Early on in your pregnancy, 40 weeks can feel like forever, but as you finally begin your
third trimester you may find that your baby’s birth is approaching quicker than you
realize. Now is the time to begin preparing for your new little arrival. Delivery looks
different for every woman, but preparing ahead of time can give you confidence when
you go into labor and can help your birthing experience go as smoothly as possible.
Today we’ll be discussing three areas you should focus on when preparing for labor and
delivery – and beyond.
Prenatal Prep
Prenatal Classes – One very important thing you can do to prepare yourself for
labor and delivery is to find out if there are any prenatal classes offered near you. Many
times, your local hospital or pregnancy clinic will offer a range of everything from birthing
classes to breastfeeding classes, to classes about general prenatal care. This education
can help prepare you, so you know what to expect in the weeks and months ahead. If
you have a partner, they should come too!
Hospital Tour – Another thing that will be beneficial to your prenatal prep is taking
a tour of the hospital where you will be delivering. This will not only give you an idea of
where to park and check in when you arrive but will also give you an opportunity to ask
questions about the hospital’s policies on things like visitors or even how they
encourage bonding with baby. Not only that, but seeing the birthing rooms and
familiarizing yourself with the environment ahead of time will help to ease your nerves
and build your confidence for when you are ready to deliver.
Installing the Car Seat – In order to bring your sweet bundle of joy home from the
hospital, you will need to have an infant car seat installed in your car. It is good to get
this done ahead of time just in case baby plans to make an early arrival. Car seats can
be a tricky thing to get installed safely and correctly. Saferide4kids.com emphasizes the
importance of getting your car seat checked, even if you think you have it installed and
are using it right. According to their website, studies show 96% of parents think they did
it right, while 75% of children are found to be restrained incorrectly. Fortunately, there
are free Child Safety Seat Checkups and Inspection Stations all around the country.
Just search for one near you and set up an appointment. If you are Local to Stephenville, TX we can help you here at Choices Clinic!
Nesting & Resting – Just as a mama bird builds her nest before she lays eggs
and hatches her chicks, so human mamas usually will feel that instinct kick in to make
ready for baby’s big debut. Normally it will present itself in logical tasks like organizing.
