How To Document Your Own Birth | How To Guide
The purpose of creating a birth story is to capture the experience and preserve it for you, your partner and family members. A narrative of your labor and delivery can help you remember details that might otherwise be lost in time. It also helps others understand what happened during this important event in your life.
A birth story should include information about:
Your pre-natal care provider(s)
Your pregnancy symptoms
The day before delivery (if applicable)
Captured by One Love’s Birth Photographer at Tampa General Hospital
Creating Your Birth Story
Creating your birth story is an important step in the process of creating a birth plan. The first thing to consider is the purpose of your story: why are you writing it? Is it for yourself, or do you want someone else (your partner, family members) to read it?
The next step is figuring out what kind of narrative structure works best for telling your story. Do you want something that flows chronologically from beginning to end (the classic "once upon a time...")? Or would something more poetic be more effective--maybe poetry itself?
You may even want to document your birth story in the form of art such as photography.
Captured by One Love’s Birth Photographer at Tampa General Hospital
Writing Your Birth Story
As you write your birth story, it's important to choose a creative technique that fits your personality and style. If you're someone who likes to journal, then writing in longhand might be the best option for you. If words come easily through typing on a computer keyboard, then using an online word processor may be better suited for this purpose.
Whatever method of writing you choose, make sure it feels right for YOU!
Sharing Your Birth Story
There are a number of ways you can share your birth story. You can write it in your handwriting in your child’s baby book, kids love to learn about their birth when they are old enough to understand. You can publish it on an online platform, such as Facebook or Instagram, people love to read birth stories and your story can inspire a fellow birthing person. Or you could use a apps such as Shutterfly, Mixbooks or even Canva and create your own digital scrapbook and share your stories with friends and family (don’t forget to add some photos captured from the labor/birth experience).
No matter which route you take, documenting your birth is therapeutic and healing, it allows you to recall all the hard work you just did while also being able to take a view into the beauty of birth, the steps you took on the journey and the transformation that took place to bring your baby Earthside.
You may be thinking, “Where can I find a doula near me?” We provide Tampa doula support, childbirth education, placenta encapsulation, in-home postpartum doula care, specialized lactation support by our CLC’s and IBCLC’s and birth photography for:
Tampa, St Petersburg
Land O’ Lakes
Lakeland
Plant City
Downtown Tampa
… and more!
Virtual services also available, let’s plan for your amazing birth and postpartum journey.
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