Did you have a birth plan?

I've done reading on birth/ care plans, and all the websites seem to say that everyone writes one in conjunction with their midwife.

Does that actually happen in practice?

I'm just trying to make sense of the thoughts in my head here regarding my pregnancy.

Nope we never wrote one down, my plan was to just go with whatever happened, if I could do it without pain relief I would but if I couldn't then no big deal, would prefer vagina birth but if need a C-sect that's fine...

I think it is good to have an open mind and to just sorta go with it and do what feels right at the time, my midwife was the same and happy with my plan.

Hope that makes sense, I think it's better to keep an open mind so that if things don't go to plan you don't get to down. Just my opinion.

Like kebakat said, we also did the gas ok, epi if necessary, vit k was ok, dp to cut cord, dp in room only along with mw...

I prepared a Birth Plan, but it was kinda like what kebakat said, more a guideline of what we wanted and didnt want (which I guess is the point of having one).

I pretty much got the labour and birth that I wanted as per my plan, except it all happened so quickly that my birth plan wasnt pulled out until 20 minutes before Jackson was born. Had my labour not been so fast it would have been brought out earlier

Not so much a Birth Plan as such (and not written down) I just discussed what I would like all things going well and what would happen in a downward spiral all things not going well.

All things did go well so I got what I wanted but I was mentally prepared for things to be different as well. The go with the flow is a good idea but having an idea of what you would like and telling your midwife BUT don't expect things to go exactly as you wish is I think the way to go.

I didn't do a birthplan, but one of the MW's at my MW's practice gave me a piece of paper with some questions, which made me look into each aspect so I had an idea in my head of things I was for or against, but at the birth it all just happened which I was happy enough with, my MW discussed each aspect with me at the time. eg. cutting the cord, Vit K, keeping placenta, drugs etc etc.

Was good to have an idea and form an opinion on each aspect as a lot of the time we didn't get a chance to really discuss pro's and con's etc.

Thanks for the feedback. It seems that most midwives at least ask what your preference is.

Never had the discussion... we were supposed to discuss it at 36 weeks but she wanted to wait until I had seen the OB the next week (I was on OB one week and mw the following) and he was born before my next appt with her...

In hindsight we should have had that conversation!

This time around from my first appt my new mw knows what I want and what I dont (as I wanted that upfront from the get go) so we dont really need to have the discussion...

The "plan" as DH puts it is to have a healthy baby and mum in the safest way possible.. I have extended it a little bit to add that I do not want to be offered any drugs and any intervention suggested is because it is deemed necessary not because it "might" help...

Didn't have one with Dan thankfully, as his birth was nothing like what I had thought might happen. My issue with birth plans is that the baby hasn't read it and they have quite a big role in the birthing process!

However, because Dan's birth is associated with a lot of traumatic memories and a lack of control and overmedicalisation of the birth (which I played my part in and was happy with until recently), I have some things I would like to try to do differently. Emphasis on the try part, b/c at the end of the day, the main thing is healthy baby and healthy mum.

melnel wrote: The "plan" as DH puts it is to have a healthy baby and mum in the safest way possible.. I have extended it a little bit to add that I do not want to be offered any drugs and any intervention suggested is because it is deemed necessary not because it "might" help...

I am doing the same. I fully trust my MW and if she feels something is indicated, then I will trust that recommendation (she's a westie, fairly low intervention and very experienced so I feel safe in her recommendations) b/c I do believe she is the expert - that's why I'm under a MW afterall. But, I would like to give my body the best chance to do it itself and that's what the "birth plan" (which is not really the right term) being about - this involves the default being natural pain relief/management strategies, pain relief/intervention not being suggested or offered unless the MW believes it is necessary, things I would like my birth support people to do to help keep me focused .....

Ha, DH's birth plan would be for him to be outside playing on the laptop until the baby is cleaned and dressed ....

I had a birth plan with C which was pain relief is ok if I need it (didn't end up using it )
With Ty it was no pain relief , and with this one its , give me a damn epidural the minute I walk through the hospital doors, greet me with the needle even , and then I shall sit and watch Friends on DH's laptop . I really like the part where I watch Friends

I didn't really have a plan - but I knew that I wanted to go with no pain relief if possible, that I didn't want pethadine and that the baby was to have Vit K.  All those things I mentioned to my MW first time round and that was really the extent of our discussions around the actual birth (DS turned up the week before I think we were to have that discussion in more detail).  I had also read a bit about natural pain relief options like accupressure points and used those with his birth.  DD was in a hurry so popped out just as I was thinking that I would need to ask for pain relief!  No plan except to get to the hospital in time needed for her!

I just trusted the MWs to make good decisions and for ex DH to advocate for me.  If I were to have the opportunity again I would go with the MW I trust to make great decisions and have someone there who I could be sure would support me in the way I needed.  If I had particularly strong feelings about anything I would just ensure that the MW and support crew knew about it in the event that that information was needed.