You will go into labour

In the Netherlands, you get to decide where you want to give birth: at home or in the hospital. More and more people in the Netherlands choose a hospital birth. But if your pregnancy goes well and there are no problems, you can give birth at home. Are you still living in the reception centre of the

If you do not want to give birth at home or in the hospital, you can consider a maternity hotel. After giving birth, you can also spend your maternity time there. You can give birth in a maternity hotel only if there is no medical reason to give birth in the hospital. If there are any medical problems during delivery in the maternity hotel, you will still go to the hospital. Often you do not have to travel far for this. Many maternity hotels are close to a hospital. Sometimes they are even part of a hospital.

After your baby is born, you can stay in a maternity hotel for up to 5 or 8 days. A maternity caregiver is then present 24 hours a day to help. For example, you will receive support in breastfeeding. The midwife will also visit the maternity hotel to check that everything is going well with you and your baby. If you still need help at home after your stay in the maternity hotel, you can get maternity care for that as well.

Staying in a maternity hotel is usually no more expensive than receiving 8 hours a day of maternity care at home. Many insurers also reimburse this. But always check with your own insurer which costs are covered and how much you have to pay yourself, for example.

Childbirth is different for everyone, but most deliveries begin between the 37th and 42nd weeks of pregnancy. Childbirth usually begins by your waters breaking and having contractions. About 15 percent of all deliveries start with the waters breaking, and about 85 percent of all deliveries start with contractions.

When your waters break, the amniotic fluid comes out of your vagina. From that point on, labour takes an average of 24 hours. Normally the amniotic fluid is colourless, but sometimes it can be green or brown, which means the baby has defecated in the abdomen.

Contractions feel like the abdomen squeezing. It can resemble very intense periods of pain. This feeling comes on slowly at first and subsides again. After a while the contractions become more frequent and regular. From the time the contractions come every 3 to 5 minutes, a first labour lasts an average of 12 to 16 hours.

As soon as one of these 2 things happens, contact your midwife or hospital. They will then tell you what to do. This is pretty much what happens next:

After childbirth, the midwife or doctor will see if stitches are needed in your vagina. This is because during childbirth, your vagina can tear because otherwise the baby cannot get out. Sometimes, during childbirth, the doctor cuts a piece of the vagina to make childbirth go faster. This is normal and after childbirth we will see if you need care for this.

During childbirth, the doctor or midwife will listen to your wishes and feelings as much as possible. Express how you feel and what you like or do not like.

Are you giving birth in the hospital? In the Netherlands, you can discuss with the doctor during childbirth whether or not you want painkillers.