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This is NPR's Life Kit.

Literally no one is feeling what you're feeling and you're the room could be full of people,

but you're the only one that's going through it.

All the anxieties kick in because it's me.

Like I'm the one that's giving birth.

I'm the one that's going to have a baby in my arms and has to make all these decisions.

I'm Gabrielle Horton.

And I'm Martina Abraham Zulunga.

We're the host of Natal, a podcast docu-series about having a baby while black.

On our show, we pass the mic to parents, but also providers, advocates, and birth workers,

like Francesca Polanco, who you heard at the top of the episode.

They share their stories about pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum care in their own words.

And something that we talk a lot about on natal is just how important it is for families to have agency over their birthing journeys.

Whether you give birth in a hospital and in a birth center, or at home,

birth is not just something that happens to you. It's a process that you can play an active role in shaping.

That means taking time to think about what you want or don't want this experience to look like.

Yes. And these decisions are more than deciding if you want a vaginal birth or a C-section or what song you'd like to play as the baby arrives.

It's about creating a plan that allows you to dream, prepares you for the journey ahead, and empowers you to speak up about your needs and wants.

This plan is what's known as a birth plan.

...