Tip #9
Location, Location, Location!
The environment you will birth in is key to how well your body will go through the process. Hormones drive contractions. To get more hormones in your system, you will need the following:
- dim lights,
- privacy,
- the feeling of not being observed, of safety and security,
- quiet surroundings.
Many women have the best chance of meeting their needs in their own home. If you are not comfortable birthing at home, visit a local birth centre and hospital to compare them before making a decision. If health care does not cover the cost of a midwife, it is almost always worth paying for midwifery services out of pocket, especially if you will gain a location that caters to birth physiology.

Tip #8
Take a portable light to the hospital
Dr. Michel Odent, OB and founder of the Primal Health Research Data Bank, was in Edmonton in September. He stressed the importance of privacy, dim lighting, and no unnecessary neocortical stimulation during labour. If a woman can birth in this kind of environment, her body will have the best chance of excreting all the hormones needed to birth a baby and fall in love afterward. Because many hospitals don't have dimmer switches in the bathroom, plan to take a small lamp or battery operated tap light to ensure you have dim lights and privacy no matter where you are. (IKEA sells a portable lamp for $5 that works well for this purpose!)

Tip #7
Say Yes when you mean Yes, say No when you mean No
Most of us go to the hospital to have our babies. We are on someone else's turf and we do our best to play by their rules for the most part. However, if something doesn't seem necessary or feel "right" to you, ask questions and say no if you want to. The hospitals are getting much more flexible when it comes to parent's birth wishes, however there are still some procedures that may be done on a routine basis. If you need more information in order to consent to a procedure or refuse it, you need to ask. You will have a good idea if it is necessary or routine after you ask questions about it and ask if you can delay the procedure. If you normally avoid any type of conflict, remember that it is your body, your baby, and your right to ask questions. Don't just do it for yourself - do it for your baby.

Tip #6
Request an Ice-Pack
What do you do when you get an athletic injury? Put some ice on to reduce swelling and pain. The same principle applies to your perineum and labia after childbirth. To speed healing and for your own comfort, request an ice-pack for your genital area within an hour of birth. Continue frequent use for the first day or so. You can make your own "ice-pack" by wetting a menstrual pad and freezing it. However, most women find that if they used ice-pack's for the first day, they don't need them by the time they go home!

Tip #5
Request a Doppler
Caregivers monitor baby's health in the womb by monitoring the fetal heart-rate. Keep in mind that since continuous fetal monitoring became standard practice, the outcomes haven't improved for babies, however there are a greater number of interventions for labouring women. (Gentle Birth Choices, Barbara Harper, 1996) Heat rate monitoring can interfere with normal labour since you have to be in certain positions to fit the monitor low on mommy's tummy. It also usually means you are less mobile because you are attached to the monitor with two cords. Many women find it uncomfortable as well because the monitors have to be held firmly in place on the tummy. One tool especially helpful during the pushing phase, when you may want to be in many different positions, is the handheld doppler. Talk to you doctor about using this if the main monitor starts to hinder your movements and coping with contractions.

Tip #4
Natural Pushing
After your cervix is fully dilated you will feel an overwhelming urge to push. (Many times there is a rest period in between when you can rest, brush your hair, etc. It is called the "rest and be thankful" period!) Natural pushing means a woman pushes when she feels like it, for as long as she feels, and as hard as she feels she should. Usually that means 2 pushes for 5 to 6 seconds long. This allows lots of oxygenated blood to go to baby, the mother's blood pressure to remain constant, and slow stretching of the birth canal. If you push 3 times for 10 second each, as many women are "coached" to do, it is harder on your body and it is harder to get good levels of oxygenated blood to the baby. As in most cases, nature knows best!

Tip #3
It's all in the moves!
Movement and vertical position is key for an easier labour. Try to stay on your feet for as long as possible - walking or standing. This is where your partner will come in handy as a leaning post! When you get tired, try sitting on the toilet, a birth ball, or the edge of the bed to keep your body vertical and help baby descend. You should try to move at least every 6 contractions to keep things progressing, help with the pain, and let you feel like you are doing something! Unless you can actually sleep, save the bed for Dad and others to rest on, labour usually hurts more when you lay down anyway!

Tip #2
Keep the bed in one-piece
Birthing beds in hospitals are pretty high-tech these days! At a push of a button they can raise or lower various parts of the bed or the whole bed itself...what fun!! The lower portion also can be removed and replaced with "footrests" for the final arrival of baby. However, remember that laying down while pushing baby out is like pushing uphill and will take a lot longer. Also, if you are laying on your back, the oxygen supply to baby could decrease. Better positions are standing, side-lying, squatting, or hands-and-knees. You do not have to stay in one place while pushing! Your caregiver can watch you wherever you are for the first showing of baby's head. Then you can get on a soft surface like the bed. To keep your flexibility, and to keep it simple and less medicalized, talk to your caregiver about not "breaking the bed" and letting you birth baby on the bed. It really makes the mother feel much more comfortable and able to keep moving to help baby come faster!

Tip #1
Get the right nurse for you
Tip of the day is about your labour and delivery nurse. First we have to send kudos to all the lovely and talented nurses out there! We do appreciate all your hard work! For parents, your assigned nurse will have a huge impact on your whole experience. As such, it is important to have a nurse who not only understands what your want, but believes in it. So, let your husband or partner request your kind of nurse (eg. granola nurse, flexible, quiet or cheerleader, etc.) when you arrive. This way, you are much more likely to get someone you can bond with!