Pregnancy and Birth During COVID
It happened. You and your partner are pregnant, and are about to embark on this beautiful and joyous journey together. Whether it’s your first time or you’ve had multiple pregnancies, each experience is special and unique in it’s own way.
Especially when you take into account that you may be giving birth during a global pandemic. There are numerous hoops to jump through during any pregnancy - insurance requirements, appointments to attend, foods to avoid. Add COVID to this mix and it can often feel like navigating an impossible minefield of do’s and don’ts that will make even the most experienced of expecting parents' heads spin.
Thankfully, at Beautiful Births and Beyond, we can help ease some of those COVID pregnancy and birth anxieties. Below are some tips and talking points to bring to your birth team when beginning on your journey:
Talk Practice Policies With Your Healthcare Providers
Obviously this is something that happens naturally throughout your pregnancy and birth as part of your birth planning, but during the times of COVID it’s especially important. Find out how many support people you can have in the room with you. Is that number different from appointments to labor and delivery? Does your provider require you all to wear a mask? Or get tested before appointments? Each healthcare provider and each medical practice varies in their policies, so it’s important to work with one that fits best with your birth plan.
Understand the Limitations vs. Knowing Your Limits
Although we are moving toward more and more people being vaccinated, we’ve still got some time ahead of us before we can fully let our guard down. That being said, pregnancy and birth are times where expectant parents are seeking to connect with friends and family for support, which can be difficult during COVID. Understanding what the limitations are in place where you live is the first step in knowing what you and your family’s limits are to keep yourself and your pregnancy safe. This can include asking those who visit you to wear a mask, staying socially distanced from others, or limiting your time in public spaces like grocery stores, etc.
Get Creative!
Part of the joy of bringing children into this world is celebrating the process with those around you. Family and friends may feel unsure how to support you during COVID or uncertain how to show their excitement for your soon-to-be baby. With celebrations like baby showers or other baby-themed gatherings currently on hold, you may have to get creative in the ways you celebrate. Platforms such as Zoom or GoogleMeet are great ways to get everyone in the same virtual space to share the good news or host a virtual baby shower. If your healthcare provider doesn’t allow your partner in the room during appointments, ask if a FaceTime call or some other form of streaming them in is allowed.
Hire a Digital Doula
Doula services are an incredible support during pregnancy and birth. Doulas are highly trained, third-party providers who can help the expecting parents create and execute a birth plan, are a wealth of knowledge about all aspects of pregnancy and birth, and are often advocates for birthing parents when they can’t advocate for themselves. It’s not often you see a laboring parent deep in the throes of a breath-taking contraction able to articulate what they need. That’s where a Doula comes in.
During the times of COVID, most Doula’s have shifted their services to a digital platform, like much of this new world we’re all learning. This is for a number of reasons, the biggest being most labor and delivery wings do not allow more than one support person in the room with you while you’re giving birth. That being said, with a Digital Doula, you get all of the services of a physical Doula without the physical presence. Digital Doulas offer support from conception to birth, are available for questions day or night, are able to help connect with other medical providers on your team and advocate for your needs in line with your specific birth plan, and help you prepare for the big moment of birth. When that moment arrives, Digital Doulas are able to be in the room with you virtually, assisting you and your partner with birthing positions, breathing, and continuing advocacy in the moment with the rest of your birth team.
While we are anxiously awaiting the day we are allowed back in a hospital room for an in-person birth, we at Beautiful Births and Beyond are proud to have been on the cutting edge of Digital Doula services, offering Digital Doula as an option for expecting parents long before COVID arrived on the birthing scene.
Not only that, but our Digital Doula services extend beyond birth. As our name implies, we support Beautiful Births and Beyond with post-partum Doula services, including breastfeeding support, helping siblings and other family members adjust to the new baby, and continuing to help educate and advocate for the new parents as they re-adjust to life with a new baby.
Thankfully, due to science and the tireless efforts of many frontline workers, COVID is only a temporary factor when it comes to pregnancy and birthing. For now, while we continue to navigate this ever-changing landscape of COVID, the most important thing to remember is this: while it may look different, you are still not alone. There are supports out there for you during this time, and if you are curious to learn more, we at Beautiful Births and Beyond are ready to chat with you.
