Excerpt from The Birth Center Client Manual
Family and friends are welcome to attend prenatal visits. We especially encourage the primary support person and siblings, particularly those siblings who plan to attend the birth, to become involved in your prenatal care. Each family makes their own decisions about how involved family members will be at the time of the birth. Some families have siblings present and involved with the birth. Others stay in the living room area. Some come into the birth room shortly after the baby is born. We will be happy to discuss with each family the variables that go into the decision-making. One option sometimes selected is for the siblings to meet the new baby upon the baby’s coming home. We suggest if the sibling or siblings are going to be present at the birth to bring them to the prenatal visits. This way they will become familiar with the surroundings so that by the time you go into labor, they are comfortable spending time at the Birth Center. Children can participate in the visits by assisting with blood pressure checks, measuring the length of the uterus and listening to the baby’s heart. For siblings prenatal visits may develop into an education about the baby, how big he or she is, how the baby will come out, how he or she eats, and so forth.
We have a Sibling Preparation Class, which we consider a “must” for siblings involved with the birth. You may sign up for this class with the receptionist!