As you inch towards your due date, you’re probably feeling that much more excited to meet your little one…and that much more anxious for your impending labor. If this sounds like you, Tinyhood's online Childbirth 101 course is a must-watch before baby comes. Parents say its the only watch-at-your-own-pace online course that truly prepared them for labor and the postpartum experience...and all the ways it can go.
But remember, your support person or people are there to help you have as positive an experience as possible.
Here are 5 ways your chosen someone—be they partner, family member or doula—can offer support during labor:
1. Provide physical relief.
Though your partner can’t actually feel your contractions for you, they can help you better manage them, by coaching you through breathing techniques, offering light massage, or running for ice chips.
2. Provide emotional comfort.
You may experience a wide range of emotions during your labor. And while all of them are valid, having a birth partner can help you stay focused, grounded and encouraged.
3. Advocate for you.
Make sure you share your birth preferences with your support person, so they can help you advocate for them during labor. And if you don’t have any idea what your birth preferences even are yet, don’t panic. There’s still time. We cover birth preferences in-depth in our Childbirth 101 course, even giving you a list of questions you can fill out and pack in your hospital bag. (See? We told you not to panic.)
4. Handle the logistics.
If you’re managing early labor at home, your support person can help by timing contractions, and, ultimately, getting you to the hospital. And once you’re there, they can be in the loop, so you can focus on the task at hand.
5. Share in the experience.
Giving birth is a big life event (to say the least), and while it’s comforting to have a witness in the moment, a support person can help preserve those memories by snapping photos, jotting notes or gathering mementos.
Wondering how else you can prepare for labor and feeling a little unsure of what’s to come? Tinyhood’s Childbirth 101 course covers everything you need to know - including all the pain management options, the stages of labor, how to prepare for the postpartem period, and more.
