Reviewed by The Mom Store editorial team, October 2026. See our editorial policy.
A birth plan is a short written note of what you would like to happen during labour and in the first hours after your baby arrives. It tells your doctor, the nurses and your birth partner your preferences in one place, so you do not have to explain them in the middle of contractions. The NHS guide to making a birth plan describes it as a way of letting your care team know what you want and is clear that things may have to change at the last minute.
The most useful part is often the thinking you do while writing it: finding out what your hospital offers, what each option involves and what matters most to you.
Step 1: Find out what your hospital allows
Practices differ a lot between hospitals in India, and between private and government hospitals. Before you write anything, ask your obstetrician or at your antenatal visit:
- Can a birth partner stay with you in the labour room, and during a caesarean or an assisted birth with forceps or vacuum?
- Are you free to walk around during labour, and is there equipment such as a birthing ball, mats or a birthing pool?
- Which kinds of pain relief are available, and is an anaesthetist on site at all hours for an epidural?
- Can your baby stay with you after the birth?
Step 2: Decide what goes in
You do not need an opinion on everything. These are the topics the NHS birth plan checklist covers, with a few notes.
Who will be with you
Name your birth partner, whether that is your husband, your mother, a sister or a friend, and say whether you want them with you if you need an assisted birth or a caesarean.
Moving around and positions
Say whether you would like to stay active in labour. The NHS page on the stages of labour lists sitting, lying on your side, standing, kneeling and squatting as positions for pushing, with kneeling on all fours sometimes helping with backache.
Pain relief
There is no right answer here, and it is fine to write that you would like to start one way and stay open to others. The NHS overview of pain relief in labour explains the main options:
- Breathing, staying calm, changing position, massage and a warm bath can all help, as can having someone you trust with you.
- Gas and air reduces pain but does not take it away completely, and can make you lightheaded or sick for a while.
- Opioid injections such as pethidine take about 20 minutes to work. Given too close to delivery they can affect the baby's breathing and the first feed.
- An epidural, given by an anaesthetist, often gives complete pain relief but is not always fully effective. It can make the pushing stage longer, so forceps or vacuum may be more likely.
The same page notes that acupuncture, aromatherapy, hypnosis and similar therapies are mostly not proven to relieve labour pain, so discuss them with your doctor before relying on them.
Monitoring your baby
According to the NHS stages of labour page, in a straightforward labour the midwife listens to the baby's heart at regular intervals with a handheld device, and electronic monitoring with pads on your bump may be suggested if there are concerns. Ask which your hospital normally uses.
Right after the birth
- Skin to skin. You can ask for your baby to be placed on your chest straight away. The NHS says you will usually be able to hold your baby immediately.
- The cord. The NHS stages of labour page explains that when an injection is given to help deliver the placenta, the midwife waits between 1 and 5 minutes after birth before clamping the cord. Ask your doctor what your hospital usually does.
- The placenta. You can choose an injection to speed up delivery of the placenta or let it come naturally, which can take up to an hour. Ask your doctor which they advise for you.
Your baby's first care and feeds
The NHS checklist asks whether your baby can be given vitamin K if they need it, so ask your paediatrician about it before the birth. Write down how you want to feed your baby. If you plan to breastfeed, say that you would like help to start soon after birth: the WHO fact sheet on infant and young child feeding recommends skin to skin contact immediately after birth and starting breastfeeding within the first hour.
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Step 3: Write it on one page
Keep it short enough for a busy nurse to read in a minute. Start with your name, your doctor's name, your due date and your birth partner's name and phone number, then add your preferences under simple headings. Polite phrasing such as "I would prefer" or "if possible" works better than a list of demands. The NHS offers a free birth plan template you can download from its birth plan page, or you can write your own.
Step 4: Go through it with your doctor
Take the plan to an antenatal appointment well before your due date. Your doctor can tell you which choices are possible at your hospital, which ones may not be safe for you because of your health or your pregnancy, and what would happen if plans change. Then make a few copies: one for your hospital file, one in your hospital bag and one for your birth partner. Our hospital bag checklist covers what else to pack.
When the day does not follow the plan
Labour can change quickly, and you or your baby may need care you did not plan for, such as an epidural you had hoped to avoid, an assisted birth or an emergency caesarean. That is not a failure. A good plan includes a line about what you would like if things change, for example who stays with you, whether you want skin to skin in theatre if possible, and that you would like the reasons for any change explained to you. Your care team can then keep as much of your plan as is safe.
This article is general information and does not replace advice from your doctor.
