Preparing Your Home for Early Labour

The short answer: make your space feel calm, private and familiar. Have dim lighting and music ready, comfort tools like pillows, towels, a birth ball and a heat pack, easy food and drinks, and clean bedding and comfortable clothes for afterward. Then turn the lights down, put the phone away and close the door.

Whether you're planning a home birth or expect to labour at home before heading to hospital, early labour usually happens at home. This checklist is based on The Complete Labour & Birth Guide by Kate Fawcett, Registered Midwife.

"You need it to feel like home"

As Kate writes: "You don't need to transform your house into a birthing centre. You need it to feel like home." Birth is hormonal, and oxytocin loves safety, privacy, warmth, familiarity and connection.

Atmosphere

• Dim lamps or battery candles
• A playlist

Comfort

• Comfortable pillows
• Towels
• A birth ball
• A TENS machine, if you plan to use one
• A heating pad or hot water bottle
• Epsom salts for comfort baths, if appropriate for you
• Birth pool supplies, if applicable

Food and drink

• Electrolytes and coconut water
• Honey
• Fresh fruit and easy-to-eat snacks
• Meals ready in the freezer

In early labour, Kate suggests choosing easy-to-digest foods that provide sustained energy.

For afterward

• Comfortable postpartum clothes
• Clean bedding ready for afterward

Thinking further ahead? See preparing for postpartum before your baby arrives.

Before labour starts

• Save your care provider's number and your triage or backup number in your phone.
• Know your provider's instructions for when to call.
• Pack your bag if you're giving birth away from home. Here's what goes in a hospital bag versus a birth box.
• Talk with your partner about how they can protect the space. Our guide for birth partners can help.

Keep the space calm

Kate's closing advice for your space:

• Turn the lights down.
• Put your phone away.
• Play your music.
• Close the door.

"Let your birth space become small, safe and yours."

A head start

The Birth Box includes several items for this list, including Labour of Love honey, a labour oil blend, a wooden labour comb, a reusable straw and Kate's full Birth Guide. The Prenatal Box includes a flaxseed and lavender heat pack and Epsom salts.

For what to do once contractions begin, read Early Labour: What Can You Do at Home?

This article is general education from The Midwife Box and is not a substitute for individualized medical or midwifery advice. Every pregnancy and labour is different. Always follow the recommendations and calling instructions from your own midwife, doctor or maternity unit. If you believe there is an emergency, call 911 or your local emergency number.