Classes
Couples learn to be informed decision makers who make the best choices for their family during pregnancy & childbirth. Learning about nutrition, exercise, the natural process of labor & birth, the pros & cons of medical interventions, relaxation techniques, laboring positions, how your partner plays an active role during pregnancy & birth, and basic postnatal care are just some of the benefits of these classes. The ultimate goal is for an unmedicated vaginal birth, though variations and complications will certainly be covered.
Classes are:
- Held one day each week for a consecutive 8 weeks, each lasting about 2.5 hours.
- Small in size with no more than 6 couples (this helps the learning process, ensures everyone is involved and able to get questions answered, and allows for class camaraderie)
- To generally consist of lecture, interactive learning & discussion, video, and exercise & relaxation practice
- Taken with the person you intend to have with you during labor—typically the father but a committed friend or other family member is great too. Your partner will be also be very involved in learning about pregnancy, labor & birth, and how to best support you
- Are held in Seattle’s Eastside (Sammamish) and easily accessible from Redmond, Issaquah, and Bellevue
Classes will teach couples:
- To trust their own bodies in the natural birthing process
- How to work with the body to make labor most efficient through relaxation and various laboring positions
- Good nutrition and how it can affect outcomes
- Physical preparation through exercises helpful during pregnancy, birth, and into postpartum
- The birth stages and what is happening for mother & baby during them
- Controversies in childbirth: pros & cons, how to make informed decisions
- Variations & complications
- How the partner (most often but not always the father) can play an active role
- Basic postnatal care
Crash Courses
A “Crash Course” is a shortened series, typically lasting 4 weeks and intended for:
- couples closing in on their due date without time for a longer course
- couples signed up for a hospital affiliated course that would like to learn from an unaffiliated source as well
- couples who have other reasons for needing this type of series
