Childbirth class- Is it worthwhile or a waste of time?

beachgirl03

I've been hearing mixed reviews from my female friends and family about childbirth classes. Some highly recommend taking it while other say that your personal childbirth experience is so unique that the class is a waste of time. I just wanted to get some opinions on what some of the moms and moms to be on this board thought. Thanks in advance!

natalie115

We took one through our hospital and I thought it was good. That being said all the labor stuff that we went over and how DH should/could be helping totally went out the window come go time and DH forgot everything. I'm still glad we went though and would suggest them for first time parents.

Chichigo

What type of class are you planning, and what is your goal? We wanted a 100% natural, unmedicated birth. Bradley classes were a big help in teaching my husband how to coach me and in letting us know what to expect so we were less inclined to seek interventions.

FirstTimeDaddy81

I haven't done a child birth class yet, but I'm sure my wife and I are going to.  If you're a first time parent, I'd have to assume you'll pick up a few things that will be helpful.  Even if you aren't able to stick to the pregnancy plan, I'm sure you'll be more prepared for the big day when it finally comes. 

thechickencoop

We did a two day one at the hospital where I delivered (it was two Sunday afternoons), and it was ok.  We knew that I was going to be induced around 37-38 weeks so a lot of the contraction timing/how to know when to go to the hospital/etc stuff was irrelevant, but I still found it all interesting.  Both H and I are 'information gatherers' though so it's always like, the more we know, then the better off we are (yea...we're dorks lol). 

Anyway, I was induced and didn't have any contractions/nada until my water broke almost 24 hours later so until that point we were just hanging out like we were at the hospital just to watch movies.  When my water broke that when the contractions started and at that point we both realized we didn't retain anything from the class so we just relied on the nurses to help with breathing/calming/etc until my epidural kicked in.  

::shrug:: so for us, it was a wash, but I had kind of an atypical end of pregnancy and induction, so there's that.  I think depending on your birth plan will determine if classes will help, or what type to even look for

ashiscute

I agree with PP that it depends on what type of birth you want. If you are hoping to go unmedicated then definitely.

We did ours through the hospital and it included a tour, a breastfeeding class, and newborn care on top of labor info. I found it very helpful.

mamayo26

I think the birthing class was more helpful than the bringing baby home class, we also got a hospital tour (which I'm sure you can get outside of the class), and we did a condensed class...Friday night and Satruday day--who the hell has time to go 1 night a week for 8 weeks...so consider that too.

blu-eyedwife

I think they're more "hospital dependent" rather than "experience dependent."  I would talk to women who took the exact classes you're thinking of and see what they said.  Mine were awesome, but my hospital is a "Women's Hospital" so they covered every aspect of childbirth, both with and without medications as well as every possible scenario that could occur and tips regarding the hospital itself.  I've found that my friends who gave birth at other hospitals had less than stellar experiences at their birth classes.

baloneydisc

I was put on bed rest halfway through our class, but what we did learn was very helpful during labor. I agree with PP that you should talk to women who have taken the same class at the same location you're looking at and see what they thought.

jlovesky

We took a class through our hospital with my first pregnancy. It was pretty basic info but we found it helpful with it being our first..our class also included a tour of the birthing area of the hospital so we really enjoyed it!

Schnurette

We ended up doing ours online - otherwise we would have had to take time off work to go and like you had heard sort of mixed reviews.

They sent us all the information and a bunch of videos by e-mail and then there were little quizzes to do at the end of each video.

It was a waste of time and only served to piss me off because DH wouldn't participate at all (he had pushed really hard to do it online and then wouldn't watch the videos so it just caused arguements).

pbnugget

FirstTimeDaddy81 said:

I haven't done a child birth class yet, but I'm sure my wife and I are going to.  If you're a first time parent, I'd have to assume you'll pick up a few things that will be helpful.  Even if you aren't able to stick to the pregnancy plan, I'm sure you'll be more prepared for the big day when it finally comes. 

I just love having the other half of the cooking/birthing/parenting team check in here. There should be more dads. 

erikanisha

I personally think its a waste of time unless your a FTM. You learn phases of labor, medication options, and breathing techniques which is helpful but I didn't use anything I learned in my class when it came down to delivery. Everything just went too fast for me to remember or care about how to breathe, etc.Things don't always work out as planned but I guess its good to have under your belt. 

heatheremanderson

I am lucky. We are able to do one free of charge through the city online. It is promoted through the hospital itself and you actually have contact directly with experienced RN's, OB's and other health personnel that will/might be involved with the birthing process.

The program we are doing has a lot of information on different stages of pregnancy, testing (and explaination of such), financial considerations, labor and delivery (and discusses options) and post parturm care for both you and the baby including breast feeding.

The hospital has in class programs at a fee you can do (which is in essense a repeat of the course I am taking) plus women have the option of the breastfeeding clinic/course free of charge at the time of registration through the hospital.

Things maybe a bit different in how things are layed out/covered in the states however.

pixieprincss

If you are planning a medicated delivery with your provider calling all the shots, I'd still take something basic because you need to know how to handle the hours of labor before you can even be admitted, also your partner may want to know what to expect and how to support you. If you would like an unmedicated delivery or to understand the pros and cons of various interventions, a detailed class will be beneficial (this book is a great one for understanding why being an educated patient/consumer can benefit your body and baby).  We did the very in-depth Bradley classes which was 12 weeks, and we loved it. My first labor was three days long, so we put all of that work into practice, plus it was nice to have a built-in date each week that facilitated conversations about pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding, etc. as a couple and make friends in the same season of life.

beachgirl03

Thank you everyone! The class is free through our Dr's office so we don't have much to lose but me and DH would have to take time off work which I why I was wondering if it was even worth it. I've read a book about pregnancy, birth, and post partum so I feel like I have some idea but my DH has no idea so if anything I feel like he'd benefit from it. We actually already had a tour (which I do recommend) since we know someone that works in Labor in Delivery.