Natural hospital birth - classes necessary?

FairyDuster003 · August 2012

I'm planning to give birth without any pain medications or unnecessary interventions in the hospital. I've done a lot of research and read lots of books and my boyfriend is knowledgeable on the subject as well. We continue to discuss ways of coping with labor and handling a situation where staff becomes pushy with the meds. Also, my mother who has experienced two med free births will be with me as well. (although this is assuming that she makes the 6 hour drive in time)

With that being said, would you ladies think that it is terribly important that we attend a class to help prepare? The ones I've found in my area are a little out of budget and we need to save what we can. Of course, since this is a first for us both, I'd be willing to scrape the extra cash to go if it will significantly increase our chances of a med free birth.

beh3e · August 2012

I don't plan on taking a class for the same reason, it's just out of our budget. But I personally feel like the support of my medical staff and hospital, and the resources available to me will make a bigger difference. And reading lots and lots of birth stories :-).

aylafsu88 · August 2012

For my DH and I classes were really important. We took the Bradley classes and they really prepared us for labor and delivery. We learned the different stages of labor, positions, pain coping techniques ect. When I was actually in labor, I needed DH to be knowledgeable and prepared. I was also very calm and relaxed during my labor because I was aware of where I was at and what was going on with my body. I read lots of books (Ina may, Henci Goer ect...) to prepare but for us labor stories would not have been enough to get us through our natural labor and delivery. You should also consider the type of care you are receiving, will you have a midwife or OB. If you have a care provider who is very supportive of a natural birth, then the classes may not be as important. There are lots of women who have natural births without taking classes so it is possible!!!

AmyRI · August 2012

I don't think natural birth classes are necessary in all circumstances. In your case, it sounds like both you and your boyfriend have read up on labor. Read up on interventions as well - when they are appropriate, the important questions to ask before accepting medical intervention, etc. And have conversations with your provider about all of this as well.

For us, it was useful to take the hospital's birthing class. DH doesn't care to read up on stuff like that AT ALL, so to get him to understand the stages of labor, when to go to the hospital, what an epidural really entails, etc etc it was really useful. It was a 1-day, 5 or 6 hour thing that included a tour of our hospital and was only $50. The tour of the hospital was also helpful, so we knew what to expect, where to go, what things they offered in labor (birthing ball, squat bar, shower, tub?), and allowed us to talk with several nurses. Sure, it wasn't the best at coping techniques for pain, but it was useful in its own way.

jinnymb · August 2012

If you can't afford the Bradley Classes and you have your mom that should be okay. However, I would still take the one at the hospital. It was very informative in general especially practices geared towards that hospital. Plus my hospital was very neutral covering non-med, med, and c-section etc... They still encouraged us to go med-free and breast feed which was nice.

You never know what emergency situation will arise so I feel it's always best to be as educated as possible, especially when giving birth.

runrinserepeat · August 2012

Our Bradley teacher was very willing to negotiate cost. She didn't want the expense of the class to get in the way of people actually taking it. I'd recommend contacting some of the instructors to see if they'd be willing to give you a cheaper rate. IMO, the classes were definitely worth it, even though they seemed expensive at the time.

RockyMtnMama · August 2012

IMO a natural birth class (Bradley, hynobabies/birth, birthing from within, etc.) are critical to success for a natural birth in a hospital even if you're seeing a midwife. The $200-$300 is far better spent on classes than on most other items - I'd buy a crib/baby equipment used in order to put that extra couple hundred to classes for you and your boyfriend to attend.

badbridey · August 2012

I'm not sure that I would have been able to have a natural birth without doing our Bradley Classes. My contractions were VERY hard but my husband did an awesome job of coaching me through them. He would not have been that prepared without the class. I like that the classes make you do your homework & practice your positions every week. They also talk about nutrition and exercise which I also found really helpful. Without the class I think I would have been less confident in myself and my husband. People kept discouraging me and saying that I didn't really know how I would be able to handle the pain because I was a FTM. I realized that this was true, all I could do was make sure that I was as prepared as I could be....for us, the only way we could do this was to take the class.

brooke&ryan&baby · August 2012

I can honestly say I wasn't really feeling the birthing classes either, until I attended them. They made me feel so much more ready for the whole birthing process. I think with your first it can't hurt.

AshasaurusRex · August 2012

I've had two successful natural births and I still plan on taking a class when I get pregnant again. Is it possible to have a natural birth without a class? Yes, but a good class will help you feel more prepared and confident and have less fear going into birth which will all make for a better experience. Natural birth shouldn't be the only goal, but a positive experience too.

Hyaline · August 2012

I found it helpful to attend the hospital's prenatal class, mostly because it helped me see where their least flexible policies were so I could address them with my midwife. It's also been great for getting my husband and I on the same page in terms of giving us "talking points" to discuss. But of course none of this is necessary--you and your support person can read the same books, etc, and a tour of the LD ward should give you the same info.

I would have loved to have done Bradley or another natural childbirth class, but there's nothing in our area.

jennyelf · August 2012

All we ever took was the free class at the hospital that was an overview class and mostly useful in learning the hospital policies in L&D. I did have a med-free / intervention-free birth without much more than just reading a lot on the topic.

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