How to Mentally Prepare for an Unmedicated Birth
Something I learned after having my first baby, preparing for an unmedicated birth is 80% MENTAL work and maybe 20% physical. So much time of labor and birth is spent in the mental space – coping, thinking, dreaming, focusing. I never understood what “labor land” truly meant until I experienced it.
Time is twisted, the world fades away, no one around you matters. All that’s left is you and your mind – connecting with a realm that is as deep as your very soul. Surrendering to every sensation and giving into the present is critical in these sacred moments. I’m not going to sugar coat it. This is HARD WORK. But it’s also empowering work!
As soon as you feel your mind creeping to the future (how long will this last? I can’t handle more? What if…?) SHUT THAT DOWN. Thankfully, I had done so much mental prep ahead of time there were very few of these moments during my first 36 hour unmedicated labor/birth. Here are the basic things I did to prepare my mind & stay in that positive mental space…
#1 Make up your mind about your plan. Personally, I pretended as if the epidural didn’t even exist. Because I planned to birth out of hospital at a midwifery run clinic, I didn’t have access to it without going through great lengths and transferring to a hospital. Having the choice made and setting myself up for my specific plan gave me peace.
#2 Watch natural birth vlogs & Read POSITIVE birth stories ~ seeing other women experiencing these amazing life changing moments made me feel so connected to birth & know that I could do it too.
#3 Journal your thoughts and fears, discuss them with your support people.
#4 Knowing your “why” and having a STRONG and well thought out “why” as well. Having deeply considered all of the options, and doing immense amounts of research, I knew for sure why exactly I wanted to have an unmedicated birth.
#5 Create positive & simple statements and positive affirmations to replay in your mind as you progress through your labor.
#6 Have a focus, for me this was breathing through every single contraction and repeating my affirmations in my head over and over again.
So mamas,
Soak in every moment of your pregnancy as a sacred time to prepare your mind, body, and spirit to enter into the birth realm. It is not easy by any means, but it is doable. And the more your prepare yourself, the more you are investing into your future self as she roars her precious newborn into the world! You can do this!
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