Riley Sandrell

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My Birth Binder

Anyone that really knows me knows how much I like to create lists, put together binders and keep my life organized in a pretty way. When I first thought about putting together a birth binder my first thought was “girl you're crazy, you're not going to use that”. But then I started thinking about it and I realized that knowing myself, it would be really helpful for me to have all of the info that I need during labor and delivery and postpartum in one simple place that everyone could access (nurses, doula, Dustin), so not my phone, so that everyone could stay on the same page. I had very specific preferences about my birth and knowing that I wouldn't be in a place where I could communicate everything, it needed to all be in one place. Plus, I know that when things are organized (and pretty) that I feel much more relaxed and given the fact that I was aiming for a 100% un-medicated birth, relaxation was my top priority.

That being said, I told myself to go ahead and make the binder. For those of you out there like me that want it all in one place I thought I'd show you what I created, why and then for all of my awesome subscribers, you'll get the chance to download my template and fill in your own preferences!

You can buy these on other sites but they're like $20-$30 and honestly, as a young mom who is very budget conscious, that's just not going to work for me. Plus the pre-done sheets aren't super customizable and if you're anything like me, aesthetic is important to feeling put together and somewhat in control and we're aiming for confidence and collected during labor so it just makes sense that you should be able to make it what you want it!

My birth binder consisted of...

- Birth Code of Conduct

- Birth Plan

- Positions

- Oil combinations with instructions

- Affirmation & Verse Cards

- Guidelines on “What I Need When”

- Section for Important Documents

- Postpartum To-Do List

Let's break each one down.

Birth Code of Conduct

These are my expectations for my birthing team. The original template is from A Natural Minded Mama but I added my own tweaks to make it mine. Some of these may seem a bit harsh but when it comes to advocating for yourself and protecting your energy, especially with a unmedicated birth, every last part of your birthing experience counts.

Birth Plan

I created my birth plan after months of researching each phase of labor, typical unnecessary interventions and why they happen, and by watching a ton of birthing videos and vlogs. Over the months of research I kept a running list in my notes and then when I was ready to make it I organized each part of my birth plan into segments based on what I wanted during each phase of labor and delivery. That way my doula, Dustin or the nurses could refer back to it based on what stage I was in. Because my plan was to labor at home as long as possible I made a specific one for my doula/Dustin and then I created a shorter one that had to do with the later stages of labor and immediately post birth for the nurses because they weren't apt to read the entire long version. I typed this up and printed multiple copies so the nurses could take one and that went into the first section of the binder. Please note that some of my preferences are controversial but I've done my research throughly and I will not be responding to any comments on opinions about my preferences. I did choose to cut off the bottom of my PP baby preferences for the sake of this article because I want to keep my son's medical history private, but I encourage you to do your research on erythromycin, Hep B, “Vitamin” K, bathing at the hospital, circumcision and retraction if you choose not to circumcise. These are all important topics that you need to be educated on, informed consent is vital.

Doula/Dustin Birth Plan:

Nurses/Doctor Birth Plan:

Positions

Given that I was going for an all natural birth I knew that positions were everything for laboring through the contractions and then for effective pushing. That being said, knowing myself, when I'm in pain and under pressure I forget the things I've learned. Yes, my doula was going to be there, but I wanted to have a positions guide just in case she didn't make it and it was just me and Dustin and I needed a reminder of what to do and so that he could help me. I did quite a bit of research on what positions prove to be the most effective and I categorized them by bed, birth ball, and other. (None of the drawings are mine. Sources: Royal College of Midwives,

pregnancy.about.com,Maryland State Doulas.)

Oils

Again, un-medicated birth here, I really wanted to have my oils to help me stay calm, focused and centered. I love essential oils and I use them daily. I chose my oils based on what I know I like to use, and what they're good for in labor. I chose to use Lavender, Clary Sage, Peppermint, DigestZen, and Frankincense Trinity. If you know oils you can see I don't stick with just one brand, there's a few that I've researched and trust and use. If you aren't familiar with oils but want to try them, I encourage you to look into a high quality brand, there are several I like. I don't sell them, I'm not a part of any company, like I said I use several brands, but I'd be more than happy to tell you about which companies I like and why. Keep in mind if you're going to use them you need to know how and what each one is good for. Some aren't good to be around babies and some have been thought to mess with milk supply so you're going to want to be intentional about what you're using and how much you're using.

That being said I created a roller with fractionated coconut oil and Clary Sage which you can roll on to help to strengthen your contractions.

Lavender is great for relaxing and calming your nervous system. I specifically wanted to have this one if I'm having a hard time calming down during labor or sleeping after delivery. You're not supposed to use perfumes or scented lotions much right after your baby is born because you want them to get accustomed your scent, but I've heard a lot of moms talk about the first 24 hours when their baby sleeps a lot, they have a ton of adrenaline and have a hard time sleeping. I figured a dab of lavender on my head would be perfect to help me relax if that were to happen.

Peppermint and DigestZen are for any possible nausea and peppermint is good for taking a whiff of if you need some energy and to get woken back up. It's also great for headaches. DigestZen is also good for digestive issues and constipation.

Frankincense Trinity for me really helps with confidence and so I wanted that one on hand to help me if I started to doubt my abilities.

As you can see every oil I chose had a purpose and a use. I put how many drops I would want and where I would want them and why I would want them on my oils guide. This was mostly for my doula and Dustin so that I could stay in my zone and they could apply them to me as needed. I also packed my travel size Thieves cleaner spray and hand sanitizer so that I had a safer option to stay clean than the traditional hand sanitizer that is filled with harmful chemicals. The last thing I wanted around a freshly born Hayden was chemicals.

Affirmation & Verse Cards

When laboring one of the most important things is your mindset. Your mind has the power to calm your nervous system down or alert it that something is very wrong. Birth while in itself is painful, it is natural, nothing is wrong- that being said it can be easy to get the two mixed up. It is important that during labor you stay grounded in truth and keep your mindset in a focused pocket based on the things you best respond to. Whether that is Bible verses, encouraging quotes, words of affirmation or a mantra to repeat, you should come prepared with things to help you stay focused. It's also important that your birthing partner(s) know what these are so that when you're to the point in labor where you cannot read or focus anymore, they can be there to remind you of the truths that you wanted to focus in on. This is where flashcards come in handy. You can read them while you're bouncing on your birth ball or in between contractions you can choose one to focus on during the next contraction. You can put anything on your birth cards that you want, this must be personal to you but I did include a few of my examples as well as the template to fill your own in.

Guidelines on “What I Need When...”

I totally get that this one sounds a bit weird, but hear me out. Remember how I talked about getting to the point in labor where you can't really communicate very well anymore? Well I came up with the idea to create a sheet specifically for my doula that's a bit different from the actual birth plan. The birth plan has all of my choices about medication and stuff like that, but this is a sheet of “for instances” and what I would like her to do in those situations so that I don't have to communicate to her. Now obviously these can change in the moment and you can communicate a change of heart, but at least she knows my original desires and if it had to with medication for instance, she could remind me of my preferences.

These types of things you may not necessarily think about ahead of time, but you'll have wished you did in the moment or afterwords. Remember, your birth team is there to help you have a positive birth experience, that is very specific to each person and so you have to communicate what you want and what your expectations are.

Postpartum To-Do List

Maybe this sounds crazy to give myself a to-do list postpartum when I should be resting, but hear me out. As much as you need to be resting you also have to make sure you're taking care of yourself as well as ensuring a few really important things get done. My list included self and sanitary care to remind myself, tips for breastfeeding that would help me to thrive in the beginning and then a list of things we needed to do for Hayden. This included scheduling both my six week check up, his first pediatric appointment, going through the list of people we wanted to contact personally before posting, putting together an announcement post, calling the insurance companies within the month we were allotted, recording my birth story as not to forget it and then ensuring that all of the papers were finalized to get his birth certificate and social security card. This also included a list of things that I needed Dustin to do like post for me on Coil and Tweet so that I could continue my schedule, do the laundry, ensure that we had enough food in the house, things like that. This is a list that you'll obviously refer some to at the hospital but it's nice to have on hand for when you get home as well.

Section for Important Documents

This isn't a printable but it's important that you leave a tab in your binder for important documents that the hospital will send you home with. If you're using an actual binder be sure it has pockets or put a folder in it so that you're not having to deal with loose papers falling out or not having a hole punch.

Now that's the end of the binder but I do want to note two other resources that I have in folders in my notes on my phone...

Breastfeeding Resources

I am a firm believer in being prepared. I wanted to have as much information as I possibly could before Hayden arrived to start our breastfeeding journey off on the most positive note that I could. That being said, I learned a lot. Way too much to be able to remember after the shock of having a baby. Now yes I had my doula to help establish a good latch and I could call on lactation consultants but I also wanted to compile my favorite resources that I found throughout my research that I could go back to for troubleshooting an issue and remembering various holds and techniques to get a great latch. I also wanted a list with feeding reminders, like how much and how often so I could remember what was typical. One of the reasons I decided to do it, even though it may feel like overkill to some is because I gave birth during the year of Corona and frankly the nurses are spread thin and don't have a ton of time to be spending in each room. Rather than have to wait to ask questions I couldn't remember the answers to, I wanted it all at my fingertips.

Sleep Resources

The same exact thing goes for sleep. There's so much to remember about the first few weeks and best practices to set you up for success. I wanted all of the first few days of information easily accessible and needed to ensure that could happen via the binder. I put together a list of sleep tips to remember as well as the typical baby's first sleep/feed routine for the first few days so I could know what to expect. Obviously this varies from baby to baby but at least having an idea of how long he should be sleeping and feeding and the time in between was helpful to look back on. I personally am going to be using the Babywise method for “sleep training” and sleeping practices. That being said my notes are from the Nested Bean site and the Babywise book, which if I remember correctly are one and the same as far as the method goes.

That was a lot right?! See why I wanted to share it with you? I hope that if you're about to give birth that this resource helps you to feel more prepared and put together. Obviously nothing is ever set in stone and things don't always go the way we want them to but I am a firm believer in that when you are prepared you are less likely to deal with mishaps and in this case, unnecessary interventions.

If you have any questions or have any trouble with the templates be sure to shoot me a DM on Twitter – @riley_quin or send me an email at riley@rileyq.com.

xoxo – Ry

Do you want to make your own birth binder or plan? Grab my template below & edit it in Canva!