Informed Consent at Birth

Decision-Making Framework: The BRAIN Acronym highlights key considerations – Benefits, Risks, Alternatives, Intuition, and Nothing.

By: Llamamma Mothercare

Informed Consent in Birth: Using the BRAIN Acronym

Birthing people should feel empowered, respected, and informed throughout their pregnancy and birth journey. Informed consent isn’t just a legal checkbox—it’s the foundation of respectful, person-centered maternity care. Unfortunately, it doesn't always look like that in a hospital setting, which is why one simple yet powerful tool to help guide decision-making is the BRAIN acronym.

What Is Informed Consent?

Informed consent means you understand and agree to what’s being proposed before any test, procedure, or medication is given. It includes full information on the benefits, risks, and alternatives, and it also includes your right to say no or ask for more time to decide. Informed consent should be ongoing, not just something you sign at the beginning of care.

Why It Matters in Birth

Too often, birth interventions are presented as routine or urgent without full discussion. Having a framework to pause, ask questions, and consider your options can make a world of difference. That’s where BRAIN comes in.

Using the BRAIN Acronym

The BRAIN acronym can help you slow down and make thoughtful choices when faced with a decision in pregnancy, labor, or postpartum. It stands for:

• B - Benefits: What are the benefits of this option—for me and for baby?

• R - Risks: What are the risks involved with this option?

• A - Alternatives: What else could we try or consider?

• I - Intuition: What is my gut telling me? What feels right for me?

• N - Nothing: What happens if we wait, or do nothing for now?

How to Use BRAIN in the Moment

Whether it’s a suggestion to break your water, start Pitocin, or change positions, you can pause and use BRAIN to talk through the decision. You might say, “Can you help me understand the benefits and risks of that?” or “I’d like a few minutes to consider my options.”

BRAIN = Advocacy and Autonomy

Using BRAIN doesn’t mean being confrontational—it means being thoughtful, informed, and engaged. It helps keep you at the center of your care. And as your doula, I’m here to support your right to ask questions, take your time, and follow your instincts.

You deserve to understand your options—and to be treated with dignity, no matter what decisions you make.

Keep BRAIN in your back pocket, and know I’m always here to help you use it.

Warmly,

Lyndsey @ Llamamma Mothercare

📍Serving Vancouver, WA

🌿 www.llamammamothercare.com

🩵 Reach out anytime.