What to Include in Your Birth Plan: Top 10 Essentials + Full Checklist

Basic Information & Contact Details

Start your birth plan with essential information that helps your healthcare team identify you and understand your medical background quickly.

Personal Information to Include:

• ☐ Full name and preferred name/nickname
• ☐ Date of birth and age
• ☐ Expected due date
• ☐ Current pregnancy week
• ☐ Blood type and Rh factor
• ☐ Any allergies (medications, latex, foods)
• ☐ Pre-existing medical conditions
• ☐ Current medications
• ☐ Previous pregnancies and birth experiences
• ☐ Group B Strep status

Healthcare Provider Information:

• ☐ Primary OB/GYN or midwife name
• ☐ Practice name and phone number
• ☐ Preferred hospital or birth center
• ☐ Pediatrician name and contact
• ☐ Doula information (if applicable)

Emergency Contacts:

• ☐ Partner/support person name and phone
• ☐ Alternative emergency contact
• ☐ Childcare arrangements (if applicable)
• ☐ Pet care arrangements

Labor Environment & Atmosphere

Your environment significantly impacts your comfort and ability to cope with labor. Consider these environmental preferences:

Room Atmosphere:

• ☐ Lighting preferences (dim, natural, specific lamps)
• ☐ Music or sounds (playlist, nature sounds, silence)
• ☐ Aromatherapy preferences (specific essential oils)
• ☐ Temperature preferences
• ☐ Personal items to bring (photos, affirmations, comfort objects)
• ☐ Clothing preferences (own gown vs. hospital gown)

Privacy & Documentation:

• ☐ Photography/video recording preferences
• ☐ Student/resident involvement acceptance
• ☐ Number of staff in room preferences
• ☐ Door open or closed
• ☐ Minimal interruptions request

Movement & Positioning:

• ☐ Freedom to walk during labor
• ☐ Use of birthing ball
• ☐ Access to shower or tub
• ☐ Squat bar availability
• ☐ Ability to change positions freely

Support Team & Visitors

Clearly defining who will be present during labor and delivery helps ensure you have the support you need while maintaining your desired level of privacy.

During Labor:

• ☐ Primary support person designation
• ☐ Additional support people allowed
• ☐ Doula presence and role
• ☐ Family member involvement
• ☐ Friend participation
• ☐ Rotating vs. continuous support

During Delivery:

• ☐ Who stays in the room
• ☐ Positioning of support people
• ☐ Who announces baby's sex
• ☐ Who cuts the umbilical cord
• ☐ Photography permissions

Postpartum Visitors:

• ☐ Immediate family only initially
• ☐ Visiting hours preferences
• ☐ Sibling visit timing
• ☐ Extended family and friends
• ☐ No visitors preference

Visitors: What to Put in Your Birth Plan

Visitor preferences are easy to forget and hard to enforce in the moment, so writing them down helps. Your nurses can act as gatekeepers if they know your wishes. Check your hospital's visitor policy first: many limit how many support people can be in the labor room, set visiting hours, and may restrict visits during flu or RSV season.

Decide and Write Down:

• ☐ Who can be in the room during labor and birth (and whether they can stay if a cesarean is needed)
• ☐ Whether anyone should wait outside, and who updates them
• ☐ When visitors are welcome after birth (e.g., not until after the first feed or the first few hours)
• ☐ Who can visit in the hospital and who should wait until you're home
• ☐ Whether staff should check with you before letting anyone in
• ☐ When older siblings will meet the baby
• ☐ Who can hold the baby, and photo or social media rules
• ☐ Health rules: no visitors who are unwell, handwashing before holding the baby

Newborns are vulnerable to infections, so it's reasonable to ask close contacts to stay home if they're sick. The CDC recommends that people who will be around a newborn be up to date on whooping cough and flu vaccines; ask your provider which vaccines they suggest for family members.

Sample Wording:

• "Only [partner] and [doula] in the room during labor and birth, please."
• "No visitors until we've had at least the first two hours with our baby. Please check with us before letting anyone in."
• "We'll be announcing the birth ourselves; please don't share details with callers."

Early Labor Preferences

Your preferences for early labor set the tone for your entire birthing experience. Consider these options:

Admission Preferences:

• ☐ When to come to hospital (specific dilation/contraction pattern)
• ☐ Preference for going home if not progressed
• ☐ Initial exam preferences
• ☐ Gown changing timing

Early Labor Management:

• ☐ Natural labor onset preference
• ☐ Thoughts on membrane sweeping
• ☐ Position on induction if overdue
• ☐ Preferred induction methods if needed
• ☐ Breaking water naturally vs. artificially

Comfort Measures:

• ☐ Walking and movement
• ☐ Shower or bath access
• ☐ Eating and drinking preferences
• ☐ Ice chips vs. clear liquids
• ☐ Position changes

Active Labor Management

Active labor requires more specific preferences as medical involvement typically increases. Address these considerations:

Labor Progress:

• ☐ Frequency of cervical checks
• ☐ Who performs exams
• ☐ Being informed of progress
• ☐ Time limits on labor stages
• ☐ Augmentation preferences (Pitocin)

Hydration & Nutrition:

• ☐ IV fluids vs. heparin lock
• ☐ Eating during labor
• ☐ Types of fluids allowed
• ☐ Energy drinks or honey sticks
• ☐ Electrolyte preferences

Coping Strategies:

• ☐ Breathing techniques
• ☐ Visualization or hypnobirthing
• ☐ Massage preferences
• ☐ Counter-pressure for back labor
• ☐ Hot/cold compresses
• ☐ TENS unit use

Pain Management Options

Pain management is highly personal. Clearly communicate your preferences while remaining open to changes based on your experience.

Natural Pain Management:

• ☐ Breathing and relaxation techniques
• ☐ Position changes and movement
• ☐ Hydrotherapy (shower/tub)
• ☐ Massage and touch
• ☐ Heat and cold application
• ☐ Acupressure or acupuncture
• ☐ Hypnobirthing techniques
• ☐ Aromatherapy
• ☐ Music therapy
• ☐ Birth ball use

Medical Pain Relief:

• ☐ Preference order for pain medications
• ☐ Nitrous oxide (if available)
• ☐ Narcotic medications (types and timing)
• ☐ Epidural preferences and timing
• ☐ Walking epidural if available
• ☐ Patient-controlled epidural
• ☐ Spinal block for C-section

Communication About Pain:

• ☐ Don't offer medication (I'll ask)
• ☐ Offer options at regular intervals
• ☐ Code word for epidural request
• ☐ Partner's role in pain management decisions

Monitoring & Medical Interventions

Understanding monitoring options helps you balance mobility with medical safety requirements.

Fetal Monitoring:

• ☐ Continuous vs. intermittent monitoring
• ☐ Wireless/telemetry monitoring
• ☐ Internal vs. external monitoring
• ☐ Frequency of monitoring checks
• ☐ Movement with monitoring

Medical Procedures:

• ☐ IV or heparin lock preferences
• ☐ Catheter use and timing
• ☐ Artificial rupture of membranes
• ☐ Internal exams frequency
• ☐ Scalp electrode use
• ☐ Intrauterine pressure catheter

Labor Augmentation:

• ☐ Natural methods first
• ☐ Nipple stimulation
• ☐ Walking and position changes
• ☐ Pitocin as last resort
• ☐ Lowest effective dose preference

Pushing & Delivery Preferences

The pushing stage and moment of delivery are pivotal. Consider these preferences:

Pushing Stage:

• ☐ Spontaneous vs. directed pushing
• ☐ Pushing positions (side-lying, squatting, hands and knees)
• ☐ Use of mirror to see progress
• ☐ Squat bar or stirrups
• ☐ Time limits on pushing
• ☐ Episiotomy avoidance
• ☐ Perineal massage/support
• ☐ Warm compresses

Moment of Delivery:

• ☐ Who catches the baby
• ☐ Partner involvement in delivery
• ☐ Immediate skin-to-skin placement
• ☐ Discovering baby's sex ourselves
• ☐ Quiet or celebratory atmosphere
• ☐ Photography/video preferences

Cord Management:

• ☐ Delayed cord clamping duration
• ☐ Who cuts the cord
• ☐ Cord blood banking
• ☐ Lotus birth consideration (leaving the cord attached; not generally recommended because of infection risk—discuss with your provider)
• ☐ Saving cord for keepsake

Placenta Delivery:

• ☐ Natural vs. managed third stage
• ☐ Pitocin for placenta delivery
• ☐ Cord traction preferences
• ☐ Viewing the placenta
• ☐ Placenta encapsulation (no proven benefits, and the CDC has reported a newborn infection linked to placenta capsules—discuss with your provider)
• ☐ Taking placenta home

Immediate Postpartum Care

The first hours after birth are crucial for bonding and recovery. Plan for this golden hour:

First Hour:

• ☐ Uninterrupted skin-to-skin time
• ☐ Delay routine procedures
• ☐ First breastfeeding attempt
• ☐ Partner skin-to-skin if needed
• ☐ Quiet bonding time
• ☐ Limited visitors

Mother's Care:

• ☐ Repair preferences (sutures)
• ☐ Pain management after delivery
• ☐ Fundal massage preferences
• ☐ Showering/bathing timing
• ☐ Food and drink requests
• ☐ Room temperature adjustment

Initial Assessments:

• ☐ APGAR scoring location
• ☐ Weighing and measuring timing
• ☐ All procedures at bedside
• ☐ Parent present for all care

Newborn Care Decisions

Your preferences for newborn procedures and care should be clearly stated:

Medical Procedures:

• ☐ Vitamin K injection (timing and location)
• ☐ Eye ointment (erythromycin)
• ☐ Hepatitis B vaccine timing
• ☐ PKU/newborn screening timing
• ☐ Hearing test preferences
• ☐ Circumcision decision and timing
• ☐ Blood sugar monitoring if needed
• ☐ Jaundice screening

Newborn Care Practices:

• ☐ First bath timing (the WHO recommends waiting at least 24 hours)
• ☐ Who gives first bath
• ☐ Diapering preferences
• ☐ Swaddling vs. skin-to-skin
• ☐ Pacifier use
• ☐ Room temperature for baby
• ☐ Clothing choices

Rooming Arrangements:

• ☐ 24/7 rooming-in
• ☐ Nursery for specific procedures only
• ☐ Nursery at night preference
• ☐ Partner staying overnight
• ☐ Security preferences

Newborn Procedures Explained

These are the routine newborn procedures most often listed on a birth plan. The details below reflect common US practice; recommendations and routines differ in other countries, so ask your provider or midwife what's standard where you're giving birth. In most cases you can ask for procedures to be done after the first hour of skin-to-skin or the first feed, with your baby on your chest or with a parent present.

Vitamin K Shot

Babies are born with low levels of vitamin K, which the body needs for blood clotting. A single vitamin K injection soon after birth prevents vitamin K deficiency bleeding, a rare but serious condition that can cause bleeding in the brain. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends the shot for all newborns. Some countries also offer oral vitamin K, which requires several doses over the first weeks; talk to your provider before choosing an alternative to the injection. Example wording: "Please give vitamin K after the first hour of skin-to-skin."

Eye Ointment

In the US, an antibiotic ointment (erythromycin) is placed in the baby's eyes to prevent a serious eye infection caused by gonorrhea passed on during birth. It's required by law in most US states. Many other countries, including the UK, don't give it routinely. You can usually ask for it to be given after the first feed.

Hepatitis B Vaccine

The AAP recommends the first dose of the hepatitis B vaccine within 24 hours of birth for medically stable babies. US federal guidance on the birth dose for babies whose mothers test negative for hepatitis B has recently been under review, so ask your pediatrician what they recommend. If the mother has hepatitis B or her status is unknown, the vaccine (and sometimes an antibody injection called HBIG) should be given within 12 hours of birth. In the UK, a birth dose is offered only to babies at higher risk.

Newborn Screening and Hearing Test

A few drops of blood from a heel prick are tested for rare but serious conditions that benefit from early treatment. In the US this is usually done 24–48 hours after birth (in the UK, around day 5). Most US hospitals also do a pulse oximetry check for critical heart defects after 24 hours, and a hearing screening before you go home or within the first month. Breastfeeding or skin-to-skin during the heel prick can help comfort your baby.

First Bath

There's no need to bathe your baby straight away. The WHO recommends waiting at least 24 hours (or at least 6 hours if a full day isn't possible for cultural reasons). Delaying the bath helps keep your baby warm and supports skin-to-skin and early feeding. You can note whether you'd like to give the first bath yourself.

Circumcision Decision

If you have a boy, decide in advance whether you want a circumcision and, if so, whether it happens in the hospital or later. The AAP has said the health benefits outweigh the risks but are not great enough to recommend it for all newborn boys, so it's a family decision that may reflect cultural or religious beliefs. If you choose it, ask that pain relief be used. Routine newborn circumcision is much less common outside the US.

Other newborn checks you may see include blood sugar monitoring for babies at risk of low blood sugar and a jaundice check before discharge.

Feeding Preferences

Clear feeding preferences help establish your chosen method from the start:

Breastfeeding:

• ☐ Exclusive breastfeeding intention
• ☐ First feeding timing
• ☐ Lactation consultant visit
• ☐ No formula supplementation
• ☐ No pacifiers or artificial nipples
• ☐ Pumping if separation needed
• ☐ Donor milk preference if needed
• ☐ Night feeding support

Formula Feeding:

• ☐ Formula brand preference
• ☐ Ready-to-feed vs. powder
• ☐ Feeding schedule preference
• ☐ Who can feed baby
• ☐ Bottle type preferences

Combination Feeding:

• ☐ Primary method preference
• ☐ When to introduce bottles
• ☐ Pumping schedule
• ☐ Formula timing

C-Section Preferences (If Needed)

Even if planning a vaginal birth, including C-section preferences ensures your wishes are known if plans change:

Before Surgery:

• ☐ Partner present for preparation
• ☐ Anesthesia preferences (spinal vs. epidural)
• ☐ Anti-nausea medication
• ☐ Catheter insertion timing
• ☐ Music in OR

During Surgery:

• ☐ Partner at head of bed
• ☐ Clear drape or dropped drape
• ☐ Narration of procedure
• ☐ Gentle cesarean techniques
• ☐ Immediate skin-to-skin if stable
• ☐ Partner announces sex
• ☐ Delayed cord clamping if possible
• ☐ Photography permissions

Recovery:

• ☐ Baby stays with parents
• ☐ Breastfeeding in recovery
• ☐ Pain management plan
• ☐ Visitor limitations
• ☐ Mobility goals
• ☐ Incision care preferences

Special Circumstances

Address any unique situations that might apply to your pregnancy:

Multiple Births:

• ☐ Delivery room vs. OR preference
• ☐ Order of skin-to-skin contact
• ☐ Individual vs. together photos
• ☐ NICU preparation preferences
• ☐ Feeding order/schedule

High-Risk Considerations:

• ☐ Specialized team preferences
• ☐ NICU tour and preparation
• ☐ Extended monitoring acceptance
• ☐ Visitor restrictions understanding

Previous Trauma or Loss:

• ☐ Extra emotional support needs
• ☐ Specific triggers to avoid
• ☐ Memorial preferences if applicable
• ☐ Rainbow baby celebrations
• ☐ Counseling support

VBAC Attempt:

• ☐ Continuous monitoring acceptance
• ☐ IV access requirements
• ☐ OR readiness understanding
• ☐ Success celebration plans
• ☐ Repeat cesarean acceptance

Cultural & Religious Considerations

Honor your cultural and spiritual traditions during this sacred time:

Religious Practices:

• ☐ Prayer or blessing timing
• ☐ Religious items in room
• ☐ Clergy visits
• ☐ Specific rituals at birth
• ☐ Naming ceremonies
• ☐ Baptism preferences

Cultural Traditions:

• ☐ Placenta burial traditions
• ☐ First visitor protocols
• ☐ Gender announcement customs
• ☐ Specific foods after birth
• ☐ Traditional clothing for baby
• ☐ Postpartum confinement practices

Language & Communication:

• ☐ Interpreter needs
• ☐ Written materials in preferred language
• ☐ Cultural liaison request
• ☐ Family spokesperson designation

Postpartum Recovery Preferences

Your postpartum stay sets the foundation for recovery. Consider these preferences:

Hospital Stay:

• ☐ Length of stay preference
• ☐ Early discharge if eligible
• ☐ Private room request
• ☐ Partner accommodation needs
• ☐ Quiet hours enforcement

Recovery Support:

• ☐ Lactation support frequency
• ☐ Physical therapy if C-section
• ☐ Mental health check-ins
• ☐ Postpartum doula visits
• ☐ Meal preferences/restrictions

Discharge Planning:

• ☐ Car seat inspection
• ☐ Home visit scheduling
• ☐ Follow-up appointments
• ☐ Prescription needs
• ☐ Support group information
• ☐ Emergency contact numbers