Checklist for taking care of yourself during labour
-
Light exercise (stretch, take walks, continue your kegel exercises)
-
Pampering (get your haircut, bikini wax)
-
Take a parenting class
-
Read up on labour and delivery scenarios and procedures
Checklist to prepare a delivery plan
-
Who would you like to have in the delivery room with you?
-
What kind of environment do you want?
-
Do you want to document the delivery (photography/video)?
-
What kind of pain relief do you want?
-
How would you want to deliver?
-
Do you want your partner present if you have a caesarean section?
-
Do you want your little one circumcised?
Checklist during at home
-
Make sure the room is ready
-
Buy a month’s worth of supplies
-
Pack your delivery bag
-
Cook extra meals and freeze for later; gather delivery menus
-
Pay your bills (rent/cell phone/credit card) in advance
-
If you have other kids, arrange for babysitters/relatives to care for them and provide instructions
-
Fill up your car’s petrol tank
-
Know the signs of when you should go to the hospital (ask your doctor)
-
Come up with plans for different scenarios: if the husband is at work when you go into labour, if it happens in the middle of the night, etc.
-
Prepare a list of numbers to call for when it happens
Checklist during at the hospital
-
Make sure the room is ready
-
delivery room
-
maternity ward
-
nurse’s station
-
administrative area for processing and payment
-
-
Pre-register at the hospital if possible
-
Ask about hospital policies
-
Visiting hours
-
What items they provide (like diapers, maternity pads, toiletry kit)
-
What you can and cannot bring (like food warmers, music players)
-
Who can be in the delivery room with you
-
How long can you stay postpartum
-
Screening tests they give for postnatal
-
How to know that you’re in labour
-
Stronger, more frequent contractions (ask your gynaecologist how far apart they should be before you head for the hospital)
-
Thick vaginal discharge; your water breaks
-
Strong back pain
-
Pressure on your pelvis
-
Diarrhoea
* When in doubt, call your doctor. If it happens at odd hours, proceed to the hospital. You might get sent home, but it’s best to be safe.