Birth Plan?

I just wanted to add that a birth plan is not about being in control - a birth plan is meant for you to weigh your pros and cons, find out your options beforehand and to put the choices you make in order of priority and to enable you to have a positive birth. It means less surprises in the hospital. The birth plan helps to communicate this with all the staff on duty - this is why in certain hospitals, they’ll ask you for it, because they’ll reduce the number of questions asked. And they’ll only attend to your requests if it’s out of the birth plan. Also, nurses and midwives change shift all the time and their methods and values are all different. The birth plan serves as a communication tool so that their care for you stays consistent (e.g. this mama is aiming for a birth with the least interventions so we’ll help her - don’t sell the epidural repeatedly and don’t disturb her with the need for pitocin. Give her her space to birth and to listen to her instincts) I would like to suggest that when you don’t think through the options or look at hospital protocols beforehand, you would not have the time, space, nor frame of mind while in labour to consider if the options offered to you are within your level of comfort and towards what you deem as a positive birth. This is why many women go through birth trauma. Some aren’t even aware of it until fears arise in the following births of their children and they aren’t aware of it. Many women are able to tell you how their births went even on their deathbeds so putting in a bit of elbow grease to create a birth plan, is in my opinion, well worth it.