Labor & Delivery

Giving birth to my daughter was an incredible experience. It was an intensely personal journey as well as a powerful bonding experience for my husband and I. My mom was also present for my labor and delivery and it was a wonderful bonding experience for her and I as well. It is impossible to describe in words what it is like to bring a baby into the world and so I am not even going to attempt to do it. However, I would like to share some things that might help you to prepare for the big day.

Let's start with the labor bag!

Pregnancy books list an overwhelming number of things that you 'need' to pack in your labor bag. I diligently packed most of the things on these lists and ended up using very few of them! The situation might have been very different had we gone in planning to have an epidural, but as my plan was to go naturally we didn't need any of the distraction items that are suggested. I packed a deck of cards, a book to read, and a book of crossword puzzles to do. Looking back, I was crazy to think that I would have time for any of these things. I was consumed with managing the contractions and couldn't think (and didn't want to think) about anything else. I guess if I was doing it again, I would pack these things because you never know what could happen and maybe when you have an epidural, you have time for these things.

Bring whatever you think you are going to need to get you through your labor. Plenty of things are suggested for helping with labor...tennis balls, lotions, massage oils, focal points. The only thing I ended up using was the cd that my husband put together of instrumental music. I didn't think I would want it, but ended up listening to it over and over for hours! Bring food and drink for your husband. Unless you have two people in the room like I did, your husband is not going to be able to leave the room to get food and he is going to be HUNGRY! It is a lot of work coaching someone through hours of contractions! If you are going to have access to a bath or shower, bring your husband's bathing suit. And last, but not least...BRING YOUR CAMERA!

You will want to pack toiletries. Bring the things you need to have a shower, brush your teeth and make yourself look and feel like a human! You won't be in the mood to do much of anything with your hair and face, but you will want to at least be able to make yourself feel a little pretty after everything you have been through! Bring your most comfortable maternity clothes. You will be wearing maternity clothes for a few weeks after delivery and during your first few days post-partum, you are going to want to be as comfortable as possible. Some books suggest bringing your own nightgown to labor in if you would rather not use what the hospital provides. This is great if you never want to be able to wear that nightgown again! Labor and delivery are messy things and you do not want to be wearing your own clothes! Make sure you also bring a super comfortable nursing bra! You are going to be sore for a few days while your breasts adjust to their new role and you are going to want the most comfortable bra you can find. Cotton with no underwire is my recommendation. If you buy them towards the end of your pregnancy, you should be fine as far as fit. If you are worried, only buy one beforehand and get a few more afterward.

There are a few other things that you are going to want to pack for afterward. This is where things get a little messy. If you don't want to know what you will have to deal with after the delivery, don't read this section of my post. Again, this is all based on a normal, vaginal delivery. You are going to need super huge pads (long and very absorbent). The hospital should provide you with a few of these, but bring some more just in case. Buy at least one package of the longest, most absorbent pads you can get your hands on! I am not kidding! Being naive, I bought a package of regular sized maxi pads. I did use them, but not for several days afterward. You are also going to want to buy some hemorrhoid ointment and Tuck's pads and the hospital should provide you with a squirt bottle for you to use to clean yourself after you go to the bathroom (you won't be using toilet paper for awhile). Just a heads-up, you will be wearing pads and pantyliners for quite some time after delivery so it won't hurt to buy a couple of packages of the very absorbent and long pads, regular pads and pantyliners so you have them on hand.

Finally, there are also several things that you need to pack for your baby. A no-brainer is a car seat. You won't be able to leave the hospital without one. If you have a Boppy pillow (which I highly recommend), bring it to the hospital. Breastfeeding is really hard at first and the pillow will help you to support baby while you get the hang of positioning him or her. Make sure you also pack nipple cream. I personally like Lansinoh. Bring a couple of newborn sleepers (with snaps, not zippers). You can pack other clothes if you choose, but sleepers are super easy to get on and off which you (and baby) are going to want. The hospital may provide a few diapers, but you should also bring some of your own. You will want some Vaseline for that tender little behind (you really don't need any of the products out there designed for baby's bum)! You should bring a blanket for bringing baby home and you may need to bring a few other items depending on the weather.

Happy Packing!

YOU CAN DO IT...and don't listen to the horror stories!

YOU CAN DO IT!

Giving birth without medication is totally possible!

I can't tell you how many people looked at me like I was crazy when I would tell them that my plan was to deliver my baby without medication.

Beginning as far back as the 19th century, society started to treat childbirth as more of a medically-centered event rather than a woman-centered event. Today, the prevalence of medical intervention in the U.S. is staggering with roughly 63% of women opting to use epidurals to manage pain during childbirth.

Is this why people looked at me like I had two heads? What caused women to become so afraid of the pain that comes along with labor and delivery? Your body was made to do this and it can do it if you give it a chance. My mom, grandmother and great-grandmother all gave birth multiple times without medication and I believed I could do it too!

The question I am now asked most frequently is "How much did it really hurt?" Of course it hurt like a son-0f-a-bitch and the pain grew progressively worse over the course of the 15 hours that I was in labor, but that is not what you are focused on when you are going through it and I am not joking or exaggerating when I say that the memory of the pain fades REALLY fast! When your baby is placed in your arms, you won't be thinking about anything else (including the small gathering of doctors and nurses that are working on delivering your placenta and sewing you up!) There really is some kind of mechanism in women that makes us able to handle the kind of intense pain that comes with labor and birth and that allows us to quickly forget it afterward.

It goes without saying that you should have an open mind when developing your birth plan because anything can happen. If you need help, there is no shame in asking for it. Whatever your birth plan may be, it is YOUR birth plan and you should be proud of it. Believe in your plan and don't let anyone make you doubt it! Don't listen to the horror stories that people like to tell and don't be afraid to politely tell someone to 'shut-up' if they do start in on this topic. You do not need to hear it. At the end of the day, the only thing that truly matters is that you leave the hospital with a happy, healthy, beautiful newborn baby! And if your plan is to give birth without medication know that it is possible!