When is the best time to do your research and decide how you feel about induction, c-section, natural pain management, epidurals, nitrous oxide use, home birth, midwives vs OB's, AROM (artificial rupture of membranes), episiotomy, labor augmentation, etc.? Here's a bit of advice from a mama who's been there: certainly not the day of your 39-week appointment! I was pregnant with my first baby, and I had a natural labor in mind, and I'd read the typical books (What to Expect When You're Expecting, Your Pregnancy Week-By-Week, and so on), but I had no idea about all the factors involved, all the choices I would have to make, and the risks and benefits of everything. So imagine my surprise when my OB told me that if I hadn't gone into labor by my due date, she would schedule an ultrasound to see if the baby was ok and if I should be induced. I had had a perfectly smooth pregnancy, and I hadn't imagined that anything would go wrong, and being faced with that unexpected information sent me reeling. I went home and feverishly read everything I could find on the pros and cons of labor induction, and I was totally freaking out. My hormonal, pregnant body and mind couldn't cope. I was getting very tired of being pregnant, and at that point, the idea of being induced and ending my pregnancy seemed very appealing to me. I had the advice of my mom to go on (she had one natural, unmedicated labor and one induced, and she warned me to never let them induce me, because it was terrible), but I just wasn't thinking clearly at that point.
I was fortunate, very fortunate, that I went into labor at 39 weeks 1 day, and I didn't have to make that decision.
The worst possible time to educate yourself and form your opinions on everything birth-related is toward the end of pregnancy. You're tired, you ache, your hormones are raging, and you want nothing more than for it to just be over. I've seen women who did not have a solid philosophy agree to things in their labors and births that they never would have under normal circumstances, and that they regret later.
The best way to go about researching and developing your philosophy is to do it before you get pregnant, or early enough in your pregnancy that you're not tired of it yet. That exhaustion changes a person. (Don't believe me? Ask my husband.) Look up all the options, possible complications and interventions, and decide how you feel about every one of them before you're faced with a critical decision, and you're less likely to do something you'll regret later, out of desire to simply "get it over with." If you're armed with knowledge and strong opinions going into pregnancy, you'll have an easier time achieving the birth you want.
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