We're going to a childbirth class, all the women have SOs that attend. One brings her mom since her H is either deployed or works during class hours. We've only got one class under our belts, so I can't say if it's worth it yet or not.
We're also scheduled to attend a breastfeeding class with our pedi's LC next week. I figure she'll be the one I reach to if I encounter problems, so I better get to know her now.
We did a series through our hospital on childbirth (6 weeks), and also infant care and breastfeeding.
They were really helpful! MH went, as did everyone else's in my classes. I feel like I did mine too early, though, because I'd forgotten the breathing by the time I was in labor. Maybe make sure to practice if you do them early.
Love of my life baby boy born 11/11. One and done not by choice; 3 years of TTC yielded 4 MMC and 2 CPs, through 4 IUIs and 2 IVFs. Focusing on making the world a better place instead...and running.
First time around we did a private session with a lactation consultant. It was great. Well worth it just to get across to DH how much work it would be and how he could help. Also, making the LC contact prior to birth totally helped when I needed quick advice over the phone on day 5.
We didn't do child birth classes but did have a doula who ran us through a birth rehearsal - practicing pain relief and relaxation techniques and what to expect in each stage of labor. It was good but the better value was having the doula on call by phone and then there during labor.
Post by gerberdaisy on Apr 30, 2014 12:01:42 GMT -5
I'm taking the child birth weekend seminar and infant first aid/cpr class, partner will attend. I would take more, including the child birth and breastfeeding, but the night offered is really hard for FI to attend and I don't really want to go alone. I'll see what the weekend seminar covers and if I feel I want more info then I'll just suck it up and go alone.
I did infant/child/adult first aid and CPR a few weeks ago, DH did not. A partner is required for the hospital's birthing class. DH is taking a Daddy Boot Camp class.
we're doing three -- an all day childbirth class (includes tour of hospital), a 'baby's first month at home' class and a breastfeeding class. the breastfeeding one we can get reimbursed for through our insurance so check that option out. we will both be going to all three. some of my girlfriends have said it was really helpful to have their DH at the breastfeeding class even though it seems kinda pointless. but that in the sleep deprivation in the middle of those first nights at home it was helpful to have someone else to help recall info from the class, different kinds of holds, etc that you may not think of.
First time around we did a private session with a lactation consultant. It was great. Well worth it just to get across to DH how much work it would be and how he could help. Also, making the LC contact prior to birth totally helped when I needed quick advice over the phone on day 5.
We didn't do child birth classes but did have a doula who ran us through a birth rehearsal - practicing pain relief and relaxation techniques and what to expect in each stage of labor. It was good but the better value was having the doula on call by phone and then there during labor.
How did you find the LC? I don't think I'll do BF classes at the hospital just because I'm not sure how useful it will be to learn these things in a classroom setting with no baby to actually BF. But I think that meeting one-on-one with a LC prior to giving birth could be really valuable.
Childbirth & Hospital Tour - SO HELPFUL. It was great, especially for my husband, who has done far less reading & research than I have. It really helped us understand more about the birthing process and what preferences we may have. I'm not really a "birth plan" type, but I found out I do have more opinions about things than I thought.
Childbirth & Hospital Tour - SO HELPFUL. It was great, especially for my husband, who has done far less reading & research than I have. It really helped us understand more about the birthing process and what preferences we may have. I'm not really a "birth plan" type, but I found out I do have more opinions about things than I thought.
This is great to hear. We signed up for an all-day childbirth class this Saturday. My H is so not into it. He's convinced that it's going to be stupid and we'll be surrounded by stupid people and I don't know how stupid people are because I've never left the ivory tower. LOL. Regardless, I told him we have a lot to learn and he's going to show up and play nice.
I'm also taking an infant CPR class in a few weeks. I'm going alone because H is already certified.
Childbirth & Hospital Tour - SO HELPFUL. It was great, especially for my husband, who has done far less reading & research than I have. It really helped us understand more about the birthing process and what preferences we may have. I'm not really a "birth plan" type, but I found out I do have more opinions about things than I thought.
This is great to hear. We signed up for an all-day childbirth class this Saturday. My H is so not into it. He's convinced that it's going to be stupid and we'll be surrounded by stupid people and I don't know how stupid people are because I've never left the ivory tower. LOL. Regardless, I told him we have a lot to learn and he's going to show up and play nice.
Haha, I did not find this to be the case at all. I mean, I am sure if we sat down and compared SAT scores, most people in the room were "stupider" than we are. But I mean, we were ALL first-time parents, trying to educate ourselves, and to shed some light on the huge changes happening to us. That sort of equalizes a room!
I didn't know how DH would do with the all day class either, but it really was great for him. He asked a lot more questions at our most recent midwife appointment (our practice is 4 OB's & 1 MW) after we had been at the class. It also helped both of us to tour the hospital and see where we expect to be.
This is great to hear. We signed up for an all-day childbirth class this Saturday. My H is so not into it. He's convinced that it's going to be stupid and we'll be surrounded by stupid people and I don't know how stupid people are because I've never left the ivory tower. LOL. Regardless, I told him we have a lot to learn and he's going to show up and play nice.
Haha, I did not find this to be the case at all. I mean, I am sure if we sat down and compared SAT scores, most people in the room were "stupider" than we are. But I mean, we were ALL first-time parents, trying to educate ourselves, and to shed some light on the huge changes happening to us. That sort of equalizes a room!
I didn't know how DH would do with the all day class either, but it really was great for him. He asked a lot more questions at our most recent midwife appointment (our practice is 4 OB's & 1 MW) after we had been at the class. It also helped both of us to tour the hospital and see where we expect to be.
I don't think he means SAT scores. I'm not exactly sure what he does mean, though, since I live in the bubble of academia.
I am kind of annoyed that our eight-hour class doesn't include a hospital tour. They offer hospital tours frequently and they're free, but it's just SUCH a hassle to hike up there for a THIRD time. But I don't really want my first time in L&D to be when I'm in labor.
Post by CrazyLucky on Apr 30, 2014 12:34:11 GMT -5
We did a childbirth class, Infant CPR, and breastfeeding. DH went to all three, and everyone who was at the childbirth and BF'ing class was with a significant other. My childbirth class was useless. It was heavily video based, and the instructor was new and couldn't figure out how to work the equipment. Thank God we've never had to use the education at the infant CPR class, but I am glad we took it. We took it before DS was born and recertified before DD was born. We should probably look into recertifying again soon. The BF'ing class was the most helpful. Having DH there was really good, because no one remembers everything. Learning about the different holds was helpful too. I really liked it. My only complaint about the class is that I left with teh feeling that BF'ing should be easy. So when DS and I had a lot of trouble, pain, tears, for the first few weeks, I felt like a huge failure. iw ish they had made it more clear that it's hard for some people. Also, definitely take the hospital tour so you know what to expect.
We have signed up for the nursing class and the newborn basics class. We didn't feel like it was necessary to sign up for a child birth class. I feel like I get a lot of info from prenatal yoga, and other classmates have stated they learned nothing new in the child birth class that we haven't discussed in prenatal yoga.
Also, I'm pretty laid back regarding my delivery, so that's also why I didn't feel like a child birth class was necessary.
Hmm I'll have to check out the LC and CPR classes. I didn't think about that.
I'm not really interested in a child birth one. I've had friends that took it and said yes they learned but it wasn't like they needed it to survive birth. I also sat in with my SIL when she gave birth so pretty much know what happens (and I know I'm at a high risk of a c section anyway).
First time around we did a private session with a lactation consultant. It was great. Well worth it just to get across to DH how much work it would be and how he could help. Also, making the LC contact prior to birth totally helped when I needed quick advice over the phone on day 5.
We didn't do child birth classes but did have a doula who ran us through a birth rehearsal - practicing pain relief and relaxation techniques and what to expect in each stage of labor. It was good but the better value was having the doula on call by phone and then there during labor.
How did you find the LC? I don't think I'll do BF classes at the hospital just because I'm not sure how useful it will be to learn these things in a classroom setting with no baby to actually BF. But I think that meeting one-on-one with a LC prior to giving birth could be really valuable.
The doula we hired referred us to her after we said we weren't doing any classes. The LC was amazing and consulted for the WHO. After I had DS I kept meeting other women who had been helped by her.
Definitely ask around at your OB or midwife for LCs in the area. Was so helpful to have someone to call for advice over the phone or a home visit.
Post by sillygoosegirl on Apr 30, 2014 15:01:29 GMT -5
It's too early for classes for me (I think), but my first visit to the clinic was a group informational session. They said they did it on one night for women who were coming alone, and another night for women who were bringing a partner.
We did a childbirth class through the hospital and had signed up for a breastfeeding class. My son was born early, before we were supposed to go to the breastfeeding class so we missed that one. The childbirth class was great and we learned so much that came in handy during the birth process. My husband came with and was going to come with to the BF class. Everyone else had their spouse with them as well. The class encouraged bringing your support person.
We did a hospital "virtual" tour, a baby care and breastfeeding course, and a birthing class offered by my OB's office. Baby care & breastfeeding was 5 hours and somewhat helpful, but my DH felt everything important could have been compressed into about 2 hours. The birthing course was just one day for a few hours and it was informative, particularly for DH who hasn't been reading anything. The tour was good just for knowing what to expect and where to go.
Post by Wonderwall on Apr 30, 2014 18:52:37 GMT -5
Stupid app cut me off... ANYWAY I felt like going to the class helped the both of us be on the same page about things- the hubs doesn't read the baby books so it was nice to be at a class where we both heard and saw the same things.
We walked out being in cahoots about our "birth plan" (har har) and just generally feeling like we knew what to expect...
Post by picksthemusic on Apr 30, 2014 18:56:06 GMT -5
We took the Day About Baby at the hospital where I delivered (it's a great class for FTPs), BrioBirth (a now-defunct natural childbirth class related to Bradley and Hypnobabies/Hypnobirthing), and that was it.
I'm considering doing a Hypnobirthing class, but I may just get the home practice kit and see how that goes.
I've had friends that took it and said yes they learned but it wasn't like they needed it to survive birth.
This was what a lot of my friends told me also, and it was one of the reasons we ultimately didn't do a childbirth class (that plus J's and my crazy work schedule not matching up at all with any of the classes offered near here). We also didn't do the baby care class (again, plenty of friends told us that it wasn't something we needed to survive early parenthood...when AJ was tiny we never felt like we missed something by not taking it) or the breastfeeding class (my OB's idea-she said the hospital I was delivering at had great LCs in the hospital and on call, plus I had the weekly breastfeeding support group I could go to with issues). I don't regret not taking the classes but then again both J and I are fairly laid back, "we'll figure it out on our own or just ask someone and not sweat it otherwise" types.
One class I definitely would have taken was Infant CPR, but I'm already Infant/Child/Adult CPR certified through work and had just gone through recertification a couple of months before I gave birth.
Post by curbsideprophet on Apr 30, 2014 21:58:35 GMT -5
The first time around we took Bradley classes. I definitely thought they were worth it. DH did go with me and he thought they were worth it as well.
From the hospital we took breastfeeding classes and infant CPR and the hospital tour. DH attended all of those as well. The breastfeeding classes were okay, but there is really only so much you can get from a class.
This time the only thing we have done so far is taken DD to the Big Brother/Big Sister class at the hospital.
I did a BF class through our hospital. The registration specifically said "Women Only" yet some women bought their husbands and some didn't. Then a few that didn't texted their husbands who showed up halfway through the class and kept us over ( by almost an hour!) by asking questions we covered in the beginning. I was mildly annoyed by that.
I would have preferred the BF class be women only because I feel like we could have been more open. For the most part, the same LC's will give us the same more detailed info with our H's present once we deliver.
My H and I took an express childbirth class at my OB's office. It was put on by a labor-and-delivery nurse who also is a doula. It was great -- 4 hours on a Saturday morning and it covered all the basics. We were choosing between that and a 10-hour, weekend-long class at the hospital (same price). The hospital class would have covered more breastfeeding and basic childcare, but as the nurse/doula said at our express class, 80 percent of the nurses at the hospital where I'm delivering are certified lactation consultants and there are daily breastfeeding classes. The hospital also has a "baby friendly" designation and pushes breastfeeding, hardcore. So I think we'll be covered. I also just finished two breastfeeding books (Ina May's Guide to Breast Feeding and The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding). As for childcare basics, I have two nephews with whom I am obsessed and I have plenty of diaper changing and bathing experience.
I kind of wish we made time for a CPR class, but maybe we can do that soon.
We also went to a presentation at the hospital about when you know you're in labor and what to do/where you go when you come in/hospital policies, etc. It was in lieu of a tour, which my hospital does not offer anymore. It was free and my husband, who is a big cynic, thought it was extremely helpful.