So when it comes to where you will give birth, you have a few choices. These may vary depending on where you live. But the options you have for where you can give birth will generally fall into these three categories. One, a hospital, to a birthing center, or three, you're home and having a home birth. So let's break these down and discuss what you need to think about for each one, whichever you may choose. So the first one is a hospital.

Know what options you have in your area. And this will totally vary depending on where you live out in the country, you may be doing good to have one hospital within our view. Or you may live in a bustling city with half a dozen hospitals nearby or more. If you have multiple hospital options, you can check and compare how the hospitals rate as far as statistics go and how well the staff and doctors performed. So what's the percentage of C sections and other birth specific stats You can also ask other moms in the area where they delivered and how their experiences were. friends, neighbors and co workers who are a moms are all great candidates task taken also of what type of birth they had if the hospital was supportive of a natural birth if they received medications or interventions or if the C section was performed.

Remember, though, that when you're talking to other moms, you're only getting their perspective on how their birth one. So I would be cautious about basing your decision solely on one person's birth experience. For instance, one mom may have had a terrible experience at a place where most women had been happy giving birth that she might have had a grumpy nurse or had a different doctor or midwife and you I do feel that a lot of birth experience has to do with the care provider that you're working with. So take that into consideration when talking with other moms who've had different doctors. I would also talk to as many moms as you can so you can get a fuller picture of their locations and thank you for that. You can also Find out which hospital or hospitals your current midwife or ob gyn delivers at, ask some questions about typical labor and delivery experiences as the places they deliver.

And they may also know statistics as far as the C sections a PC atomies, and different things like that. If you're going to have a doula, you can also ask them about birth experiences at different hospitals and how they've seen them handle different situations. While your doctor or midwife may know a lot about the place or places where they specifically deliver, they likely won't know too much about other hospitals or birth centers that they haven't delivered out. But if you're working with an experienced tool, as attended, a lot of different birds will likely have a good amount of knowledge about most if not all of the hospitals in the area. You can also take advantage of hospital maternity tours and ask questions. Find out what the standard procedures are asked what type of tools they have to accommodate your labor.

Do they let you sit under the shower in a Jacuzzi, too? They have a birthing ball a bar on the bed to hold on to etc. And just to note, the attach printable with this lesson has some suggestions for questions you may want to ask. And you can even print it out and bring it with you on your maternity tour. So option number two for where you can give birth would be a birthing facility. briefing facilities are kind of like a middle ground between a hospital birth and a home birth.

So your options will vary. Again, depending on where you live, not every mom will have the option of a nearby birth center. But if you do, I would at least look into it and see if it's somewhere you'd want to go. facilities that specialize in birds may offer a more comfortable and relaxed atmosphere than a traditional hospital. They may allow things like waterbirds and be more prone to support you having an actual birth if that's what you want, and or allow you to deliver in different positions besides just laying back in a bed and so on. You'll want to find out the details because every place is different.

And note that you may also have some hospital in your area that allows some or all those things as well. But in general, a birth center will be more lenient with what they allow. Not all doctors or midwives are going to be on board with you delivering at a birth center. Or at least they may let you know that if you go someplace else besides where their potentials at, they won't be the one delivering. And also just to know that you could run into this issue as well, if you pick a hospital to go to that they don't deliver. So option number three for where you can give birth would be a home birth at your home, since some moms are more comfortable opting for this for a home birth because they don't have to go anywhere.

It's a familiar place, and they're free to labor and deliver how they want. However, if you are seriously interested in this option, you definitely need to find an OB GYN doctor or midwife that is experienced and attending home births and is willing to commit to yours. You'll want to consider if there are any factors About your pregnancy or medical history that would contribute to any special risks during your delivery. You may also want to consider how far away the closest hospital is to you in case you need to go and ask your midwife or doctor how they would handle things if a complication were to arise and what situations they would be prepared to handle at her home. So ultimately, the choice is yours. After considering your local options, asking questions and talking with your doctor or midwife, you'll be in a position to make a decision that works for you.

Regardless of which location or facility you pick for your birth, double check that it will be covered with your insurance out of network costs are never fun, especially for something as expensive as giving worth. If your doctor or midwife doesn't deliver at the location you want to go to, you have the following options. Option number one, you could go to the hospital or facility where your doctor does deliver. I would definitely take a tour and see if you'd be comforted. there but before deciding for sure to go there. Option number two, you could switch ob gyn or midwife providers to someone who delivers at the location that you want to give birth that you can probably get a list from the hospitals or birth centers have the providers they work with that have rights to deliver their work, or if you know moms who delivered where you want to go, you can ask them who their doctor or midwife was and if they were happy with their care provider.

But make sure if you do this to double check, if and when you switch providers that they still deliver at the place you plan on going because sometimes doctors will change their delivery locations. For homeworks you'll definitely need to seek out a midwife or a doctor who's known for doing these unless you happen to already be under the care of someone who does them. Or option number three, you could keep your current doctor but go to a hospital or birth center with a different doctor delivering know some ob gyn facilities will actually have you sign up stating that you won't do this because they generally want you to agree to deliver at the hospital they have privileges app. I personally wouldn't recommend having someone deliver your baby that you don't know if you can help it because I think it's better to have a doctor or midwife who knows your medical history is familiar with your pregnancy and that you're comfortable with is possible with a third option that there could be insurance issues as well.

However, there may be circumstances where you feel like this option is the best choice for you personally. But just to know this last option won't work with a home birth because if you want to deliver at home, you need to be under the care of midwife or a doctor that specifically attends homewards. You don't want to end up delivering at home with no one there to deliver. So as far as questions to ask during maternity tour, remember to check out the maternity tour questions are printable that's attached in the section. If you print this out, I have space where you can write down In the answers and make notes, as well as your own for your own additional questions, and the questions I mentioned, of course, are just suggestions for things you may want to ask so you can cross off the ones you feel that you don't need to ask.

And you can bring a copy of that printable to your hospital or birth center or maternity tour along with a pen. If for some reason you can't print it out, I recommend that you bring a notebook and pen to take notes and jot down any questions you want to ask in advance. And I would ask any specific questions you can think of that pertain to your personal circumstances, health concerns and birth plan. So to do next, download and print the where I'm giving birth workbook. So out of the workbook and complete any applicable to do list tasks, schedule and any maternity tours that you want to take and make sure you don't procrastinate with this. Download and print the maternity tour questions printable, jot down any additional questions you want to ask and bring it with you on any tours.

Take. And if you plan on touring more than one hospital or birthing facility, you may want to print out a copy of the printable for each tour so you can remember and compare the differences in each location. So that's all for this lesson. And after you've given yourself time to do these things, you can then move on to the next section of this course. And have a great day.