When Hannah Hayes of Chicago, Ill., was two weeks past her due date, the obstetrician told her it was time to check into the hospital. Many women would breathe a sigh of relief that their pregnancy was ending. But for Hayes, hospital admission meant extra anxiety.

"I cried all that day and all the next. I knew I'd never sleep and kept saying over and over, 'I can't stay here. I hate it, I hate it,'" she recalls.

Whether it was a traumatic childhood experience or even the death of a loved one, hospitals can produce all sorts of emotions. If you find the delivery day trip to the hospital more than a little unnerving, Karen Kohls, a certified doula in Madison, Wis. offers these tips and tricks to get through the biggest day of your life.

Peg Louden of Summit, N.J., planned to stay at home as long as possible. By the time she and her husband arrived on the maternity floor, there wasn't time to get nervous.

"We only had 45 minutes before the birth," she says.

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