Your questions about childbirth classes

admin answers:

My husband and I attended a breastfeeding class. He, of course, thought I was nuts when I told him we both had to go but it was very informational for both of us. It give the guys a better understanding of all that goes on when you’re breastfeeding (physically and emotionally, etc.). And of course it was very beneficial for me too!

Good Luck!

admin answers:

I took a 12 week long course, and finished about 6 weeks before I delivered. It’s not like you’ll forget what you learned if you take it early, in fact it’ll give you time to practice what you learn in the class (and you’ll need to practice, trust me on that!)

admin answers:

better early than late!

there are quite a few types of childbirth classes. some of the basics are Bradley, Lamaze, Birthing From Within, Hypnobabies, and Hypnobirthing. There are probably also hospital sponsored classes, your ob or midwife may offer classes or may have a reccomendation for you. There may even be an independent instructor around.

Each of these classes wil have a different birthing philosophy to offer. Bradley is dedicated to natural, non-invasive, un-medicated birth, lamaze aims to prepare women by informing them as to their choices, Birthing From Within offers a great deal of emotional preparation. Hypnobabies and Hypnobirthing are hypnosis based methods focused on “pain-free” delivery.

here are links to each of the sites

http://www.bradleybirth.com/

http://www.lamaze.org/

http://birthingfromwithin.com/

http://www.hypnobabies.com/

http://www.hypnobirthing.com/

you should be able to find local classes if any of these seem to be what you are looking for in a class

some things to remember about a hospital or practice based class is that the class will be geared towards how that particular hospital or ob/midwife practice prefers to operate. so you may not be exposed to the full range of birthing options.

to some extent that advice applies to any class. they all have some form of bias.

some things to think about:

what kind of birthing experience does the instructor have? my instructor had experienced both vaginal and cesarean birth for example.

is the instructor certified with any of these (or any of the previously mentioned)? (not that an uncertified instructor has nothing to offer)

http://www.alace.org/

http://www.icea.org/

http://www.childbirthinternational.com/

https://secure.serve.com/birthworks/index.html

(these sites should also be able to put you in touch with instructors in your area)

will your instructor come to your birth if you choose?

how many couples will be in the class?

how do former students feel about the class?

All good classes should include a section on nutrition, cesarean prevention and procedure, emergency delivery or at home delivery, and natural comfort measures. That’s in addition to the basics of birth processes, common interventions and their risks and benefits, positions for labor and delivery, and post-partum care.

i had an independant instructor who used to be a Bradley instructor. i loved her! i think we started classes at maybe 30 weeks or thereabouts and it was a lot to cram into such a short time.

hth

admin answers:

Maybe you should make a phone call to the places that hold the classes and see if you can get information from them. We won’t know that here.

admin answers:

My insurance pays for them. you might want to see if yours does. honestly though, i took them with my first and they didn’t help much.