Using Your Five Senses to Craft a Birth Plan
Birth is an intense experience that can sometimes be overwhelming. Grounding ourselves in our senses helps facilitate birth and can enhance our capacity to navigate and cope. In crafting birth plans and preferences, I like to consider sensory input based on each birthing mother and person’s unique nervous system. Here are some ways to think about how each of the five senses can inform the structure of a birth plan. Sight. Candles (LED if at a birth center or hospital), twinkle lights, and photos to focus on can help provide a calming environment or a grounding visual. Some people find it helpful to hone in on a focal point in the room or outside the window during intense contractions. Dim lighting can help encourage the hormones of birth to flow naturally. Sound. Some people might prefer to have absolute quiet during their birth. Some might prefer to play a playlist – either with earbuds or out loud on a speaker. Different types of sound might be more preferable during differen...