Giving birth is one of the most momentous occasions in a woman's life, although the mass amount of information available about the experience can be overwhelming. Here, labor and delivery nurses share their insider tips, favorite stories, and advice for expectant mothers and their partners. HappyMom.Life is telling you 8 things that you need to prep before your hardest moment of being a mom.
Keeping The Placenta Is Fine, Just Don't Go Over-Board
Taking home the placenta isn't an uncommon request in the L&D ward, but there's a not-so-fine line between personal preferences and impeding on the hospital's staff. If saving your placenta is something you're interested in, speak to your doctor ahead of time.
Explore Prenatal Class Offerings
There's a wide berth of prenatal classes and exploring your options, traditional and not, can help you find one that could not just help you prepare for childbirth, but help you feel empowered during it. There's hypno-birthing, which helps self-regulate pain. It's not true hypnosis but helps you manage pain in different way. There's intuitive birth, or birth through knowing your body. It can be incredibly powerful for some women.
Babies Are Given Hats
Sure, the hospital room is colder than the baby's home for the last nine months, but that's not the only reason they're given knitted hats aft they're born. Sometimes, because mom's been pushing for a while, the baby's head doesn't look that good. People get alarmed at how long the head can get, but it's good that it does it so the baby can fit and can be born vaginally.
Labor Doesn't Always Take Hours
Movies are cited for being unrealistic in portraying how quickly the birth process happens, but sometimes, they may be closer to reality than stories of lengthy labor. Some labors are so fast women can't make it to the room and lay down on floor next to nurse's station to have their baby. Some women can't make it past the emergency room and have it on the stretcher.
Be Prepared For A Crowd
Whoever said "three's a crowd" hadn't spent a lot of time in delivery rooms. While having family and friends around is the mother's choice, don't be surprised by the number of hospital staff that may be end up being present.
Talk About Postpartum Depression With The Whole Family
About 15 to 20 percent of women deal with postpartum depression and worries it's one of the areas that goes most undiscussed after a birth. While it's important for the new mother to know the signs , it's equally critical for her family to be aware of what subtle indicators to watch for.
Take Advantage Of What Makes You Comfortable
The hospital wants to make sure your birth is as comfortable as possible, and there's a wide-range of resources that you shouldn't hesitate to advantage of. It helps with the pain and prolongs the amount of time before you need pain medicine and have to be in bed. Sitting on an exercise ball, lounging on the recliner, or roaming the halls can also help combat pain, while watching TV or playing cards can provide distraction.
Record The Experience
It goes without saying that having a baby is one of those memories you want to treasure, so prep before-hand to make sure you're prepared to capture the day. Bring a camera or journal. Take photos of the different phases to have a little album of everything. Take pictures of the dad. Pack food for after the birth and remember to bring some for your partner.
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