Pregnancy is a time of excitement and nervousness for the expecting mother. You are eager to see your newborn and a little afraid what the birth might bring about. The idea of giving birth can be especially frightening for first-time mothers-to-be.
For a lot of women, giving birth naturally has become a big part of creating a wholesome experience. This isn’t always possible, as some interventions are there to protect the baby. But your objective should well be to give birth without drugs and interventions.
If you are planning to have a natural birth, here are the 10 tips to help you do that.
1. Outline your motivations for natural birth
Start by being clear about the reasons you’re following up with a natural birth. These are going to help you stay focused during pregnancy and help you stay motivated during birth – when the pain is heightened, you can remind yourself of the motivations.
2. Find a suitable midwife
With your motivations in mind, you want to find a midwife who’ll support your choices. There is nothing worse than being scolded for your birth preferences by the person who is supposed to help and protect you. Stay strong and keep looking for the right person.
3. Create a detailed birth plan
Once you’ve found a supportive midwife, you can draft a detailed birth plan. The plan should detail your hopes and wishes for the labour. It must deal with your hopes for giving birth labor free, but also details when and what interventions you agree to happen.
4. Educate yourself about labour
It’s important to spend time learning about giving birth, especially about natural childbirth. You don’t need to read the scare stories, but you do need to be aware of what happens during birth. If you know what emotions and feelings are natural, you can better prepare for them and stay calm during labour. Books are an especially good source of information so get reading.
5. Look for support people
You should also consider having additional support people around you during pregnancy and possibly making your childbirth, aside from your family. A strong support network can help you push further and stay strong during the difficult times. The network should ideally consist of mothers who’ve previously gone through natural birth. You can use forums like The Bump to share your fears and hopes and hear more from the people who’ve actually done it all.
6. Sort out your ‘birth bag’
You should definitely have a bag full of things that’ll help you stay calm and composed during birth. This could include things like comfortable clothing, CDs to listen to, books you can read and toys to keep ready for your child. Check the link for cheap items for mothers-to-be: http://www.voucherbin.co.uk/stores/mothercare/
7. Attend a natural birth workshop
There are plenty of private workshops around the country that teach you about natural birth. These are good for finding more information about birth and also getting much-needed support going forward. You can find your local natural birth workshop by searching with the keywords ‘natural birth workshop in’ and your location.
8. Find your best coping strategy
We all cope with pain and stress in different ways. Some like to talk, some like to move and others just breathe. The key is to spend some time testing different coping strategies when you’re having a bad day and choosing the ones that work the most effectively for you. You can even try the ice cube trick – hold an ice cube in your fist for 60 seconds and see what strategy allows you to forget about the pain the most efficiently.
9. Stop assuming what will happen
It’s a good idea to mentally prepare yourself for the birth, but you don’t want to make assumptions about it. There is no ideal childbirth and each woman will end up having their own experience. Therefore, you don’t want to trouble yourself thinking certain things are about to go wrong or only certain things make the birthing better – don’t approach birth like a set list of things that need to happen. Allow yourself to remain relaxed and calm – taking it all as it happens.
10. Listen to your body
Throughout your pregnancy, the key is to listen to your body. You are the best expert at knowing what seems natural and what is out of the ordinary. Don’t be afraid of pain – just understand when things don’t feel natural. You want to allow birth and the baby direct you during labour. If you stay calm and listen to your body’s reactions, you can have a natural birth that is successful, magical and safe.
With the above 10 tips, you should succeed in having a natural birth that is good for the baby and you.