not possible you may still be able to use a bath or water pool to ease the pain of contractions. The buoyancy of the warm water will help blood flow to the uterine muscles helping them to contract more efficiently. This means more oxygen for the baby, and the warm water will promote a soothing and relaxing feeling, meaning less pain for the mother. You can choose to labor in the pool and get out before delivery, or give birth in the water. There is a worry of giving birth to your baby in the water due to the baby not being able to breathe. However, this is a misconception as your baby will still be receiving oxygen through the placental circulation bypassing their own lungs. You can still use gas and air while in a birthing pool, however, if you find you need stronger pain medication you will need to continue your labor outside of the pool.

A good thing to remember through your labor is that you are finally going to meet your little one, and everything you are feeling will soon be worth it and quite possibly forgotten about. Hopefully, this has given you some ideas to research and help you to find a birthing plan that most suits you.