All About Child Birth

Preparing for child birth is something that you have probably done since you first found out that you were pregnant. Today women have several options to choose from when it comes to child birth. Where you want to give birth, how you want to do it and the level of pain you want to endure are just a few of the many choices a woman has today. Some situations cannot be controlled but for the most part you can customize your child birth.

The most common places for child birth are in a hospital, birthing center or home. At a hospital you have a staff trained to prepare a woman for child birth and to provide newborn care after the baby is born. A doctor is always on call because sometimes child birth is unexpected and your own doctor may not be available. Pain medication is usually used to relieve some of the pain.

In a birthing center, a trained staff is also available at all times but the facility is only suitable for birth and newborn care. At a birthing facility they offer a more natural home-like environment for delivery. Pain medication may be used, but it is not used as often as in a hospital. If complications occur they usually transfer the mother out to a hospital.

Birthing centers might be found in or near the hospitals while others are found away from hospitals. Birthing centers offer water births too. This is a pool of warm water in the facility used to ease the pain of labor.

Home birth is choosing to deliver your baby at home instead of at a facility. If you choose to give birth at home, a midwife will assist you through the labor and delivery.

If you decide to deliver at a hospital or birthing center, pack an overnight bag to take with you that includes something for you to wear home, something for baby to wear home, some personal items and a magazine or book to read.

When it’s time for childbirth, your membranes will rupture, causing your cervix to start contracting. The contractions will thin your cervix and allow it to open or dilate. Once it has dilated completely, it will be time for your baby to enter into the birth canal before coming down toward the opening.

During this time you will experience pain as you are dilating. The contractions you experienced earlier are also painful. Don’t be afraid to ask for pain medication (epidural) during labor or childbirth if you feel that you need it. Sometimes without pain medication, you can put your body under too much stress causing more problems to arise.

During the birth process you may tear at the opening or have to be cut to allow the baby out. If this happens your doctor may decide to sew up the torn area in order to help it to heal properly. Usually during this time you are holding your baby and you are not feeling any pain.

No matter what you decide to do during childbirth don’t be surprised if it doesn’t go the way that you planned. Things come up and sometimes you need to make last second decisions. In the end all that matters is that you and your baby are okay.