Childbirth options

OBGYN Suzanne Gilberg-Lenz, MD, explains the important factors to consider when creating a birth plan and deciding how and where to have your childbirth
Factors To Consider When Choosing Your Childbirth Options
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Childbirth options

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So the things that you want to take into consideration when you're making a decision about what kind of childbirth experience you want, and I think that the the thing that gets talked about the most in that realm is location and medication. So what I tell my patients is, set the intention for how you want that to go. Decide. I am going to go for this. I want to do this in a way that I experience my body in a very specific way without mediation, without medication. The other side of that is, perhaps you're saying, wow, that makes me really anxious. I'm afraid of that, and I'm just going to be honest with myself about what I think I can handle. I know that I want to have medication available. Again, you need to set an intention. But here's the key, you're going to need to surrender to the experience because you don't know what's going to happen. You don't know what's going to go down. If you have a team around you knowledgeable, opened, skilled and compasionate, you're going to be supported in the opportunities and the experience. And you don't know what's going to happen. Perhaps you will change your mind. Perhaps you're baby will come very quickly and you won't even have time for the epidural. Perhaps your labor is seven days long and you're done. You need a rest. Key is being informed and being empowered and having that team around you that supports those decisions.

OBGYN Suzanne Gilberg-Lenz, MD, explains the important factors to consider when creating a birth plan and deciding how and where to have your childbirth

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Suzanne Gilberg-Lenz, MD

Obstetrician & Gynecologist

Dr. Suzanne Gilberg-Lenz completed her undergraduate education at Wesleyan University and post-baccalaureate pre-medical studies at Mills College. She earned her medical degree in 1996 from the University of Southern California School of Medicine, completed her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Cedars Sinai Medical Center and has been in private practice of obstetrics and gynecology in Los Angeles, CA since 2000. After many years of a personal yoga and meditation practice, she completed her Clinical Ayurvedic Specialist degree at California College of Ayurveda in 2010 and was board certified in Integrative and Holistic medicine in 2008.

Suzanne is involved in women’s empowerment and public education, and appears frequently as an expert in women’s and integrative health on TV, online and in print. She is co-founder of Cedars Sinai Medical Center's Green Committee and is deeply committed to the promotion of healing that involves individuals, families, communities and the planet.  She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two children in a "green" renovated home with a sustainable native plants garden and organic “urban mini-farm”.

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