This is becoming a pattern...

Guess who switched OB's at 32 weeks pregnant? Again.

Yes, that would be me.

I made the decision today to move my OB care from a doc to a midwife. I have a great relationship with my doc... he's super supportive of our natural birth plan, and was an incredible resource when I was dealing with my postpartum depression. He's a fantastic doctor (great bedside manner, respectful, knowledgable, etc.), but he's also a really busy guy.

When Will was born, our doc was out of the country (his family lives abroad so he travels quite a bit). He normally doesn't take patients with due dates that overlap his travel schedule, but Will was 15 days early, so he happened to be out of the country. Unfortunately, the doctor on-call that day was awful. I understand we weren't her patients, and she can't be expected to know everything about us or our wishes, but she was blatantly disrespectful of our natural birth plan. Luckily, we had a great birth (everything to plan) and a very, very supportive nurse, but the experience with the doctor still bothers me a bit.

So as BG's due date approaches, I find myself thinking about my options if our doc is unavailable. Though he's not traveling near our due date, he practices at three different regional hospitals/clinics, meaning there's a very real possibility that we may get the on-call doc instead. And quite honestly, I'm not too fond of the other docs in the practice.

When we moved to this practice for insurance reasons in 2010, they didn't yet offer midwife care. But in the last year, they've added midwives to the practice, making it an option for BG's upcoming birth. I happened to meet with one of the midwives last month when my doc was gone, and I loved her. Today, I met the other midwife and she was equally fantastic. So I made the decision to switch. The midwife ethic is just better aligned with our birthing goals, and no matter which practitioner I get, I'll be happy.

Win-win.

Natural Birth Plan

If you've been reading the blog for awhile, you know that I elected for a natural birth (i.e. no pain meds) with Will. My mom delivered both my sister and I naturally, so it's something I've always wanted to do too.

I had a very easy labor and delivery with Will. I was in active labor at the hospital for about three hours, and he was born after just 25 minutes of pushing. I attribute this to being very fit throughout pregnancy, as well as pure luck.

I don't presume to think that a natural labor is right for everyone, but I have had some people ask me how we wrote our natural birth plan. Our plan is based largely on the Bradley Method, and strives to advocate preferences instead of demands. Our birth plan helps Ben and I know what we're self-advocating for, and ensures our medical team is on the same page. But a plan is just that... a plan. It's a guideline, not a mandate, so we try and be open to the fact that things may need modified in the moment. 

A copy of our birth plan (below) is in my chart, but we will also bring copies with us to the hospital. We give a print copy of the birth plan to our nurse when we're admitted, along with small gift to thank him/her for their involvement in our child's birth (we brought chocolates for the nurses when we had Will).

Baby Girl ***** Birth Plan

Parents: Ben and Samantha *****

Estimated Due Date: April 18, 2013
Physician: Dr. *****

Hospital: *****

We desire a labor and birth that results in a healthy outcome for baby and mother. We would prefer:

▪    To have a vaginal delivery over cesarean

▪    To have as few medications and other medical interventions as possible

▪    To have as much freedom of movement and position as possible during labor, including during the pushing stage

▪    To use intermittent FHM, ideally only during initial admission. If continuous FHM is deemed medically necessary, we’d prefer to use a portable or wireless fetal heart monitor

▪    That labor augmentation techniques not be used

▪    That the membranes not be ruptured artificially

▪    To allow Sam to push with the urge

▪    That pain medication is not offered

▪    To risk a tear to the perineum rather than have an episiotomy

▪    To allow the placenta to deliver naturally (without cord traction)

If medically possible, we would prefer:

▪    To hold and bond with our child (skin-to-skin) immediately after birth

▪    To delay cord clamping and cutting until after the cord has stopped pulsating

▪    To initiate breastfeeding as soon as possible after birth, including in the recovery room in the case of cesarean delivery

▪    That no eye ointment or eye medication be administered to our child

▪    To delay standard newborn procedures and tests until after the initial breastfeeding and bonding

▪    For at least one parent to be present for all medical procedures

▪    That no bottles, pacifiers, artificial nipples, formula or water be given to our child at any time during our hospital stay without our consent

Above all else, we appreciate your care and expertise. 

Thank you for your role in our child’s birth.