The Birth Plan Template I've Been Searching For!
- Pam Serna
- Oct 14
- 2 min read
Updated: Oct 15
After too many years of being a doula and telling clients I haven't found the birth plan template that I like, I finally made the one I could not find! All the birth plans I have come across are either missing critical points (like your preferences on cervical exams), don't provide freedom to make special requests, or are not easily digestible for the busy nurses who will be reading them.
So, I made one that is to the point and comprehensive! And it is fully editable, because these are YOUR preferences after all!
If some of the items listed are unfamiliar to you, ask another experienced mom (with recent birthing experience) or a birthworker you know. I am also offering birth planning support and would be happy to walk you through ALL of your options! Of course you can always do online searches as well. Be wary of biased birth info, seek the plain facts, so you can make the decision that is best for you and your baby.
And remember, creating a birth plan/preferences is just one step in preparing for an empowered birth experience. To birth our babies AND ourselves as mothers and parents, we are called to prepare body, mind, and spirit. Creating a clear birth plan, helps us prepare mentally for what to expect, particularly for those birthing in the hospital. It helps us to consider our options, research unfamiliar areas we may not have known about, make values based decisions, and grow our self advocacy muscles. This also grows in prenatal visits, which are wonderful opportunities to bring up things that are important to you on your birth plan.
And as helpful as birth plans are, birth is a journey that, no matter how much we plan for, has it's own plans for us. Nurturing your spiritual muscle to surrender what you cannot control is just as important, and I would say more important, than writing a birth plan. See these other posts on this topic. Spiritual Birth Tip: Practicing Surrender, Spiritual Birth Prep: A Labyrinth Meditation, How Prayer Prepared me For an Unexpected Birth Experience. This spiritual preparation is usually easier to settle into, once we have done the work of learning (and probably unlearning) about birth. Writing a birth plan is part of that.
So, enjoy my free gift to you! And please contact me if you would like to schedule a virtual birth plan consultation.
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