D.C. Area Babies
jk382
member
Childbirth Classes in Northern Virginia
jk382
member
I am interested in finding a childbirth class in Northern Virginia. When you google the topic, nothing great comes up. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!
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Re: Childbirth Classes in Northern Virginia
Congratulations on your pregnancy!
What kind of class are you looking for? There are classes geared towards medicated and unmedicated birth.
There are hospital-based classes that cover general childbirth topics and standard hospital procedures (including medications and interventions that are available for pain management and augmentation of labor). If you are planning a hospital-based, medicated birth, you can contact the hospital and get their classes schedule.
There are also a variety of classes in our area for women planning unmedicated birth. I teach HypnoBirthing, which uses hypnosis techniques to help mom remain relaxed and have a comfortable birth. The premise is fear leads to tension in the body, which then causes pain; eliminate the fear and provide mom with tools to stay profoundly relaxed, and childbirth can be a painless, comfortable, easy experience.
Bradley is another method of ummedicated childbirth. Bradley teaches moms to control the pain of childbirth by both understanding the change that is taking place and embracing the pain as purposeful.
Other classes geared towards unmedicated birth available in N.Va include: Brio Birth, BirthWorks. HypnoBabies is a hybrid of HypnoBirthing and Bradley. Most of the moms who use this method do a home study rather than taking a class. I've heard that the Lamaze offerings in the DC area have migrated more towards the needs of moms planning medicated births.
I'm happy to answer any questions about HypnoBirthing or Bradley (I took Bradley when pregnant with my first child). There is also a Bradley instructor on this board - maybe she will chime in as well! Lots of ladies here have taken the hospital-based classes as well, so if you are planning a hospital-based, medicated birth, post which hospital you are going to, someone may be able to respond.
HTH!
I checked the closest hospitals first. Personally I think they are kind of expensive so we skipped at formal childbirth class and watched Laugh and Learn about Childbirth DVD we checked out from the library. I kind of miss having an in class situation but money is tight!!
Good luck finding a class that works for you!!
My BFP Chart
Becoming a better role model for my daughter, one day at a time
The newly opened NOVA Birth Center in Chantilly has a Bradley Method course starting in August that will be on Saturdays. It runs for 12 weeks, costs $350 but you can do a payment plan.
Depending on where you live, you can find a Bradley method instructor here: https://www.bradleybirth.com/Directory.aspx
If you want a lamaze style class, which my mother successfully used for 4 natural childbirths in hospitals, then I think that's covered by most hospital classes. INOVA offers courses at all of their hospitals. Even though we're using Bradley, we'll probably still take baby care, baby massage, and maybe 1 other at the local hospital.
Whatever method you choose, I think the most important piece is to practice with your partner every day. We want the relaxation methods we've choosen to be our natural reactions that we don't even have to think about. Good luck!
One word of caution about signing up for classes with INOVA - do it early. I started looking in May for classes in July and everything (i.e., child care and breastfeeding) during dates/times we could make was already booked. As a result, we ended up taking those classes from Momease. We took them at GW, but they also offer classes in Alexandria. I thought the Momease offered classes were good.
Similarly, I waited kind of late to start really looking for a Bradley instructor. The start and end dates for a lot of the convenient times (for us) were already booked. So if you do the research and know that you want Bradley, don't wait until you're actually ready to start the class to sign up.