Helpful Tips for the Labor Coach

A labor coach is the person who stays with you during your labor and delivery. It is usually the father of your soon-to-be-born child, but could also be a family member or friend. It is helpful if this person has gone to childbirth classes with you, so that they can encourage you to use the techniques that you have learned and better understand what you are experiencing. If you and your coach have not gone to baby delivery classes do not panic, most importantly make plans for someone to be with you during your labor and delivery who can provide you with comfort, support, and encouragement.

Some helpful tips to do and discuss with your labor coach, several weeks before giving birth to your baby:

1. Attend childbirth-preparation classes together, like lamaze classes, which help you learn breathing techniques to use during painful contractions. Ask your pregnancy doctor or local hospital for class recommendations. Do not hesitate to ask a lot of questions and take notes. When my husband and I attended classes, learning about the stages of labor helped him anticipate my needs & be a better advocate for me. It was great for him to know when to get me ice-chips & was comforting when he was confident to ask the medical staff questions as they began inducing labor during my first delivery!

2. Encourage your labor coach to bring an overnight bag to the hospital, packed with snacks, water,  toiletries, comfortable shoes & a change of clothes. You may even want to get your coach a special "Pregnancy Support Team" shirt! When I delivered our second child, my husband became light-headed & nauseated from not eating and had to leave the room at a time that I really needed him!

3. Discuss different scenarios with your coach, such as a change in your preferred delivery method. This will help you be more flexible & mentally prepared if your labor and delivery plans do not go as you expected or learned in childbirth classes. With our first child, we did not expect that I would need a C-section after 8 hours of difficult labor. But having learned about the possibility, we were able to accept it better and realize that a safe delivery was most important!

4. Discuss the need for patience with each other. Not only can labor take several hours, but you may do or say things to each other that could be taken personally. Due to the way that each of us handles difficult situations and pain, we may become sensitive to things that usually wouldn't bother us. With our third child, having a baby went much smoother for me. But just as I was about to deliver,  I remember my husband commenting, "This hasn't been so bad! We should have a fourth!" At the time, even though it had been easier than my others, his timing was not good!

The anticipation of having a baby is always filled with feelings of excitement, but it is also a time of not knowing what to expect, which can be frightening. Learn as much as you can and then be flexible, prepared, and patient. When I was pregnant, someone shared this, "Women have been having babies for thousands of years and you will get through it too!" It's so true...you will get through your labor and delivery, just as so many women have before you. And best of all, you will then have stories to share with other moms, too!