birthing classes

jasrun80 · April 2010

are you taking them?

when?

and why?

this is my first but part of me just wants to let nature take its path-- another side wants me to know EVERYTHING and have a plan,,, is that what you learn at the classes-- or breathing? i am a yoga fanatic and also feel like i know how to calm myself -- but its pretty clear my hubs doesnt ! lol!

jennygirlmt · April 2010

It's my first so we are taking one. Our hospital only offered one, so I don't think it is specicially for natural childbirth, I just assume I'll learn all the general things that happen. I'm a huge planner but interestingly for this delivery I'm not going in with a plan more than "Get the baby out" :-)

I figure it can't hurt and it will be good for DH, despite him thinking the class is all for me and that he doesn't want to be there :-)

chicagoshannon · April 2010

We took one with our first. I didn't need it but wanted DH to take it (I was an L&D nurse so knew about all of it). We just took a general birth class and learned about the process and baby care. We also took a breastfeeding class. Honestly the BFing class wasn't really helpful. I wish they offered the BFing class AFTER the baby. Taking if before it's just too hard to imagine questions and problems that may come up.

This time I signed DD up for a sibling class. It's just 1 day for 2 hours but she'll get to learn about the baby and have a tour of the unit.

Mrs.B6302007 · April 2010

We're doing ours in May. I hoped it would be earlier but our hospital is huge and they booked up ages ago. We're doing it for general purposes but mainly because it's part of our insurance well-baby program. If we complete all the steps, they reimburse us $250 of our copay which is a nice incentive.

Halen0804 · April 2010

I looked into a variety of classes and decided Hypnobirthing was the best fit for DH and me. I am a school social worker who works with mentally ill kids. I use a lot of deep breathing and guided imagery with my students to teach them coping skills. So the Hypnobirthing fit right in with my way of thinking. I also really wanted to go natural and wanted a class that didn't just teach how to breath, but how to reframe the way you think about the birthing process. I think it really helped DH to feel more comfortable with the brithing process too (he's very very nervous!).

CoastieWife08 · April 2010

Yes, we did. We took a bootcamp weekend class a couple of weekends ago.

Why? 1. it is a requirement at the midwifery center where I'm delivering that all moms who haven't had an unmedicated birth take a med-free birth-centered class. 2. We didn't take a class with our last pregnancy, and we felt very unprepared and I wish we had.

What did we learn? You can see an outline here: https://www.birthinsightva.com/?page_id=11

I can't even begin to tell you how much better both DH & I feel after that class. We learned a ton of things we didn't know, even with my obsession with studying natural birth and having gone through a birth before.

I would never take a hospital-based class, though. That's just me. Those seem to be more focused on hospital policies and explaining pain meds and interventions (which we did do in our class, but not in-depth). If you're aiming for a med-free birth, then you need to take a class centered on those principles that is taught by people who have been through a med-free birth themselves and witnessed others.

angiek941 · April 2010

Ours isn't really a labor class it's more of what to expect at the hospital, a tour, etc. We start them next week.

Pocky873 · April 2010

Our hospital offered childbirth, breastfeeding and newborn care classes, but they were not available at times when DH and I could both attend, so we just decided to buy DVDs from an RN/LC who used to work at our hospital (and who was recommended by my OB). We finished watching the childbirth DVD a couple of weekends ago, but haven't watched the BF or newborn care ones yet. I'm a first-time mom and I'm someone who compulsively researches everything, so I wanted to make sure that I knew what I was in for. It was very helpful and the DVDs were quite entertaining.

carolrohrsetzer · April 2010

We took ours about a month ago and it was very helpful for me and DH, I was a little scared it would get too much information and it would scare me more than help but we ended up getting a lot of good information. A lot of questions were answered and helped us decide on what will work for us when the Big day comes.

I am amazed on how much DH got from that class, I thought he was just sitting there spacing out for a while but now and then he comes and says something we learned on the class and it is so cute !

teach2183 · April 2010

We took one with DD. The 2 best things that came out of the class - tour and meeting a l&d nurse. It also helped DH to know what to expect andit was good to hear about the possible interventions. The nurse ended helping me refuse pitocin upon arrival and I got the delivery I wanted because of it. In fact, we were there this weekend and she remembered us!

amanda31H · April 2010

We took a class for multiples that included child birth. It definitely wasn't just about breathing, although that was part of it. Our class covered what to expect if you have a C-Section, what to expect if you have a vaginal delivery - lots of topics. We also took a BF class, which I thought was really helpful, and a hospital tour.

My husband felt much more comfortable after the classes, and so did I, even though I've been around babies all my life and have been present at the birth of my girlfriend's two babies.

EDIT - I didn't take the class to "have a plan." My plan is to go with the flow. But gettting educated on multiple aspects of child birth and child care I think will help me to do so.

doremi29 · April 2010

We took ours about a month ago. My favorite part was touring Labor and Delivery.

What did I learn?- pretty much nothing other than the hospital likes you to time contractions from the start of one to the start of the next and that after 8pm, we should enter though the ER entrance (nothing crutial)

What did DH learn- a lot!! and he got really excited about everything. The woman teaching the class said something about it's obviously best to make it atleast 36 weeks for the baby's sake- now there we've hit that mark, he's thinking it's going to be any day now (I say I'm going to go late!)

boyscout8 · April 2010

I took one this past weekend (DH was unable to attend) and I'm glad I went. A lot of the stuff I already knew, but I feel much more calm now that I know more about the process. My class went over relaxation methods, some breathing techniques, hospital policy, and she also went over both medicated and non medicated births.

detroitblondie · April 2010

We did with my first son and it was AWESOME- but I think that it was so good because the instructor was totally all about it and so informative. It was a Lamaze class, we took it around 37 weeks, and mainly to learn what to expect and how to cope. It was hands-down worth it. I walked away from the class totally motivated to deliver and both my husband and I agreed that we felt like no matter what would be thrown our way during L&D we'd be ready. I highly recommend waiting until the very end of your pregnancy as well- like anytime after 32 weeks or so. That way everything is fresh in your mind and it gets you psyched up for your babies arrival. HTH!

detroitblondie · April 2010

CoastieWife08:
Yes, we did. We took a bootcamp weekend class a couple of weekends ago.
Why? 1. it is a requirement at the midwifery center where I'm delivering that all moms who haven't had an unmedicated birth take a med-free birth-centered class. 2. We didn't take a class with our last pregnancy, and we felt very unprepared and I wish we had.
What did we learn? You can see an outline here: https://www.birthinsightva.com/?page_id=11
I can't even begin to tell you how much better both DH & I feel after that class. We learned a ton of things we didn't know, even with my obsession with studying natural birth and having gone through a birth before.
I would never take a hospital-based class, though. That's just me. Those seem to be more focused on hospital policies and explaining pain meds and interventions (which we did do in our class, but not in-depth). If you're aiming for a med-free birth, then you need to take a class centered on those principles that is taught by people who have been through a med-free birth themselves and witnessed others.

This isn't necessarily true- I think our hospital only offered Lamaze classes and while they did cover all the different kinds of medications & interventions available it certainly didn't focus on it. Instead, the focus was being as prepared as possible for childbirth with an emphasis on natural labor & delivery. The instructor totally encouraged us to trust that our bodies can deliver without medical intervention. However, they still covered all the different options for "just in case scenarios". I walked away from the class totally motivated and fully hoping to labor & deliver completely natural. After 13 hours of totally natural labor I eventually lost control and begged for help. I was so glad to have already known what my options were and a general idea of what to expect from them.

kayteatrudeau · April 2010

We took them at our hospital and they were totally medical based which was really upsetting. It was all about comfortable positions (which was cool but a little out there for me) and then the last class was about medications, medical intervention and pain management.

The very best thing I did for our family was read Birthing From Within. It's all about exactly what you mention - letting nature take it's path. Yes, it's going to hurt but we will all survive. Yes, there are emergencies but there are also a ton of avoidable C-sections. FInding a doula was the best thing for us. Someone who can calm me down and be there for me.

Do whatever you need to prepare. But know that (as a Kundalini yoga teacher speaking here) use your long deep breathing (no fire breathing) and poses (with support bolsters) to help your baby into this world. Every yogi that I know that gave birth had an incredible experience. I think in many ways we are very much connected to our subtle body changes so we accept the process involved. But also prepare yourself for everything not going as planned. My sister threw her birth plan out the window after the first two hours and went with where her body was leading her. Best firth of three.

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