FTM, 35 weeks pregnant, ?s about classes

KaylaC0514 · July 2012

I'm planning an in hospital water birth and I have a midwife and doula. My husband will also be there during labor. I haven't taken any childbirth, parenting, or breastfeeding classes. I was enrolled but then I switched hospitals and haven't called on the classes yet.

I don't really know much about childbirth and water birth. But I feel like theres only so much you can do to "prepare" for labor since you don't know how its going to go for you personally. I have no interest in taking classes since my husband wont be able to go along and it's difficult for me to go by myself since we share a vehicle.

I've seen the Business of Being Born, done quite a bit of online research on water birth. I'm just going with the idea that I trust my body and that childbirth is normal and everything will be okay. I'm planning on meditating and focusing on my breathing for pain management and I figure that my midwife and doula will have other suggestions during labor.

Am I not prepared enough? Should I take some classes or do more research? I'm not much of a book reader. Do I need to have more of a "plan"?

beachhippiemama · July 2012

Find a way to take some classes. I am delivering naturally with my OBGYN, but he recommended that I take natural birth classes with a doula in the area; he said her classes are the best in my area. I would talk to your doula and midwife about this and see what they think.

cdelbove · July 2012

I did not take any classes either but I read a lot of birth stories online. My doula did meet with me a few times to go over the stages of labor and answer any questions I had. I was planning to go to the hospital with my doula and midwife but I labored at home to the point that I physically couldn't get in the car! I ended up with a home birth. As long as there are no complications your body knows what to do and you just need to roll with it. I think the key is to stay mentally relaxed and calm. Breath thru the contractions and rest mentally in between. You can do it!!

AmyRI · July 2012

I don't think classes are necessary, but since you don't like reading and haven't looked into childbirth a lot, I would take a class.

You really should be familiar with the stages of labor and how to cope with each one, as well as the typical hospital interventions offered and their pros and cons so you can make informed decisions if things don't go exactly as planned. The doula will help with this, but in a hospital environment, I think it's important that you think things through beforehand while you are thinking clearly.

And your DH should really try to do the same. Otherwise your doula will be your only support person and he might end up feeling like a fish out of water. There's no way he can advocate for you if he doesn't know what's going on.

Trusting your body is a great and natural thing to do. But sometimes things go wrong, and you need to prepare for those situations, too. Otherwise you might end up very disappointed in your birth instead of feeling like you were in control no matter the outcome.

PansyPants · July 2012

I very strongly feel that natural birth classes are for the benefit of the husband. Anything you need to learn can be done by reading these boards, asking your doula for birth video recommendations (every doula I know has a HUGE lending library of material), discussing your instincts about birth with your midwife, and reading lots of birth stories.

For me, natural birth was about internalizing the knowledge that other woman had done it and that I could do it too. About having heard about dozens of experiences and embracing that mine would be unique to me and my baby.

When you feel that you've reached that point and you feel confident in your knowledge, you'll be prepared.

Birth is the hardest work you'll ever do and it's good to understand that ahead of time so there aren't any surprises.

drpayne · July 2012

PansyPants:
I very strongly feel that natural birth classes are for the benefit of the husband. Anything you need to learn can be done by reading these boards, asking your doula for birth video recommendations (every doula I know has a HUGE lending library of material), discussing your instincts about birth with your midwife, and reading lots of birth stories.
For me, natural birth was about internalizing the knowledge that other woman had done it and that I could do it too. About having heard about dozens of experiences and embracing that mine would be unique to me and my baby.
When you feel that you've reached that point and you feel confident in your knowledge, you'll be prepared.
Birth is the hardest work you'll ever do and it's good to understand that ahead of time so there aren't any surprises.

This. I don't feel like I learned much in the classes I hadn't read about but I liked getting DH involved.

As a PP mentioned, be familiar with the stages of labor, as well as possible complications and interventions.

RockyMtnMama · July 2012

drpayne:
PansyPants:

I very strongly feel that natural birth classes are for the benefit of the husband. Anything you need to learn can be done by reading these boards, asking your doula for birth video recommendations (every doula I know has a HUGE lending library of material), discussing your instincts about birth with your midwife, and reading lots of birth stories.

For me, natural birth was about internalizing the knowledge that other woman had done it and that I could do it too. About having heard about dozens of experiences and embracing that mine would be unique to me and my baby.

When you feel that you've reached that point and you feel confident in your knowledge, you'll be prepared.

Birth is the hardest work you'll ever do and it's good to understand that ahead of time so there aren't any surprises.

This. I don't feel like I learned much in the classes I hadn't read about but I liked getting DH involved.

As a PP mentioned, be familiar with the stages of labor, as well as possible complications and interventions.

That's somewhat true about DH's learning a lot more, except that it sounds like you haven't read much on natural birth besides seeing a movie and looking at births online. Those are helpful, but not as informative - just know that most of those women in the videos armed themselves with lots of knowlege in addition to trusting their bodies.

I think it's important that you either read a couple of books (Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way has a good explanation of the stages of labor or In May's Guide to Childbirth has great birth stories and all the the stages of labor) or go to a class or two. You'll need a little more knowledge than you have to understand the marathon that first births (water or not) can be. Trusting your body is great, but also knowledge is power.

phq2011 · July 2012

I certainly would try to be more prepared, especially if you are planning on natural birth. There are so many variations that you and your husband should talk about before the pressure of labor (pun not intended). Example, Dr. Bradley, author of The Husband Coached Childbirth explains how women's emotions change throughout labor. By transition, he says women will feel the most self-doubt. I personally want my support team to be aware of this possibility and help me through it, but I also want to feel physically and mentally ready for it. Also, finding out the true needs of an emergency would help, when you or your baby might actually be in distress vs. just trying to speed up labor and delivery. When can you use natural methods instead of interventions? We don't necessarily know these by instinct and being informed by classes and books helps more than videos or brief articles.

kali55 · July 2012

I didn't take any classes, other than a psychology class on removing fear from labor and birth. I wish that I had taken some sort of class on coping techniques. I did read "Birthing from Within" which I found helpful in labor

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