Want to prepare for a natural labor? These are 4 secrets you need to know to help you achieve an unmedicated birth.

*I want you to know that this is not medical advice and I am not a doctor. I am a mama who has prepared for and had 5 natural births myself. I have done the thing, so that is where I am speaking from. Experience, but not degrees.
Not sure where to begin when preparing & planning for an unmedicated birth?
I get it…there’s a lot of fear surrounding so much of life, but for many women, childbirth is one of our biggest fears. It makes sense; there are a lot of unknowns; however, we don’t have to live in and operate out of that fear. I care deeply about women, about you, being informed and being able to make decisions about your birthing experience as much you can. Because of that, I want to share with you 4 secrets to an unmedicated birth. These will help you think through and prepare mentally, spiritually, & physically for what you will experience.

1. Choose a birth team wisely (not all doctors are fans of unmedicated births!)
What does this mean? This means if you have any red flags about if you can trust your doctor or midwife, think about that and ask yourself why you feel this way.
Trust your mama gut; you are probably feeling a specific way for a particular reason. Find out why!
One of the best ways to do this is by asking your doctor, midwife, or whoever you see hard questions. Questions can be things like: how often they do c-sections? How late past a due date do you let women go? Do you make people use Pitocin before or after?
Ask as many questions as you can! It’s better to find out beforehand their process & how they think through things before you’re further along and something surprises you. If your thinking “I have no clue what to ask my Doctor”, check out my Labor without fear course here to learn more about being informed from the beginning!
Consider a Doula Especially for Your First Birth
I highly suggest making sure you have a doula on your side, especially if this is your first birth. This will be an extra cost, but one that I think is worth it.
Not only will the doula help coach you, but they will also help your husband through this process. They will know what’s going on and how to best help you and your baby. They will also be a helpful advocate for you keeping in mind your desires for an unmedicated birth.

2. Do everything you can to not be induced
Do everything you can to let your body go into labor in a peaceful, natural way. There’s a lot you can do to try and get your body ready so that your body feels like it can go into labor. Once they induce, a process called the Cascade of Interventions begins. Once it starts, all kinds of interventions can play into the birthing process.
If you want to learn more about the Cascade of Interventions or ways that you can help your body go into labor naturally, check out my Labor Without Fear course here.
Let me tell you… Your body knows what to do & your baby knows what to do; it really is impressive!
About 95% of women could do labor naturally without any interventions at all. Only about 5%, maybe even less, end up needing some extra interventions to help. We tend to think we are in that 5% and not allow ourselves to operate within the 95% that we are likely in. Labor in faith, not in fear!
3. Relearn how to interpret pain
You must learn to interpret labor pains or contractions as good because they truly are in this situation. Your brain is interpreting the pain signals, but you need to tell your brain how to interpret the pain signals it’s receiving.
These are working pains, not hurting pains! These pains are likely just working the baby down & out.
My friend who recently had a baby talked herself through her pain, telling her body, “this is good, give me more”. In doing that, she was able to coach herself through the process.
In saying this statement to herself, she reminds herself that she is made to do this, her baby is made to do this, and to continue to carry on calmly. If we resist and tense up, this will affect the babies ability to do what it needs to do. Slow down, breathe, and remember your body was made to do this!

4. Prepare, prepare, prepare for your unmedicated birth
If you are going to run a marathon and showed up the day of the race without any preparation, maybe you would be able get through it. Still, your body would be torn up because not only did you not prepare physically, but you didn’t prepare mentally for what you were about to encounter.
This is the same for labor as well. Therefore, we need to train ourselves & here’s how you can begin doing so.
Do some challenging things (ex., exercise, a deep shoulder rub, getting your eyebrows done) & practice staying strong, keeping your face neutral and just breathing through the experience. Your face is connected to your pelvic floor; if it tenses up, your pelvic floor will too.
If you’re still feeling lost, overwhelmed, or looking for more information, let me help! I would love if you checked out my online course Labor Without Fear. This course aims to help you go from fear to faith throughout the birthing process. In the course, I will give you helpful information as you prepare mentally, physically & spiritually for the birthing process from start to finish. Click here to learn more, or to register, for the Labor Without Fear course!
Interested in Learning More About Natural Birth?
Take this completely free class to learn more about how to prepare for your upcoming natural birth. The free class is about how to completely change your whole birth experience.
I want you to know that preparing for your natural birth is completely within your control. I would love to be your guide and teacher as you do the work of getting your body ready for natural birth.
Your body and your baby were made to do this
YouTube Channel + Playlist for Birth Education
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