Natural Childbirth classes in Philadelphia

dianaha04 · July 2014

Hi everyone!! I am really interested in doing a natural childbirth in a hospital. Does anyone have any suggestions for childbirth classes that are geared towards natural birth (no meds) that includes coping techniques and exercises to get through the pains of labor? I would love to have a doula, but its not in the budget. Thanks in advance!

cottonkid · July 2014

Look into the Bradley method. It's an au natural method...That's what we are doing and there are several around the philly area to choose from! We are doing one in Bala cynwyd starting early August.

pachelbel9 · July 2014

I did Bradley classes in Mt. Airy:

https://www.bradleybirth.com/alissonkolodner

Do you have health insurance? I ask because even if they initially say they don't cover doula's, they might actually do so. I have Aetna PPO through GSK. They said they wouldn't cover my doula, but I submitted a claim anyway. She was covered as out of network, so there was a deductible involved. However, since I'd already hit my deductible limit, they ended up covering her fee in full. Just a thought! You may also want to try and find a student doula, as I believe they work for free in exchange for getting experience.

While I absolutely loved the Bradley classes, and think every first time parent should take them, I don't know how much they helped with pain coping. My doula is the person who kept me mentally centered while my husband was rubbing my back through every contraction.