Making your birth plan

couple reviewing birth plan

You’ve been planning for the arrival of your newborn for so many months now, and you probably have some pretty specific ideas about your labor and birth experience. Creating a birth plan gives you a chance to think about your options and share them with us as you plan for your big day.

What is a birth plan?

The purpose of creating your birth plan is to empower you. Tell us how you envision your baby’s birth day, so we can honor your wishes and help you have a safe, positive experience. It’s not a contract, and you can change your mind anytime — even in the birthing room. We can’t predict exactly what will happen on your baby’s birth day, so we can’t promise that all of your preferences will be safe and appropriate — but we’ll do our best to give you the birth experience you want to have.

Download the Birth Plan form now and bring it to your next appointment. (Northern California members should download the Birth Preferences form.) We’ll go over it together and talk about anything you’re not sure about. We’ll also discuss things that aren’t on your birth plan — like who’s in the delivery room and whether you want to try delivering vaginally if you’ve had a C-section in the past. Once you’ve completed it, we’ll add it to your electronic health record and your entire care team will review it on your baby’s birth day.

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