While Birth Plans are not essential, they are a way to clearly communicate your wishes and preferences during labour and delivery. By clearly detailing what your birth preferences are, you can help your birthing experience to become the event you would like it to be, by effectively communicating your wishes to your doctors, midwife and birth partner(s).
Making a Birth Plan empowers you to take an active role in decision-making, ensuring that your voice is heard during labour and delivery. It also enables you to advocate for yourself or for your midwife or birth partner to advocate for you.
Ultimately, a Birth Plan provides clarity, enhances communication, helps create a more personalised and positive birthing experience and reduces stress by helping you make informed decisions before going into labour.