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Anyone Take Childbirth Classes at West Penn?

Bubs711Bubs711
in Pittsburgh Babies

Hi all!

I live in the South Hills, and I'm an older mom pregnant with my first.  I'll be delivering at West Penn, and I was thinking about taking the childbirth class, but my DH is balking at going unless I give him a good reason (he's incredibly stubborn). 

I saw the post below about good experiences delivering at WP, but I wondered if anyone has taken any of the classes - childbirth, baby care, breastfeeding.  Were they helpful and worth it, or are they pretty standard if you know anything about "birthin' babies"?  Would they be helpful to me if I took my mom along, or is it better for DH to be there?  Or is the tour really the most important part and okay to do without the classes?

TIA!

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Re: Anyone Take Childbirth Classes at West Penn?

  • princessbmwprincessbmw member
    I'm probably going to take the classes there, but I have not prior experience.  I'm interested in seeing responses to this post.
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  • bethanyc13bethanyc13

    Hello!

    I delivered both of my children at West Penn and took classes during our first pregnancy. We took two classes: Breastfeeding and Birthing with an Epidural (or something like that). We went out to Pittsburgh Mills to take the classes since they have a WP "classroom" there and it was convenient for where we lived at the time, so we scheduled a separate hospital tour. My husband came along (begrudgingly to the BF course) but I am glad we took them. And he wasn't the only man:) Nursing for the first days in the hospital took two of us to get the right positions so I was really glad that he was there to learn and help out. Nursing can be challenging so having his support was great. The lactation consultants were good too, although I wish they'd been a bit more available. At the time, one was a man so just a heads up! It was strange at first but he did teach us a couple things. 

    Our insurance changed so unfortunately I have to deliver at Magee this time and not West Penn so I'm wishing I could deliver there we liked it so much.

     Best of luck! 

    Lilypie Pregnancy tickers
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  • ShiningLightPrenatalEducationShiningLightPrenatalEducation

    I can't speak directly for West Penn's classes, but I can speak for my own. I'm the owner and lead educator at  https://www.shininglightprenatal.com/ in Lawrenceville. 

    What I can tell you about Dads and childbirth classes is that I get more "thank you's" from Dads than I thought I ever would. Dads often balk at classes because either they are afraid of the birth process, don't know what they would do to help anyway or think this is all on you since you are the pregnant one. (OR, I have dads call me and schedule the class and drag their wives!) 

    What your husband will get out of the class is a knowledge of what's normal, what to expect from labor and birth, communication skills with both you and your care providers, massage skills, the ability to help you change positions to effectively facilitate birth and the confidence to know that he can support you well and that he'll be a great dad when the time comes.

    My classes, specifically are not "standard". I'm a prenatal yoga instructor as well as a Lamaze educator, so I have better understanding of anatomy and physiology then do many other instructors. I'm also quite skilled at teaching effective breathing and relaxation.

    I also teach Breastfeeding Essentials and Infant Care to compliment my Confident Birthing Classes. More info here: https://www.shininglightprenatal.com/programs/workshops/

     Please let me know if there is anything else I can do to help.

    Best,

    Deena Blumenfeld RYT, RPTY, LCCE

    Shining Light Prenatal Education 

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  • 9.8.07C&M9.8.07C&M

    I took baby care basics, breast feeding and child birth classes as West Penn. the baby care was a waste, there was little hands on and the instructor was poor. We watched videos of diaper changing and baths, would've been nice to practice on a doll. The breast feeding was fantastic, it was led by Sandy and really helped. The birthing class (we took the all day) was helpful as you actually learned how to breath and what to expect when you go into labor. Unfortunately, I was induced and had a c section so what we learned went down the drain but we didn't expect that when we registered so I am glad we did.  

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