This printable fill-in-the-blank birth plan template will help you communicate with the medical team what support you would like. It is a good idea to avoid misunderstanding by spelling out in advance your customized birth plan. Your doctor, midwife, nurse, doula birthing center or hospital will really appreciate it!
Creating a Birth Plan
What is a birth plan?
A birth plan allows you to make choices in advance and communicate them to your health care team at your chosen delivery destination. Of course, you can/may change your mind at any time — it just is a quick way to share what you’d prefer for your baby’s birth with your healthcare provider.
Printable Birth Plan Template
This printable worksheet is going to go over what is most frequently on birth plans and you might want to consider before you head into a delivery.
Grab my birth plan template here (I also have a video that shares why birth plans are important!
What to do if I have no clue what I want on my birth plan?
One of the most important things you can you can do for your labor is to think about what you want in advance. However, it can be difficult to figure out what you want for your birth preferences when it’s all so new!
That is why most people take a prenatal class. The Online Prenatal Class for Couples is to simplify things like this from your couch. I want all of my patients as comfortable as possible at the hospital, and now you don’t even have to fight traffic to do it!
Honestly, birth plans are something I encounter frequently as a nurse. Although, not as often as some people think. I would guess maybe 5% of our patients have a birth plan where I am now. I would think the number would be closer to 2% at my last hospital (different populations).
I think this free printable birth plan template will help you solidify plans for your birth — so it’s great for that!
Also, I have a video all about what a birth plan is:
🌠 Pro Tip: One of the BEST things you can do is to talk to your provider about your big day in advance! Don’t be afraid to show them your preferences for baby’s birth early in your prenatal care. Don’t wait for your due date to communicate with them, and share it first off with your delivery nurse.
Things Most Often on a Birth Plan
Make sure to talk with your whole support team (partners, moms, doulas etc.) as you make these choices so everyone understands what everyone wants.
Birth plan questions for labor:
Induction — if you want one, or would prefer none
Pitocin – both for your induction or afterward
What you plan to wear — our gown or your own clothes/gown
Are you OK with an IV? IV’s are the general standard of care at the hospital
How do you want to position yourself in labor — Sitting, standing, laying on the bed, etc?
Do you hope to eat in labor?
Are you OK with continuous fetal monitoring, or do you have specific preferences otherwise?
Are you hoping for a home birth (but keeping the hospital as a backup)?
Are you planning on an unmedicated birth?
What do you want for pain relief? Do you plan on an epidural, other pain management options or going natural?
Who do you prefer to be in your room at delivery
Birth plan questions for after delivery:
How long do you want for delayed cord clamping of the umbilical cord.
Do you want the baby medications for after delivery?
What types of newborn procedures do you want?
Do you want the baby skin to skin after delivery (this is standard of care as long as baby/mom are well)
Do you want the baby to have a bath (or when do you want it to have a bath?)
Are you planning to breast or bottle-feed?
Do you plan to use a pacifier?
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**Clearly there are plenty of other items then this that could be on your birth plan, but these are the most frequent ones.
What do nurses think of birth plans?
**I have been a labor nurse since 2001, and this is just what I have experienced from those who have birth plans — you might find the insight helpful**
I have a whole post about what your nurse thinks of birth plans. Also, if you’re wondering if you should bring a gift to L&D — I have a whole post on gifts for labor and delivery nurses.
Keep in mind that due to policies and procedures we require certain things of our staff in the hospital. So, even if you prefer certain things, it might be good to review it with your doctor in advance to make sure that he/she is OK with all of it.
I constantly wish I could just deliver babies without policies or charting or worries. But, lawyers have made that a thing of the past.
Just remember that your nurse is on your team. She wants the same thing you do — a healthy mom and baby. It’s no good trying to fight it. 😉
In summary:
- Don’t forget to grab that free customizable birth plan template right here in my free beginning prenatal class.
- It is important to think about what you want for your birth, and share it with your healthcare team.
- Be sure to get educated about ALL the things surrounding your birth in a prenatal class.
The Online Prenatal Class for Couples is just WAITING to prepare you for your confident hospital birth. It only takes a few hours, and we would love to have you inside!
This post was originally written November 2012, but has been updated.
Angie Henderson says
Well said. As a crazy person whose done it FOUR times, I think some of the reality makes it easier to plan. That plan usually involves getting the baby out of my body, and not dying. Really those were my only two goals with my last two. There were a list of bonus items: epidural (fail), saline block (fail), my own pretty gown (dumb idea), no vomitting (success!), just me and hubs in the room (success again!), and an OB who I’d met before (fail on all four!) – then you hold your baby and you know that you did that, however you did that, and it doesn’t matter any more because now you have a list of other things to worry about, and you can control most of those.
natural mom says
This comment has been removed by the author.
Hilary Erickson says
It looks like “Natural Mom” deleted her comment. A few thoughts on mean doctors and nurses:
1. We are ruled by policy which is ruled by the law. The end. You have no idea how easily we can be sued and for how long, and for millions, and millions of dollars.
2. If your doctor doesn’t jive with your wishes, I’d leave. She shouldn’t have to kick you out. But, she has probably had patients die who were unwilling to use Pitocin and she just don’t want that again. Simple as that.
3. You didn’t have a natural birth because you wrote a birth plan, you had one because you were lucky. Many women are not that lucky. Their uterus doesn’t contract, their hips are too small, their baby has a defect.
**I am 100% for education. I TEACH prenatal class, and I am very honest and open with our practices. I LOVE patients who are educated and wanting to participate in their care. Your words would be really hurtful to women who were unable to have a natural birth even WITH a birth plan. I hate to mention the fact that I have seen thousands of births and you’ve seen… what? one? I’m glad you have a healthy mom and a healthy baby. That is always my goal, and I hope it’s my patient’s as well.
Christina says
I think luck only plays a small part of having a natural birth. I would say that education is the biggest factor. Yes, sometimes things don’t go as planned but preventing getting to that point can greatly increase your chance of a natural birth. I remember telling my nurse during my first labour that contractions slowed down as I was moving around so she told me to stay in bed. Well as I learned later on they weren’t slowing down- they just didn’t hurt as much when I had gravity on my side. The snowball effect during labour can happen quickly.
Hilary says
Education can’t give you a bigger pelvis or unwrap the cord like a boa constrictor…. but yes, being educated on best practices is certainly important. 🙂
Jennifer says
Hilary, I love your posts! I am also an OB nurse, I welcome birth plans and certainly I also feel that education on the patient’s part is crucial. Another thing that is super important to me is finding a physician or midwife who is patient and whom you can trust. My own doctor and I had developed a wonderful working relationship, she was with me through years of infertility and miscarriage and when I finally gave birth to my daughter, she gave me a fighting chance! I had to be induced at 38 weeks for severely high blood pressure, my body was not ready to have a baby, but my doctor stuck it out, ripened my cervix for over 24 hours and then started pitocin. Low and behold my water broke on its own and I ended up a precipitous delivery! Any other physician would have sectioned me for sure. I am so glad that she trusted my body and will forever be grateful to her for that!
Hilary says
Jennifer,thanks! I completely agree with getting a doctor that is on the same page! Glad your story has a great ending!
Hilary Erickson says
Hmm, maybe I’ve seen just over a thousand by this point. So, I should say hundereds. Sorry, my bad. 🙂
Heather says
I would totally agree with you. When you step foot in the hospital, you release any control you have over your birth. It is a completely different model than a home birth.
I have so much admiration for women who go to the hospital. It is very rare that you get the birth experience you want and the likelihood of intervention is almost certain. Like you said, it is all about what the doctor and hospital wants to do.
My one sister had her three at home and there is no way that a hospital doctor would have been able to help her deliver vaginally without complications or intervention like her midwives were able to do. It took a lot of time and the help of an experienced midwife who knew how to work with the body. She would have had 3 c-sections for sure.
Every woman needs to make the decision of where she feels most comfortable giving birth and then realize that it will simply look different.
lori5 says
At the end of the day, how your baby got here and how much medication or not you needed to deliver is not nearly as important as having a healthy babe in your arms, the strength to recover quickly and enjoy your baby is what really matters. I love natural Child Birth, I enjoyed less is more, but one of my births was lead by our daughter surviving not by the plan or desire! Thankful for a brilliant Physician and a flexible attitude. Birth is a process, more often it go’s as planed and Natural is doable, but at the end of this journey it really won’t matter after you hold your baby, and years down the road, it will just be part of your personal story! HAPPY BIRTHING
Kay (A Ranch Mom) says
I so admire ob nurses. Dealing with hormonal women??? Yeesh.
I have had 2 babies at home, one at a birthing center(midwife) and two in the hospital -one of which was an emergency c-section. (tranverse breech)
My home births were my favorite, since they were perfectly normal, yada, yada, but boy was I thankful for the hospital when I needed it. Never wrote a plan–figured they were gonna have to do certain stuff anyways, and what could be personalized i could verbally choose at the time. Which I did.
Great perspective.
Marybeth Santos says
I have two healthy children and both were born in the hospital with various forms of intervention. My second child was far from a seamless birth and included the bed about to be rolled into the OR so that I could have a C Section and me begging to please let me push and by some miracle getting that baby out in 3 pushes. (I’m sure the doctor wanted to strangle me at that point, but I think he was less persuaded by me than by the fact that the baby’s heart beat had come back up from a big dip). That being said the only place I would ever choose to give birth is in a place where in the event of something catastrophic, in a matter of seconds my child and I would have access to every possible intervention to keep my baby and me alive. My living room does not accommodate that. I dislike hospitals as much as the next person, but in the words of Casey Affleck, “What, there are people that like it there?”. I can’t imagine choosing to have a home birth and then something going wrong and living with the what ifs for the rest of my life.
Hilary Erickson says
Healthy mom, healthy baby. 🙂
Kate says
Unfortunately, I am not able to have a home birth in the state that I live (Alabama). It is illegal for a midwife or doula to practice birth outside of the hospital. They can have their licenses suspended or revoked and fined thousands of dollars. The nurses at my hospital are very happy to accept birth plans and ask for them. They even ask that they be as detailed as possible so that they don’t have to continually ask a laboring mother what it is she wants. All they ask us that you are open minded when it comes to emergency situations.
Hilary says
I dont’ mind birth plans at all. Ilove knowing what my patient wants…. I just think when people are set in their ways God always finds them a new plan. 😉
Esully says
Thank you for posting this! I just moved from Oklahoma to Alabama and I can not believe how different birthing laws are here. I am just now pregnant for the first time but I was present for all 6 of nieces births in Oklahoma. Anyway I am actually really nervous about feeling intimidated into doing things I don’t want. But I will just trust God to help me get through in a way that will honour him!
Ali says
I had my first baby in the hospital. I did write a birth plan — the hospital representative told me prior to being in labor that I could “birth in any position” I was comfortable in and the birthing rooms were all equipped with birthing bars, balls, jetted tubs, etc. When it came down to it, that was a bunch of BS. The doctor told them to put me on my back and I had to push that baby out like nature did NOT intend. I wanted a limited number of people in the room during L&D. The hospital rep said they enforced their “3 support people” rule very carefully, but when it came down to it, they laughed about my husband’s grandma also being in the room, “what? I don’t see anyone sitting over there…” I did not want students involved in the birth. But when it came down to it, three students took turns delivering the baby and stitching me up afterwards with the doctor leaning back, his arms folded, saying, “Just keep doing what you’re doing.” I wanted to listen to calming music and look at pictures of those I love during difficult contractions. But when it came down to it, I had to beg for the music to be turned up (which got turned back down after about 10 seconds) and for my picture book (which got put away after one contraction) and my nurses kept telling me not to listen to my body, to breathe or not breathe, to push or not push, to stop being scared, etc.
So I decided to have a home birth for my second baby. All the things I wanted, I didn’t have to put into a “plan” because I got to birth the way women have been birthing for thousands of years. My midwife stayed in the background until I was ready to push. She gave me the freedom to listen to my body and push when I felt I needed to. That birth was far less traumatic both physically and emotionally, I feel because I was treated with respect as a person with wishes that were also respected.
In the hospital, my wishes really were not even listened to. They had their agenda and my delivery was going to look however they wanted it to, however it was easiest for them, whenever it was easiest for them. I remember my nurse telling me to stop being scared of the pain and just push through it. I listened (foolishly) to her instead of listening to my body. It was that push that caused a 4th degree tear deep inside that required 45 minutes of stitching afterwards.
At that point during my second delivery, I paused in my pushing, the baby’s head out, but body still in. My midwife waited. She encouraged me to push again when I was ready. And I did. And I had a tiny tear that took about 3 stitches.
Just my two cents… I’m a super advocate for birthing at home if at all possible. Unless you know something is going to be an issue where a hospital is required, home is a great place to welcome your little one! I’m sure nurses and doctors at the hospital want a healthy baby/healthy mommy, and that’s great, but many don’t seem to care how that result happens. It’s like, as long as no one dies, it was a job well done. Birth can be so positive and empowering and doesn’t have to leave emotional scars! I still get uptight when I think of my first daughter’s birth and all that surrounded it. But I love remembering my second daughter’s birth because of the way I was treated.
Sorry such a long comment!
Hilary says
Uh! It does sound like you had a bad birth. I must admit it’s always a balance between the patient and hospital policy. Add doctor’s who have particular and it can be quite a tug of war. I guess the main thing I can think of is making sure your doctor is on board with your wishes from the beginning….. they are all SO different. I have a blog coming up about home vs hospital births. Be sure to check back for that one — i think it publishes on Nov 23.
Ali says
It was tricky because it was a high risk pregnancy — several unrelated factors all happened that made it so, so my prenatal care was handled by a team of 15 doctors. I never really knew which doctor I’d see at my appointments — just whoever was available. I think I ended up meeting about 10 of them and I loved 2 of them, really liked the rest except one, and of course, that one doctor I didn’t really gel with was the one on call when I went into labor. 🙁
Because I did not go all “labor-hormone-pain crazy,” the intake nurses didn’t take me seriously (they wouldn’t put me in a room until I was like 6 cm dilated, were rude to me, talked about sending me home behind my back (in front of one of my support people), and the whole experience was just frustrating! I SO wish I had had a doula that time around! I had one for my home birth and even though I didn’t really need an advocate at home, she paid attention to what I wanted, made sure I had music going, suggested positions to labor in, etc. I feel like a doula would have been so helpful in the hospital in making sure that as many of my desires as were feasible were accommodated instead of making jokes out of how many people they could fit into the room, etc. So if a hospital birth is the only way to go for whatever reason for any future children, I’m DEFINITELY bringing along a doula and I recommend that to all of my pregnant friends!
Hilary says
Yeah, large groups make that really hard. I’m sorry. No one should ever talk rudely. The fact is — it is a job and people have “off” days — but it sure isn’t fair to the patient. I think doulas can be very helpful, but I have also seen them be a huge waste of money — so pick one who will make a good use of your dollar. 🙂
Christina says
I live in Canada and I am so grateful for the maternity options that we have here. Midwives are highly trained, experienced and regulated. You can have a midwife and give birth in the hospital here. When you do so you are just “borrowing the room”. No nurses come in, no one ‘checking in on you’ or bugging you, no rules about how many people you can have with you or what equipment you need to be hooked up to or what you have to wear. You don’t even wear a hospital bracelet. Yet, all emergency services are literally right outside the door incase an emergency occurs. This allows you to have a home like birth within a hospital setting.
It also allows you to discuss what you want your birth to look like, a verbal birth plan if you will, and because it is just two midwives with you that you have been seeing for months they know what you are requesting and do their best to honour that.
Hilary says
It IS a really cool system! I like that a lot!
NotMyFirstBaby says
One thing I keep seeing about birth plans is this “if you want a home birth/natural birth etc., then stay at home.” One thing people forget — is those women on government healthcare who truly WANT a home birth but can’t afford to pay someone cash when are practically destitute — but they can go to the hospital and give birth. These women WANT to stay home and have a natural home birth. But they can’t. I can’t. We’re stuck going to a hospital where people want to tell you that you cannot have a say in what happens to your child and your body, or that you cannot have the experience you want. So, I guess what I’m saying, is that maybe L&D nurses and staff should be conscious that some people don’t have an option to stay home, and maybe they should do their best to be kind and supportive of the decisions these women make.
And of course, I don’t mean life threatening ones like “hey, I’d rather just hemorrhage and bleed out than have an IV and some meds!”….that’s just stupid and bet there are only 1% of women with birth plans like that. IF even.
Hilary says
Umm…. you’d be surprised at the birth plans I see. I do understand that most often, due to our health care system, that the hospital is often a cheaper place to have a baby. And I will bend over backwards to make you comfy, but it’st still not a home delivery.